An enclave strategy

NEW YORK CITY: Can Iraq hold together? It’s worth examining what is happening in that country through a broader prism. If you had looked at the Middle East 15 years ago, you would have seen a string of strikingly similar regimes—from Libya and Tunisia in the west to Syria and Iraq in the east. They were all dictatorships.

They were all secular, in the sense that they did not derive their legitimacy from religious identity. Historically, they had all been supported by outside powers—first the British and French, then the superpowers—which meant that these rulers worried more about pleasing patrons abroad than currying favor at home. And they had secure borders.