NATO's regional mission
By
Salama A Salama
When NATO is placed in charge of forcibly transforming the countries of the region into democracies mirroring the American model, a new situation will have emerged. The US, no longer satisfied with presenting initiatives and calling on Arab regimes to reform their political systems, is now proposing a more comprehensive initiative which US President George Bush is soon expected to announce.
The proposal aims at outlining a roadmap for changes across the Arab world based on democracy and respect for human rights. US National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice trailed the initiative during a recent meeting in Europe. She detailed the means of bringing about the desired changes, including the opening of NATO offices in the region's capitals which will then be put in charge of promoting the plan.
When newspapers picked up the story the reports did not generate much attention since they came at a time when several other initiatives were on the table concerning the Middle East and changes to US military strategy in Iraq. The imposition of democracy by force, and through the offices of NATO, has subsequently emerged as a serious plan. In a recent interview with an Italian newspaper Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi defended US intervention in Iraq, adding that the democratic community must always be ready to use force when it is vital to the export of democracy and freedom.
There are several ways Western countries can -- and should -- impose their values, Berlusconi noted, including economic sanctions on non-democratic regimes. International law can also be amended to accommodate new circumstances, he added.
The danger of such statements by the Italian prime minister -- Italy is the current chair of the European Union -- is that they come at a time when the US is trying to involve NATO in Iraq, giving the alliance a large role in enforcing security and defeating Iraqi resistance, a request made in Colin Powell's speech at the European Security and Defence Conference, attended by 26 NATO ministers.
Berlusconi, it appears, has learned nothing from the deaths of 19 Italian soldiers in Iraq. He is risking political credibility by jumping on the US bandwagon while simultaneously developing growing ties with Israel. EU countries, led by France and Germany, are meanwhile trying to define NATO's role in order to prevent the alliance from becoming a military instrument to defend US interests. Italy, under the leadership of Berlusconi, and supported by Spain and Poland, is seeking to expand NATO's involvement in Iraq into a supportive military, political and cultural role. Washington is counting on the fact that the eastward expansion of the EU, which will see the number of member states grow to 25, will lead to the isolation of France and Germany and limit their influence.
Such developments are happening when it is increasingly apparent that the pressures of US presidential elections allow the Bush administration no room to become involved in any serious efforts to pressure Israel into adopting the flexibility required to re-launch peace negotiations with the Palestinians. Israel has already rejected talk of a truce proposed by Palestinian factions by which they would halt operations against Israeli civilians in return for an end to Israeli operations in the occupied territories. Against this backdrop it is easy to understand why Rice should seek to prioritise the democratisation of Middle East states. That way, the Palestinian- Israeli conflict can be indefinitely deferred.
