Rice Says U.S. Support for Middle East Democracy Is Nonnegotiable
By David McKeeby
USINFO Staff Writer

Washington -- Responding to calls for the United States to engage Iran and Syria to help secure Iraq, U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said December 14 that even though diplomatic negotiation may be built on artful compromise, Iran and Syria must understand that U.S. support for democracy in the region is nonnegotiable.

"If they have an interest in a stable Iraq, they'll do it anyway," Rice told the Washington Post editorial board, and should not expect "compensation," such as support for Syria's hope of international acceptance of a rollback of Lebanon's democratic government by Hezbollah, or for Iran's desire to end U.N. deliberations over sanctions on Tehran's suspected nuclear weapons program.

Rice also said that although the White House continues its comprehensive review of U.S. policy in Iraq and any new course might be a departure and an evolution in current operations, there will be no change in the Bush administration's central objective: a democratic Iraq that can sustain, govern and defend itself. (See related article)  

To this end, she said, Shiite, Sunni and Kurdish political leaders are working with Iraq's prime minister to build a moderate center and to move together to confront the forces of extremism perpetrating sectarian violence in and around Baghdad, Iraq. (See related article)

"Iraqis are really the only ones, ultimately, who can solve the sectarian problem," Rice said. "We can help. We can support. We can do a lot of things. But ultimately they are the ones who can solve it."

The region's new strategic context also gives rise to another top U.S. priority, Rice said: the pursuit of a two-state solution for Israel and the Palestinians.

"We're going to go to the Middle East a lot next year," Rice said.

Today, she said, mainstream Arab states would like to see a resolution to the long-standing conflict, and President Bush's policy since 2001 of a two-state solution, which also has been accepted by Israel, is the way to move forward. (See related article)

It will be a long road of tough negotiations, Rice said, but "in the next two years nothing would be better than to really put the time and energy into trying ... to show people in the international community that this new strategic context has the capability of being a truly more stable and democratic one than the one that was left."

U.S. COMMITMENT TO DEMOCRACY IN REGION UNCHANGED

The United States remains committed to supporting people across the Middle East who reject extremism and embrace democracy, Rice said.

Across the region, she said, a "new strategic context" is taking shape from the convergence of greater political freedoms and a debate within Islam about the role of religion in politics and society.

As a result, mainstream states such as Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt and the Gulf states that are committed to progressive reforms now find themselves confronted by more extreme views from countries such as Iran and Syria as well as from groups like Hezbollah and Hamas. (See related article)

This new strategic context unites several seemingly disparate conflicts in the region, Rice said, including the ongoing violence between Iraq's Shiites and Sunnis, efforts to topple Lebanon's democratically elected government, and moves to block a two-state solution for Israelis and Palestinians.

In contrast to these products of extremism, democratic reforms, such as municipal elections in Saudi Arabia, qualifying women to vote in Kuwait, and similar developments in Bahrain, Oman, Morocco and Jordan, are bringing greater stability and prosperity to mainstream Arab states. (See related article)

• A transcript of Rice's remarks is available on the State Department Web site.

• For more information, see Middle East and North Africa

• The Washington File is a product of the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State Web site.

• Iraq Update

• Iraq's Political Process