US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton pledged Saturday that Washington would help Tunisia rebuild its economy and cement democracy, as the cradle of the Arab Spring struggles with reforms.
Clinton met Tunisian President Moncef Marzouki as she continued a tour that will also take her to Algeria and Morocco following a global meeting on Syria in Tunis that ratcheted up pressure on the regime of Bashar al-Assad.
“I come with a very specific and committed statement of support about the political and economic reforms that are occurring here,” Clinton said after the talks with Marzouki.
“The political side of the revolution is going quite well,” she said.“I am a very strong champion for Tunisian democracy and what has been accomplished here…. The challenge is how to ensure the economic development of Tunisia matches the political development.”
At the start of the talks she also praised Friday’s “Friends of Syria” meeting of more than 60 foreign ministers for bringing new pressure to bear on Assad’s regime.
“It was quite a successful conference and a great credit to Tunisia, and your words and the prime minister’s leadership were a very strong signal,” she said.
Washington is keen to support Tunisia’s democratic progress and economic success, hoping it will set an example for other countries in the region that have toppled autocratic rulers or are undergoing popular uprisings.
Tunisia, where mass protests ousted strongman Zine El Abidine Ben Ali early last year, launched the Arab Spring and inspired similar movements in Egypt, Libya, Syria and elsewhere.
Authorities in Tunisia, which elected a moderate Islamist government in October, are struggling to deal with unemployment levels of nearly 20 percent and continuing political tensions following the revolution.
