Entire cities have been destroyed by seven years of intense warfare in Syria [Xinhua]
French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe has called the West’s method of democratization by force a mistake and said that change must happen over time.
“Military interventions like we have seen in Iraq, Afghanistan and Libya to impose democracy through fire failed to achieve their objectives,” Philippe said at the opening of the 2018 World Government Summit in Dubai.
Philippe’s comments are poignant because they fall within the scope of the Summit’s theme – Shaping Future Governments – and come at a time when Syria, Iraq and Libya appearing to be crumbling states after US-led coalition invasions and regime change.
More than a third of Iraq was controlled by terrorist forces like the Islamic State while dozens of militias impose their style of rule today with a weakened central government.
In Libya, different factions backed by different regional states continue to war over control of the country and its vast resources.
In Syria, while the Islamic State has been largely defeated new conflict has arisen with regional players like Turkey and Iran taking military action to protect their interests.
In just these three conflict zones, hundreds of thousands of people have been killed and there has been an exodus of millions of refugees to Europe and neighboring Middle Eastern countries.
Philippe said that democratization cannot be exported. He pointed to the examples of European states which took centuries to progress toward democracy and libertarianism.
The BRICS Post with inputs from Agencies
Source