Obama administration miscalculated consequences of Arab Spring: CIAJanuary 10, 2017 - 12:23 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - The outgoing administration of U.S. President Barack Obama overestimated the outcome of the Arab Spring, in expecting democracy to take root in the region, CIA Director John Brennan said, according to Sputnik. He added that although the people in the region wanted individual freedom, "the concept of democracy is something that really is not engrained in a lot of the people and the cultures and the countries out there." "I think there were very, very unrealistic expectations in Washington, including in some parts of the administration, that the Arab Spring was going to push out these authoritarian regimes and democracy is going to flourish because that's what people want," he said on CNN's Axe Files podcast on Monday, January 9. Brennan also noted that, although the decision to withdraw U.S. troops from Iraq in 2011 was unlikely to have been the cause for the sectarian violence in the country, it was likely "a contributing factor" to the formation and strengthening of Islamic State, outlawed in Russia, the United States and other countries. A wave of Arab Spring uprisings spread from Tunisia to Egypt, Bahrain, Libya, and elsewhere across the Middle East in 2011. The fall of a number of authoritarian regimes has led to increased instability in the region. Top stories Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". The earthquake caused a temporary blackout, damaged many buildings and closed a number of rural roads. Partner news | The Power of One Dram to benefit Road of Life charity The companies inform that the May beneficiary of The Power of One Dram is the “Road of Life” charitable organization. Ucom General Director gives lecture at French University in Armenia The General Director of Ucom Ralph Yirikian delivered a lecture at the French University of Armenia. Kazakhstan welcomes Yerevan, Baku’s agreement to meet in Almaty Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has welcomed the agreement of Baku and Yerevan to hold negotiations in Almaty. Armenia offers to temporarily host, preserve Gaza manuscripts The Armenian Foreign Minister has said Yerevan is ready to help preserve manuscripts from the conflict zone in Gaza. |