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The traditional Middle East and the G8's Greater Middle East.

The Greater Middle East (also known as "The New Middle East1") is a political term coined by the Bush administration2 to englobe together various countries, pertaining to the Arab world, Iran, Turkey, Afghanistan and Pakistan.3 Various Central Asian countries and the lower Caucasus (Azerbaijan, Armenia, and Georgia4 ) and Cyprus and Greece are sometimes also included. Some speakers may use the term to denote areas with significant Muslim majorities, but this usage is not universal.

This expanded term was introduced in the U.S. administration's preparatory work for the G8 summit of 20044 as part of a proposal for sweeping change in the way the West deals with the Middle East.

Former U.S. National Security Advisor Zbigniew Brzezinski, alluded to the modern Middle East as a control lever on an area he calls the Eurasian Balkans.5 The Eurasian Balkans consists of the Caucasus (Georgia, the Republic of Azerbaijan, and Armenia) and Central Asia (Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, and Tajikistan) and to some extent both Iran and Turkey. Iran and Turkey both form the northernmost tiers of the Middle East (excluding the Caucasus) that edge into Europe and the former Soviet Union.

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Criticism

The concept of a "New/Greater Middle East" that puts together different regions has been criticized by several people. According to the Al-Ahram Weekly, it is unclear whether widening the Middle East facilitates the control of its numerous conflicts. "The question is, however, whether there is such a thing as a Greater Middle East extending beyond the traditional geographical boundaries of the region. And, if so, what are the common features shared by the different countries now identified as parts of a body that would extend from Pakistan in the east to Morocco in the west? Take, for example, the call for the creation of an independent Arab state in Palestine. Does it follow that there should be a similar call for an independent Kurdish state or for an independent state in Kashmir? If all these countries are parts of one entity, should there not exist similar solutions for similar problems?"6 Dominique de Villepin has said "One has also to avoid a uniform approach, as one can not treat the Maghreb with the same pattern as the Middle East or the Persian Gulf states, nor can one concentrate everything on the security issue. To be successful, our approach must be global, taking into consideration all the political, economic, social, cultural, educational aspects."2

See also

References

  1. ^ Nazemroaya, Mahdi Darius (2006-11-18). "Plans for Redrawing the Middle East: The Project for a “New Middle East”". Global Research. Retrieved on 2008-08-21.
  2. ^ a b Haeri, Safa (2004-03-03). "Concocting a 'Greater Middle East' brew", Asia Times. Retrieved on 21 August 2008. 
  3. ^ Ottaway, Marina & Carothers, Thomas (29 March 2004), The Greater Middle East Initiative: Off to a False Start, Policy Brief, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, 29, Pages 1-7
  4. ^ a b Perthes, V., 2004, America's "Greater Middle East" and Europe: Key Issues for Dialogue, Middle East Policy, Volume XI, No.3, Pages 85-97.
  5. ^ Zbigniew Brzezinski, "The Grand Chessboard: American Primacy and Its Geo-strategic Imperatives"page # needed Cited in (Nazemroaya, 2006).
  6. ^ Mohamed Sid-Ahmed, On the Greater Middle East, Al-Ahram

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