ABSTRACT
Recent events have served to remind us that the Arab League—as an instrument of (mostly) Egyptian policy, put together in 1944–5—is still very much with us, at least as a sounding board for Arab controversies. It may have had little or no effect on the level of economic, social, and cultural integration among its member states, nor has political integration of its components come any nearer than it was half a century ago. Its prospects of evolution along European lines are remote, at best. Yet it has retained the power to draw member states towards certain common pursuits—above all, in the field of international politics (such as joint Arab positions on Iraq, Libya or Israeli policy)—a trait perhaps best understood if a fresh interpretation is offered of the specific circumstances of its birth.
