Iran and the End of the Middle East
In the middle-to-long term, the Iranian state can't keep ignoring that democracy and human rights, not independence alone, are the measure of successful governance in the Arab world.
What’s the Latest Development?
What we are witnessing is the end of the “Middle East” (which translates as the end of dependency on the “West”), and the second coming of independence, writes, Arshin Adib-Moghaddam. He also reminds readers that it was a U. S. naval officer who invented the region and called it the “Middle East”.
What’s the Big Idea?
Iranians have been plotting their own intifada to reform the state for quite some time now and their politicians are well aware that democracy and human rights, not only independence, are the measure of successful governance in the Arab and Islamic worlds. “In the middle-to-long term, the Iranian state, which perceives itself a major player in this area, can’t be oblivious to that brave new world and its anti-authoritarian norms.”
