"I'm convinced that they both are serious about real reform and about moving forward," Gates said afterward. At the same time, he raised the specter of Iran. While granting that the regime there had yet to foment protests across the region, Gates asserted, "there is clear evidence that as the process is protracted -- particularly in Bahrain -- that the Iranians are looking for ways to exploit it and create problems."
The Secretary of Defense expressed sympathy for Bahrain's rulers being "between a rock and hard place" and other officials have asserted that the aspirations of the pro-democracy protesters in the street were inhibiting substantive talks with more moderate opposition groups. "I think what the government needs is for everybody to take a deep breath and provide a little space for this dialogue to go forward," he said. In the end, he told reporters, U.S. prospects for continued military basing in Bahrain were solid. "I don't see any evidence that our presence will be affected in the near- or middle-term," Gates added.
In the immediate wake of Gates' visit, the Gulf Cooperation Council has conspicuously sent a contingent of Saudi troops into Bahrain to help put down the protests. Cowed by the Pentagon and its partners in the Arab lobby, the Obama administration has seemingly cast its lot with Bahrain's anti-democratic forces and left little ambiguity as to which side of history it's actually on.
Nick Turse is an historian, essayist, investigative journalist, the associate editor of TomDispatch.com, and currently a fellow at Harvard University's Radcliffe Institute. His latest book is The Case for Withdrawal from Afghanistan (Verso Books). He is also the author of The Complex: How the Military Invades Our Everyday Lives. You can follow him on Twitter @NickTurse, on Tumblr, and on Facebook. His website is NickTurse.com.
Copyright 2011 Nick Turse
(Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher).
1
1
1
