The demise of political Arabism

Had they the ability to laugh in their graves, Mark Sykes and Francois Picot would have laughed their heads off if they could see how the Arab world they fragmented into various entities ended up behaving. I am sure the English and French strategists never dreamed that their scheme would succeed so fantastically in its aims. The mini states that the French and the British created did not just fulfil the colonialists' plan, they went much further down the road of disintegration and antagonism.

Had the Arab countries fared well politically and economically, one would have accepted the fact that size is not always that important. After all, tiny states such as Finland, Singapore or Norway have an annual GDP that surpasses those of many Arab countries put together. It is no secret that the Finnish village of Nokia has become the global capital of mobile phones, and so it alone is more productive than many medium-sized Arab countries. But, sadly enough, some of the Arab states that emerged as a result of the Anglo-French scheme are failed states, politically and economically. Add to that of course the fact that they have failed miserably in cooperating between themselves to at least compensate for their backwardness and disintegration. Instead they have fallen miserably apart. No wonder, then, that the Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi said during a recent meeting with Arab writers and intellectuals that the only thing that unites Arabs is literature.

Libya's isolation

A few years ago Gaddafi himself felt fed up with the Arab world. He suffered for over eight years from an excruciating political and economic blockade that was imposed on Libya for the alleged Lockerbie bombing that killed many Americans. Most Arab states boycotted Tripoli. They implemented the UN sanctions very strictly, to the extent that not a single Arab country dared breach the air embargo. The Libyans felt very bitter, and their leader looked to Africa to compensate for the Arab letdown. Funnily enough, the Africans proved more loyal and supportive. They dared to break the blockade and many African planes landed at Tripoli's airport, in spite of the US manipulated sanctions, giving Gaddafi sufficient reason to say goodbye to political Arabism. He strengthened relations with African countries and ultimately succeeded in setting up the African Union, which has proven to be more effective and resilient than the so-called Arab League.

The Syrians, in their turn, have also suffered hugely at the hands of their fellow Arab states. In the late seventies, president Anwar Sadat of Egypt signed a peace treaty with Israel, leaving Syria out in the cold. And almost at the same time, Saddam Hussain of Iraq massed his troops on the border with Syria over an alleged coup supported by pro-Syria Iraqi Baathists. The Syrians had no choice but to seek help from Iran, and subsequently supported the Iranians during the Iran-Iraq war. Syrian-Iranian relations became stronger after the American invasion of Iraq and the later Israeli aggression on Lebanon. The only country that remained on good terms with Damascus after the murder of Rafik Hariri was Iran. Meanwhile, Syria's ties with Arab countries have deteriorated. And although the Syrians and the Saudis have come to terms recently after King Abdullah Bin Abdul Aziz's visit to Damascus, the ruling regime in Syria is still on better terms with Tehran than with Arab countries.

The Syrians also have a sort of economic alliance with their neighbour Turkey. The two countries have recently opened their borders, allowing their citizens to move freely without the need for entry visas. In other words, Syro-Turkish relations seem to be stronger than Syro-Arab ties.

The March 14 Alliance in Lebanon, in its turn, seems to be more comfortable in its relations with the Americans, and probably the Israelis, than with the Syrians.

Many Arab states seem to prefer to cooperate with the Americans and Asia, rather than their fellow Arab states. As a result, trade between Arab countries is minimal.

It seems that political Arabism is dead, at least for a very long time to come.

- Dr Faisal Al Qasim is a Syrian journalist based in Doha.