The Obama administration is invested in nurturing the “Arab Spring,” said Denis McDonough, the deputy national security adviser.

“While the change in the Middle East is working against Iran, it is our belief that it can and will work for the United States,” McDonough told a Washington Institute for Near East Policy retreat. “A more democratic region will ultimately be more stable for us and our friends.”

McDonough named four countries that the administration perceived as advancing toward democracy: Egypt, Tunisia, Libya and Yemen.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government has expressed skepticism about the benefits of the democratization movement, particularly in Egypt, because of the concomitant rise of Islamic parties.

The Obama administration has engaged with the Muslim Brotherhood, among other actors in Egypt following the ouster of President Hosni Mubarak more than a year ago. McDonough said such parties were unlikely to impose dictatorships.

“Any government today is going to press towards greater transparency,” he said. “As a result of more powers to individuals, more powers to Egyptians, even if someone wants to be dictatorial its going to be difficult.”

McDonough said the administration was making clear to the Egyptians that preserving the peace treaty with Israel was critical to maintaining the relationship with the United States, which provides Egypt with $1.3 billion in annual assistance.

McDonough also said that the Obama and Netanyahu governments coordinated closely on strategies to isolate Iran, and reiterated the administration’s commitment to advancing Israeli-Palestinian peace.

Why I became the Forward’s editor-in-chief

You are surely a friend of the Forward if you’re reading this. And so it’s with excitement and awe — of all that the Forward is, was, and will be — that I introduce myself to you as the Forward’s newest editor-in-chief.

And what a time to step into the leadership of this storied Jewish institution! For 129 years, the Forward has shaped and told the American Jewish story. I’m stepping in at an intense time for Jews the world over. We urgently need the Forward’s courageous, unflinching journalism — not only as a source of reliable information, but to provide inspiration, healing and hope.

That’s where you come in. Gifts of any size keep the Forward free and accessible to everyone and ensure we have the resources we need to power the Forward at this critical time for American Jews.

Don't just read the Forward - invest in it. Will you support our work today?

— Alyssa Katz, editor-in-chief

Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.

$120 $180 $360 OTHER AMOUNT