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Tunisia

Democracy
commentary
African Dictators Have Been Losing Power—Some to Democratic Governments. Militaries Can Tip the Scales Toward Democracy
Nathaniel Allen, Alexander H. Noyes @alexhnoyes
Sep 16, 2019
The Washington Post Monkey Cage Blog
Africa's security forces most often make headlines when they commit atrocities, crack down on protesters, or seize power in coups. But Africa's troops can also contribute to democracy and peace when they lay down their arms or refuse orders to turn their guns against the people.
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Political Reform Movements
q&a
The Post–Arab Spring Experience: Q&A with Shelly Culbertson
Aug 23, 2017
It's too early to say whether the Arab Spring will turn out to be a success or not. The Arab Spring was about people deciding what they did not want and rising up against it, but they hadn't worked out what they did want. Many of them still have hope.
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Political Reform Movements
commentary
It's Too Soon to Write Off the Arab Spring as a Failure
Shelly Culbertson @SC_Culbertson
Jun 15, 2016
Newsweek
Pessimistically declaring the Arab Spring a failure in 2016 would be as naive as optimistically declaring it a success in 2011. Something comes next—but what?
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Tunisia
commentary
Tunisia Is an Arab Spring Success Story
Shelly Culbertson @SC_Culbertson
Apr 21, 2016
Observer
Tunisia has not unraveled into civil war like Syria or Libya. It has not undergone a counter-revolution that returned it to the autocracy of its pre-revolution days, like Egypt has. Tunisia is fragile, but its success is vital to the long-term stability and societal health of the Middle East.
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Middle East
announcement
RAND's Shelly Culbertson Publishes Book on Middle East After the Arab Spring
Apr 19, 2016
A new book by RAND's Shelly Culbertson mixes travel memoir, reporting, and analysis across six Middle Eastern countries, presenting diverse experiences of the Arab Spring.
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Tunisia
blog
Tunisia's Role in Fight Against Terrorism Discussed at RAND Conference
Mar 30, 2016
The fight against terrorism in Tunisia is a shared priority and responsibility with the U.S. and Europe but will also depend greatly on solving the security issues in neighboring Libya, according to participants at a March 23 conference at RAND.
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Political Reform Movements
commentary
Tunisia's Paradoxical Political Union: Ennahda and Nidaa Tounes
Amanda Kadlec
Feb 5, 2016
Foreign Policy Concepts
In Tunisia, healthy disagreement between political parties has fostered some real change since the 2011 uprisings and throughout the course of the transition, but the persistent power-sharing dynamics in play aren't advancing democracy.
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Security Cooperation
commentary
Algeria: The Bastion of North Africa
Christopher S. Chivvis, Amanda Kadlec
Aug 11, 2015
The National Interest
Algeria could be a key regional partner for the United States and France in security and counterterrorism efforts against Al Qaeda and the Islamic State. It has a clear interest in quelling the threat posed by regional jihadists and it has local knowledge that could be helpful to U.S. counterterrorism efforts.
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Counterterrorism
commentary
After Attacks in France, Tunisia, and Kuwait, West Must Do More to Fight Surge of Terrorist Attacks
Brian Michael Jenkins @BrianMJenkins
Jun 29, 2015
New York Daily News
The terrorist attacks in France, Tunisia, and Kuwait are just the latest warnings that ISIS is turning its campaign into a global enterprise.
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Security Cooperation
commentary
Tunisia in the Crosshairs
Michael D. Rich @michaeldrich, K. Jack Riley @K_Jack_Riley
Jun 22, 2015
U.S. News & World Report
The open-ended nature of the Islamic State group's threat against Tunisair suggests that it intends to target Tunisia for the long haul. The United States should counter the threats with steadfast and sustained cooperation and assistance.
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Political Reform Movements
commentary
Tunisia Could Be a Model for What Works in the Mideast
Dalia Dassa Kaye
Mar 24, 2015
Los Angeles Times
Tunisia has a shot at showing that a different model in the region can succeed, a model of inclusion, tolerance and economic prosperity. It has a lot of work ahead of it, but the vision is there.
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Global Security
commentary
The Mirage of the Arab Spring
Seth G. Jones
Jan 3, 2013
Foreign Affairs Jan/Feb 2013
Like it or not, the United States counts among its allies a number of authoritarian Arab countries, and they are essential partners in protecting its interests, writes Seth G. Jones. The normative hope that liberal democracy may flourish in the future must be balanced by the need to work with governments and societies as they exist today.
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Political Reform Movements
commentary
How Does Arab Spring Compare to Third Wave Transitions?
Laurel E. Miller, Jeffrey Martini
Aug 17, 2012
Democracy Digest
The changes underway in the Arab world may lead to various possible destinations that differ both from their points of departure and from liberal democracy, write Laurel Miller and Jeffrey Martini.
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Nation Building
commentary
The Year of the Arab Spring
Charles P. Ries @charles_ries
Dec 20, 2011
GlobalSecurity.org and The RAND Blog
The Arab Spring demonstrated that leaderless revolutions are difficult to repress or co-opt. Unfortunately, it is also true that leaderless revolts find it difficult to make transition to authority, writes Charles Ries.
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Egypt
commentary
In Obama Speech, Will There Be Aid for Arab Spring Nations?
Julie E. Taylor
May 19, 2011
CNN
Assisting Arab democratic transitions will not eliminate religious extremism. But successful transitions would directly challenge the jihadist brands that promote attacks on America, writes Julie Taylor.
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