The author argues that the progression and regression of liberalization in Jordan can be explained by the Jordanian monarchy’s desire to maintain budget and regime security in an era of economic austerity. He illustrates how the monarchy has manipulated election laws and economic reforms in order to obtain the external financing necessary to keep the state solvent and ensure the political support of two key domestic constituencies: Transjordanians and the business community.

This article argues that the extent of the Egyptian military’s engagement in, or withdrawal from, the political process and its subsequent professionalism have always been a reflection of the nature of the regime it served. While it was the preeminent institution in the political process during the 1950s and 1960s, it has since the 1970s accepted a subordinate role in a presidential system that both safeguards its interests but limits its direct influence in politics.

Early 2002 saw an escalation of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict; simultaneously, the Palestinian discourse on reforming the Palestinian Authority gained momentum. These concurrent processes led Israel’s leadership to the conclusion that Palestinian society was on the verge of surrender. In fact, the reform discourse began decades ago. The current reform movement is part of a process of rooting the Palestinian ruling institutions in their constituencies and creating an option for new blood to enter the ruling elite.

Since the second half of the 1990s, a new national security discourse in Turkey sanctifies security over democratic and developmental objectives. By organizing itself around the concepts and issues raised by the former Deputy Prime Minister Mesut Yilmaz’s pathbreaking speech on August 4, 2001 on "national security syndrome," this essay problematizes the increased security concerns of the TSK against the democratic priorities of the EU which Turkey aspires to join. Secondly, the essay analyzes the problems involved in Turkey’s process of formulating its national security policy.

The Saudi educational system has been criticized in the United States for allegedly inciting anti-Western sentiments, but is this criticism deserved?