"In the Greater Middle East -- that vast stretch of territory from the Maghreb to Pakistan – the United States has been exposed as a paper tiger. It has failed to have the slightest impact on the tidal wave of popular protest that has engulfed the region. This is one of the most striking features of the political tsunami that has already destroyed two Arab regimes and is shaking the foundations of several others.
America’s European allies have watched with growing anxiety Washington’s irrelevance in the face of the raw expression of ‘people power’ in Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, Bahrain, Yemen, Iran, Jordan, Iraq, Algeria -- and who knows where next? European leaders are busy taking note. But what are they to do? Is there any way they can help correct America’s mistakes or fill the current vacuum? The European Union has so far failed to grow into a coherent political power, but some individual leaders in major European countries are waking up to the challenge posed by American impotence.
The second burning problem is the collapse of the Arab-Israeli peace process. For decades, the United States monopolized the process on the grounds that it alone had the necessary influence with both sides. The Europeans agreed to play second-fiddle. They funded the hapless Palestinians but were denied any political input into the negotiations.
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