For US president Bush, a major topic at this year's G8 summit meeting is to push the members to support his Middle East Reform Plan. On June 9, the plan was officially approved. According to the plan, in the future decades, US will spare no expense in helping the Middle East to undergo a transformation in politics, economy, social and cultural areas.

As the communication hub of Europe, Asia and Africa, the Middle East is of paramount strategic importance in geopolitics. Its world No.1 gas oil reserve is the lifeline of the world economy. Middle East therefore becomes a place that the US must take control of. In addition, as the cradle of the Islamism, the Middle East countries have entirely different social and political system, historical and cultural traditions from the US, and they are therefore hard for the US to manipulate and control. So the US takes "hard" and "soft" measures in order to manipulate the Middle East. "Hard" is the attack on Saddam Hussein under the pretext of anti-terrorism; and the Middle East Reform Plan serves as the "soft" measure.

The Middle East Plan has been under preparation since Bush came to power. The National Security Strategy Report of USA issued in September 2002 stated, "US shall actively engage in the democratic development of the Muslim World than ever before." In December 2002, Richard Haas, the then Director of Policy Planning at the State Department, made a speech titled "promoting democracy in the Muslim World", in which he criticized US government for not "giving priority to the Middle East democracy". He said, "We understand US is able and should do more: promoting democracy, including prompting democracy in the Muslim world is a top priority for President Bush and Secretary of State Powell." After the Iraqi War, anti-US sentiments and attacks spread in the Middle East, which makes Bush Administrations' resolution firmer to push forward democratic reform in the region. It seems that the administration has not realized that it is US's biased Palestinian-Israel policy, hegemonic invasion into Iraq and greed for oil and bias against the Islam that sparked the anti-US sentiment in the Middle East. However, they would rather attribute the sentiment to 'autocratic' Arabic regime and corruption, the people's envy for western life and values. Bush said in his speech made in London last November, "In a democratic and successful society, men and women do not swear allegiance to malcontents and murderers;" the government will not "shelter terrorist camps or attack their peaceful neighbors." In another speech he stressed that the "democracy and reform" is the only way "to eradicate terrorism from the root and make the US safer."

The Arabic countries show repulsion to the original plan because US appears as a benefactor in the plan. In addition the original plan didn't mention a single word about the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, the fundamental problem in that region. The plan insinuates that Arabic countries are politically corrupt. This time Bush named the Middle East democracy plan as a "Partnership for Progress and a Common Future", and stressed that the US will not compel the countries to accept it. On the other hand, statements for attaching importance to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict is added in the plan, which shows respect to the countries' opinion and self-esteem. With the endorsement of the G8 summit, it seemed to have gained some haloes of "international support".

Due to the absence of major Arabic countries including Egypt, Saudi Arab and Morocco at this summit, it is still hard to evaluate the influence of the US Middle East Plan. But for Bush Administration, it will at least gain some initiatives following the scandal of the Iraqi Prison abuse.

Source: People's Daily Online