ABSTRACT
Hence, in this article, we look at the hypothesis that credible and reliable rewards lead to cooperation; we do not explore if, in the end, benefits exceeding costs result in compliance.
Post-Arab Spring democracy promotion and Saudi Arabia: The setting
In theMENA region prior to the 2011 uprisings, theEU and theUS appeared to have preferred stable and Western-oriented autocracies to the potential instability and Islamist electoral victories associated with genuine democratization processes.17
In reaction to the Arab uprisings both actors – in particular the EU – increased the amount of aid committed to the region, as displayed in Figure 1. However, implementation proved difficult in times of economic and financial crises at home, explicit anti-Western rhetoric by newly elected Islamic elites, US’ security concerns in view of attacks on diplomatic offices, or conflicting views among EU member states.18 Moreover, along with international financial institutions and other partners including select Gulf countries, the G8 countries initiated the Deauville Partnership. The involvement of countries such as Kuwait, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia, however, watered-down this initially quite ambitious agenda and “led to weak conditionality on aid packages and a neglect of tough issues”.19
