Arabs should unite to find their voice

Millions of old and new refugees are Arabs. Millions of displaced people are Arabs. We need solutions, not more problems

This is the Middle East: Arabs, Persians, Turks and Kurds. But let's put history aside to avoid the trap and analyze the present. By looking at the region's map we realise that all wars are happening on Arab land that is being exploited by terrorists and militias. The region is suffering from international meddling and sectarian conflict.
These are no exaggerations. Millions of old and new refugees are Arabs. Millions of displaced inside their countries are Arabs. So are the people spread in camps that await aid.
Failed states in the region are Arab countries. The feeble countries that look like they have just come out of World War II are Arab as well. Millions of students who are out of schools are Arabs. The case is no different when it comes to wasted countries, fortunes and years.
These are not exaggerations. The Iranians are residing in a country that is trying to change the contours of some neighboring countries. It is leading proxy wars and moving its militias to snatch power in the region.
The Kurds, who have always complained of historic and geographic injustice, are now in a better position to demand a legitimate (Kurdistan) region on Iraqi territories. They have an army - which the Americans and Russians are seeking to bring to their side - on Syrian territories.
In the region, only the Arabs have a broken wing.
Jordan seems the ideal place to hold the Arab League summit. This country with limited resources received Palestinian refugees whose land was occupied by the Israelis. Later on, Jordan welcomed refugees from Iraq after the US invasion. It is also enduring the burden of Syrian refugees who watch the fire raging in their country.
Arab leaders know well the meaning of the Arab broken-wing in the region. Terror is being felt, it is seen all around us. Israel a monster that never sleeps. On other fronts, there are arms falling into the wrong hands, militias, and different flags.
Russia that has changed the war in Syria is not distant from the summit like the US that is present in Mosul and Raqqa. There is only one candle in this darkness: Daesh's defeat has begun. The summit does not have a magic wand to treat critical diseases, but it can send a message to say that Arabs are aware of the importance of regaining their voice in tackling their security issues. They also know they have the right to end the exploitation of Arab lands, and to lead a normal life like the rest of the region's states.
The summit , in the best case, will succeed to remind Arabs that they can meet and reiterate some of their old principles. This has a major significance with a new US administration and a major role played by Russia in the region.
In this context, the summit seeks returning the Palestinian cause as a top priority to urge Arabs to act against the Trump administration and to rescue the two-state solution that is being targeted daily by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
On the Syrian file, the summit will put forth a political solution for legitimate international resolutions and the support for the Geneva process. However, any expert will realise a rising Arab tend to be more realistic and to accept the "Russian Syria" if this guarantees an upset to the plans of an "Iranian Syria".
The summit is expected to focus again on Iranian meddling in Arab affairs and Tehran's plans to increase militancy in the region.
It would be good if the summit sends a message to the key players that Arabs can be united on major issues that cause concern. The summit is also an opportunity to put some inter-Arab relations on the right track. Fixing Arab ties needs a sense of reality, transparency and an agreement on long-term interests.
Arabs need an exceptional decision to restore their position in the region. This will not happen unless they take a historic decision to rescue their countries from failure and stagnation. Consensual political formulas are not enough - it is also necessary to carry out a thorough revision of economic plans because terrorism feeds on the poor, the unemployed and those without hope. Arabs have a right to be equals to the Iranians and Turks. They should either take decisions or they will end up complaining over injustice just like the Kurds.
- Ghassan Charbel is the editor-in-chief of Asharq Al Awsat newspaper