An article in Study Times, a Central Party School’s voice, points to the quagmire in the U.S.-Middle East relationship. “The U.S. strategy in the Middle East has a big loophole: a double standard toward the Arab countries and Israel, which will ultimately have serious consequences. U.S. Middle East strategy is critically reliant on its allies, who are exactly the regimes involved in the recent waves of protest. After the regime changes, a number of those in the U.S.’s Middle Eastern alliance have expressed dissatisfaction about the U.S. abandoning Mubarak.” “But now more and more voices in the U.S. believe that the U.S. is paying a ‘security cost’ for this alliance, because it created a strong anti-American sentiment, and thus created its own enemies.” “Arab leaders have come to understand that in times of crisis, they cannot save themselves by having good relations with the U.S. and peace agreements with Israel. The change has become more favorable to Iran’s strategic position in the region.” “There are indications that whoever has a close relationship with the U.S. will have a volatile political situation. After Mubarak stepped down, Egypt allowed Iranian naval vessels into the Mediterranean via the Suez Canal, as a signal that it was distancing itself from the U.S. and Israel.”

Source: Study Times, April 11, 2011
http://www.studytimes.com.cn:9999/epaper/xxsb/html/2011/04/11/02/02_33.htm