(Washington Institute for Near East Policy) Eric Trager - The Muslim Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party (FJP) is widely expected to dominate the next Egyptian legislature. The FJP's political victory promises radical changes for Egypt, including a theocratic domestic program and a confrontational foreign policy. The U.S. should have no illusions about the party's aims or ability to moderate. As long as the FJP is in power, Washington should condition future bilateral relations on its behavior regarding key U.S. interests, including the treatment of religious minorities, Egypt's peace treaty with Israel, and counterterrorism. The FJP's overriding aim is to establish an Islamic state in which sharia would be the primary source of legislation. Brotherhood Supreme Guide Muhammad Badie recently declared that, after forming the new government, the organization would pursue its final goal of establishing a "rightly guided caliphate for the education of the world." The Brotherhood is already working through the FJP to tilt Egypt away from its Western allies and toward an Islamist foreign policy. The peace treaty with Israel will likely be the first casualty of an FJP-led government. It intends to put the Camp David Accords to a national referendum, thereby shielding itself from direct responsibility for the treaty's demise. It is tempting to believe that the FJP will moderate once in power, but this is highly unlikely.
2012-01-12 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive