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Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, supreme leader of Iran. [File photo]

The so-called "Arab Spring" has not changed and will not change the vulnerable nature of the relations between the West and the Islamic world. The US and the West attribute the Middle East extremism and anti-Americanism to the authoritarian regimes of the region. That is to a large extent the reason why George Bush’s administration had promoted democracy in the region by military means, and Barack Obama’s administration offered political support for the oppositions in the Arab Spring.

But such intervention does not necessarily mean that the people of those countries, which have weathered democratic movements, will naturally identify with Western-style democracy. On the contrary, the "pioneering" revolutionary countries of Egypt, Libya, Tunisia and Yemen are leading this new wave of anti-Americanism. In Libya, a coordinated attack by an extremist group killed US Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens and three other Americans. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton herself angrily questioned: “How can this happen in a country we helped liberate, in a city we helped save from destruction?”

If it really wants to improve relations with the Muslim world, a more balanced policy towards the Israel-Palestine situation would be an indispensible pre-condition. US partiality for Israel has been an obstacle to reconciliation for the past two decades. Although it has been reported in the media that Coptic Christians may be the ones responsible for producing "The Innocence of Muslims," many in the Arab world believe that the movie was produced by American Jews. Thus, anti-Americanism, fueled by seeming inseparable US-Israeli ties, continues to rise.

Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, supreme leader of Iran, claimed last Friday that the number-one culprit in this crime is Zionism and the American government. Unfortunately, this is not just indicative of the Ayatollah’s personal perspective, but a view shared by a majority of Muslims around the world.

The author is a columnist with China.org.cn. For more information please visit http://www.china.org.cn/opinion/jinliangxiang.htm

Opinion articles reflect the views of their authors, not necessarily those of China.org.cn.

 

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