President Obama's statement on Egypt

Posted By Josh Rogin Thursday, February 10, 2011 - 7:53 PM Share

The Egyptian people have been told that there was a transition of authority, but it is not yet clear that this transition is immediate, meaningful or sufficient. Too many Egyptians remain unconvinced that the government is serious about a genuine transition to democracy, and it is the responsibility of the government to speak clearly to the Egyptian people and the world. The Egyptian government must put forward a credible, concrete and unequivocal path toward genuine democracy, and they have not yet seized that opportunity.  

As we have said from the beginning of this unrest, the future of Egypt will be determined by the Egyptian people. But the United States has also been clear that we stand for a set of core principles. We believe that the universal rights of the Egyptian people must be respected, and their aspirations must be met. We believe that this transition must immediately demonstrate irreversible political change, and a negotiated path to democracy. To that end, we believe that the emergency law should be lifted. We believe that meaningful negotiations with the broad opposition and Egyptian civil society should address the key questions confronting Egypt's future: protecting the fundamental rights of all citizens; revising the Constitution and other laws to demonstrate irreversible change; and jointly developing a clear roadmap to elections that are free and fair.

We therefore urge the Egyptian government to move swiftly to explain the changes that have been made, and to spell out in clear and unambiguous language the step by step process that will lead to democracy and the representative government that the Egyptian people seek.  Going forward, it will be essential that the universal rights of the Egyptian people be respected. There must be restraint by all parties. Violence must be forsaken. It is imperative that the government not respond to the aspirations of their people with repression or brutality. The voices of the Egyptian people must be heard.

The Egyptian people have made it clear that there is no going back to the way things were: Egypt has changed, and its future is in the hands of the people. Those who have exercised their right to peaceful assembly represent the greatness of the Egyptian people, and are broadly representative of Egyptian society. We have seen young and old, rich and poor, Muslim and Christian join together, and earn the respect of the world through their non-violent calls for change. In that effort, young people have been at the forefront, and a new generation has emerged. They have made it clear that Egypt must reflect their hopes, fulfill their highest aspirations, and tap their boundless potential. In these difficult times, I know that the Egyptian people will persevere, and they must know that they will continue to have a friend in the United States of America.

EXPLORE:EGYPT
 

OGER

2:09 AM ET

February 11, 2011

Obama's Payback

In all of the discussion about the upheaval in Egypt, I have not yet seen any mention of one plausible hypothesis. Call it “Obama’s Payback.” Call it Obama’s Nixon Gambit. Call it what you will, but here are its parameters:

Obama sees withdrawing US support for the friendly autocrats on Israel’s borders as the only remaining realistic avenue to a settlement of the Palestinian problem.

After the public humiliation Obama endured at the hands of Netanyahu and the US Israel lobby in their head-butting on the settlements issue, he has given up on a direct approach to trying to get Israel to to engage in serious negotiations toward an equitable two-state solution, including halting expansion into Palestinian land.

He has concluded, correctly, that Israel, backed by its Congressional majorities, its AIPAC lobbying powerhouse, and its massive financial support for pro-Israel politicians, will never agree to any terms that would create a genuine, two-state solution for the Palestinian problem. The problem will continue to fester to the detriment of US national interests in the Middle East for as long as Israel feels no real pressure to reach a solution.

A non-threatening Egypt has been key to Israel’s feeling of security, ergo to its intransigence.

Having failed and been publicly humiliated in his direct confrontation with the Israeli lobby in 2009, Obama has now decided to take advantage of the crisis in Egypt to teach Netanyahu a lesson: a US president has many ways to get payback for a public humiliation. One way is to pull the plug on support for our sock puppets in Egypt, Lebanon, and perhaps Jordan if it comes to that. The prospect of a Lebanon controlled by Hizbollah, and of an Egypt where the Muslim brotherhood dominates policy toward Israel , may focus Israeli minds far more effectively than vacuous pleading from the US president.

Remember, it was only after Nixon went to China that Brezhnev agreed to arms limitations. Perhaps it will only be after Israel is surrounded by millions of hostile, angry Arabs, with no prospect of the US slapping them down with our hand-picked tyrants, that meaningful negotiations for a two-state solution will begin.

Of course Obama would never admit to anything as devious as this. But his actions are certainly consistent with this hypothesis, primarily greasing the skids for Mubarak’s exit with such puzzling haste. And in Obama’s view, seeing that Israel will never agree to change its policies as long as it has blind, unquestioning US support, the indirect pressure on Israel precipitated by the departure of our sock puppets on its borders may , in the larger scheme of things, offer a better chance to start a process that will lead to a final, equitable solution to the Israeli-Palestinian problem.

And that would benefit everyone.

 

JOHN4OMEGA

3:29 AM ET

February 11, 2011

Empty words

Obama inconsistency and ineptness makes his words hollow. I find it strange that he remained silent and stood with the totalitarian regime in Iran who are our declared enemies, yet has become such and outspoken know-it-all supporting the ouster of Mubarak, who has been a loyal ally for over three decades. The Saudi leadership got it right. Obama, once again, gets it wrong. I am ashamed to have this man speak for my country. He is a puppet of the left and HE has got to go! The fact is, he has not hurt Mubarak with his words---he has hurt America. He has once again lowered the bar on American influence in the world.

 

J ALLEY

7:52 AM ET

February 11, 2011

I too am confused

So let me get this straight. You're saying the United States should support the dictatorships it supports (i.e., Egypt) but not the dictatorships it doesn't support (i.e., Iran)? Okay. That would seem true, though empty. Or perhaps you are proposing the interesting hypothesis that the United States in fact supports Iran as much as Egypt and yet Iran, despite all our friendly support of it, inexplicably doesn't like us?

 

John Hudson reports on national security and foreign policy from the Pentagon to Foggy Bottom, the White House to Embassy Row, for The Cable.

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