ABSTRACT
The task for Western and Muslim societies and states is to learn how to coexist at a time of rapid change in a world in which relationships forged during the Cold War era are rapidly giving way to a more fluid and unstable world. This chapter examines the character of Muslim aspirations for solidarity, and the kinds of internal changes necessary in the political systems of the Muslim world before Muslim states can alter chronic patterns of instability that unsettle relations with the West. The Muslim world encompasses an immense variety of peoples and cultures with vastly differing historical experiences. Genuine differences in outlook among major ethnic groups—Arab, or Persian, for example—can work to produce suspicion or even conflict. As Islamist movements or parties participate in the political process, they recognize that they must develop more realistic and nuanced views toward a whole range of issues, including how they wish to conduct unavoidable political and economic relations with the West.
