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For days we have held onto this document from WikiLeaks. Now, in light of events, it seems appropriate to bring it out.
In July 2009, the US Embassy in Tunis takes a long look at a "troubled" Tunisia:
President Ben Ali is aging, his regime is sclerotic and there is no clear successor. Many Tunisians are frustrated by the lack of political freedom and angered by First Family corruption, high unemployment and regional inequities. Extremism poses a continuing threat. Compounding the problems, the GOT brooks no advice or criticism, whether domestic or international. Instead, it seeks to impose ever greater control, often using the police.
How then to achieve US goals?
The answer in the final sentence seems all too vague and perhaps now obsolete: "The US government should press for the hard work of real cooperation."
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