DIPLOMATIC DOINGS

Like the other Arab Spring countries, Egypt’s economy is a major concern. Within a decade Egypt’s labor force is going to hit nearly 80 million, MEI senior fellow Mirette F. Mabrouk pointed out. “These are young people who are forging ahead in IT, technology innovation and climate change research, and are no longer willing to be told what to do. I think the next couple of years…will be deeply indicative of how the country decides to move forward.”

Mabrouk said if the EU and the U.S. are interested in a stable Egypt, “then really what you are looking at is economic involvement. It’s not more military or more military funding, it’s economic involvement, economic investment.”

The main issues in Tunisia are “keeping the democratic transition on track, attempting to save an economy in free fall and maintaining security in a very rough neighborhood,” said American University professor William Lawrence.

In September, parliament approved its third government in less than one year, but “this democratic experiment has been the longest and strongest ever in the Arab world,” he pointed out. “It’s been kind of a story of two revolutions—a political one and a socioeconomic one. The political one has largely succeeded; the socioeconomic one has largely failed.” —Elaine Pasquini Palestine’s Olive Trees Provide More than Delicious Food

Nasser Abufarha, the founder of Canaan Palestine, participated in a webinar on Nov. 9 to discuss the Palestinian olive oil business. The event was hosted by Zaytoun, a UK-based distributor of Palestinian artisanal goods.

Canaan Palestine is known for its highquality organic olive oil, as well as other food items, such as spices, grains and tapenades. The Washington Report’s bookstore, Middle East Books and More, has proudly sold Canaan’s products for decades.

Abufarha began by reflecting on what the olive tree means to Palestinians. “The olive tree in Palestine is the majestic tree,” he said. “For us, it’s a symbol of our iden-

PHOTO COURTESY CANAAN PALESTINE Nasser Abufarha (c) enjoying Canaan’s 2019 olive harvest festival in Palestine.

tity as a people….This is the home of the olive tree, it’s indigenous to the land, and so are we.”

Many olive trees in Palestine are over 1,000 years old, with some even believed to be 2,000-3,000 years old. Abufarha said the longevity of the olive plant offers Palestinians a sense of timelessness and generational unity. “These trees have been living and feeding us for thousands of years,” he noted. “Past generations have planted so we can eat, and we plant so future generations will eat.”

In an era of industrialized farming that abuses the earth and separates people from their food, Abufarha said he is proud that Canaan has helped Palestine maintain its traditional, environmentally friendly farming practices. Canaan’s methods also preserve culture and support independent farmers, he noted.

“The whole idea is to allow the smallscale farmers to survive under the conditions of a modern economy that is mostly [centered around] industrialized agriculture…that is focused on bringing prices down as much as possible, often at the expense of farmers,” he said.

“What we’ve done at Canaan is make traditional farming viable, economic,” he continued. The company promotes “a way of living that is real, a way of living that is harmonious with nature, a way of living that we can preserve into the future,” he added.

Abufarha boasted that after more than 5,000 years of cultivation, the Palestinian soil is still bountiful. This, he said, can be attributed to the care and respect countless generations have shown for the land. “We have an ecosystem that is ancient and still living and thriving and producing, and a community that is finding life, meaning and identity in nurturing it,” he said.

Abufarha thanked Canaan’s customers from around the world for their willingness to pay a little more to support a company that uplifts farmers, protects the environment and sustains the culture of a people living under occupation. Of course, he noted that it’s easier for consumers to eschew mass-produced olive oils in favor of Canaan’s products given the “exceptionally high quality” product the company provides.

While day-to-day life is never simple or easy in Palestine, Abufarha said being surrounded by timeless olive tress gives him continual hope and resolve. “When I look at the olive tree, I see strength, the capacity to live, the capacity to sustain and produce,” he said. —Dale Sprusansky

Former Ambassadors Reflect on Time in Arab World, U.S. Diplomacy Six former U.S. ambassadors to Arab countries participated in a Zoom call with

MAHMUD TURKIA/AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES Then-U.S. Ambassador to Libya Deborah Jones arrives at a soccer event in Tripoli, on Feb. 26, 2014.

Arab America on Nov. 19 to reflect on their time abroad.

The diplomats began by sharing what struck them most when they first arrived in the Arab world.

Patrick Theros, former ambassador to Qatar, said he quickly came to appreciate the complexity and diversity of the region. At the same time, he and the other ambassadors agreed that the people of every country displayed tremendous hospitality. “Even when I served in countries that were hostile to the United States, say Syria, my family never felt hostility from any of the people we dealt with,” he recalled.

Elizabeth Richard, former ambassador to Lebanon, said she was struck by how much the people of the region and Americans have in common. For instance, she recalled seeing similarities in the way both societies were grappling with how to address their young people’s disenchantment with the status quo.

Deborah Jones, former ambassador to Libya and Kuwait, said her stereotypes of the region were quickly challenged by the powerful and well-educated women she met in Kuwait. She was also pleasantly surprised by the sense of safety she and her family felt while living in communities across the region. “We found it a very safe place, despite the image that is largely portrayed around the world,” she said.

Asked how perceptions of the Arab

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world can be improved among Americans, the ambassadors stressed the importance of people-to-people connections.

Gordon Gray, former ambassador to Tunisia, described student exchanges as perhaps the most effective means of breaking down barriers. Theros agreed, noting that personal travel experiences are often transformative. “The best public relations [for Arab countries] is getting Americans to come to the Arab world,” he said.

The ambassadors acknowledged that they occasionally disagreed with U.S. foreign policy, but did their best to relay their concerns to the State Department.

Richard Schmierer, former ambassador to Oman, said U.S. policy on Israel-Palestine and Washington’s approach toward governance and democratic principles were the two biggest challenges he faced while engaging others overseas.

Theros said it’s important for diplomats to have empathy for the local population’s concerns, and to honestly convey these concerns back to Washington. Sometimes these communications do result in a foreign policy shift, but Theros said more often than not domestic political concerns triumph over the recommendations of diplomats.

“We have struggled in ensuring that all of the voices from the region are heard, that their perspectives are understood,” acknowledged Gina Abercrombie-Winstanley, former ambassador to Malta and former political officer at the U.S. Embassy in Israel.

She, as well as the entire panel of ambassadors, encouraged young Arab Americans to join the Foreign Service, so as to better ensure that a wide variety of voices are heard on critical policy matters. “We all know that when there is a greater diversity of backgrounds, you get better outcomes, you get more solutions offered, and it’s absolutely crucial and key to our effective diplomacy,” she said.

Jones noted that business leaders and non-governmental organizations also play a significant role in shaping perceptions of the region and determining how the U.S. approaches the Arab world. Richard seconded this, noting that the brain drain of the Arab world is in many cases caused by a lack of economic opportunity. Aside

from oil, there is “miniscule” U.S. trade with the region, she noted, meaning there is ample space for business leaders to move in and lay peaceful and profitable foundations for the U.S.-Arab relationship.

Finally, Theros stressed the importance of prioritizing diplomacy over military action. The U.S., he said, has “increasingly disconnected diplomats from diplomacy” by utilizing a military-first “whack-amole” approach toward solving problems. A better strategy would be to develop a cohesive and nuanced policy toward the Arab world, he said.—Dale Sprusansky U.S. Ambassador to Lebanon Addresses Country’s Challenges

On a Nov. 13 webcast hosted by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), U.S. Ambassador to Lebanon Dorothy Shea discussed Lebanon’s economic, political, security and health crises.

The Aug. 4 explosion at Beirut’s port exacerbated all of Lebanon’s ongoing problems, Shea pointed out. The blast was “the last straw for a lot of middle class Lebanese who are fed up with the corruption and mismanagement of the kind that could produce that explosion,” she said.

Lebanon’s caretaker government has caused political paralysis, adding to the dire situation, she said. “There is no real sense of urgency [among the elite and powerful]...to get a new government in place to make the meaningful decisions on everything from reform to tackling the pandemic and digging the country out of this huge hole that it is in,” Shea lamented.

Last March, the government defaulted on its Euro bond debt, which contributed to the currency losing 80 percent of its value, and resulted in many Lebanese losing much of their life savings.

According to the World Bank, half of the population is living in poverty, with 25 percent facing extreme poverty. The World Bank predicts the GDP will contract by 27 percent in 2021. Inflation has increased 120 percent, while food prices are up 367 percent. Since the blast, the price of home furnishings and home goods is up 664 percent.

The United States has made a large in-

MAHMOUD ZAYYAT/AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES A United Nations vehicle patrols the Lebanese city of Naqura, located on the border with Israel, on Nov. 11, 2020. A U.N. peacekeeping base in the city recently hosted three rounds of U.S.-mediated maritime border talks between Israel and Lebanon.

vestment in Lebanon for decades, trying to support sustainable development and help the country meet its massive humanitarian needs “while also calling out where they need systemic reform to end corruption,” Shea said. “We see a need to help bolster civil society, strengthen state institutions and combat the corrosive influence of malign actors like Hezbollah.”

In addition, U.S. priorities include promoting the rule of law and the independence of the judiciary and helping the younger generation receive a quality education.

Reforms that a new government should implement, according to the ambassador, include reforming the electricity and banking sectors, and conducting audits of the Central Bank, the finance ministry and other key sectors.

Of utmost importance, she stated, is to approve legislation allowing the judicial branch to be truly independent, passing a meaningful budget for next year and organizing parliamentary elections for the following year.

Recently, under the auspices of the U.S. and hosted by the U.N., Lebanon and Israel resumed maritime delineation talks relating to gas fields. “There have been four rounds of talks in the past several weeks and this gives Lebanon a glimmer of hope, as no one knows what is out there in these gas fields,” Shea explained.

“The Lebanese people have been appreciative of the role of the United States in their society,” the ambassador maintained. “When we stand with Lebanon, we are standing with the people—it’s not about the government.”—Elaine Pasquini

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