The Arab Spring: Tunisia, Egypt and the US foreign policy

The United states' foreign policy towards the middle east has always been a matter of discussion in the Arab countries. The basis on which the US built its Middle East policy was put to test when the Arab spring broke out. Stability was the US top priority in the region, but when the dictatorships collapsed in Tunisia and Egypt, the response from the American side to each country under investigation differed. The purpose of this thesis is to understand the reason behind such behavior of the US. Therefore, it becomes important to examine the basis on which the United States builds its Middle East policy, and the U.S. response to the Arab Awakening in these countries? Also, how the US deals with the emerging ruling elites in Tunisia and Egypt after the dramatic changes that took place is being examined within the scope of the aforementioned question. The method used in this thesis is the semi-structured interviews and secondary date to enhance the research. This research indicates that on one hand, the United States have chosen stability and interests over values of democracy and good governance in Egypt by supporting the military the military coup in 2013. On the other hand, the US provided financial support to the Tunisian government and non-governmental organizations, to help the new regime survive which would eventually prevent the rise of extremism in the country. While the concern for stability made the US support the military coup in Egypt, it made the US assist the democratically elected government in Tunisia. For the US stability meant the prevention of the rise of extreme movements and developments that would strengthen the radical movements and put the Israeli security at risk. Key words: Arab Awakening, Democracy and governance "referred to as DG", US Foreign policy.