Patrick Basham assesses the prospects for Egyptian democracy

Patrick Basham assesses the prospects for Egyptian democracy

3 February 2011
The Iranian government's reaction to the past week's events is the best predictor of the future of Egyptian 'democracy'. Tehran is ecstatic that President Mubarak's 30-year authoritarian rule is coming to an end. Is it too cynical to suggest that, as the Iranian government does not place a particularly high premium on liberal democracy, Western leaders should perhaps reconsider their last-minute conversion to Egypt's democratic baptism?

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