Special to WorldTribune.com

By Norman Bailey

The Egyptian Army has ousted the elected Muslim Brotherhood president, Mohammed Morsi.

Gigantic anti-Morsi demonstrations forced the hand of the armed forces. An interim, secular, government will take office, headed by Adli Mansour, the Chief Judge of the Constitutional Court. The parliament and the constitution are abolished.

This is a huge setback for the Muslim Brotherhood and its Salafist allies. It is potentially a triumph for liberal, secular, Christian and mainstream Muslim Egyptians.

Now what? Egypt still faces a disastrous economic and financial crisis that cannot be put off for more than a few weeks at the most. It faces hunger, unemployment and social unrest. With the best will in the world the new government will have an almost impossible task before it.

Some commentators have even suggested that it would be better if Morsi had survived, because then he and the Brotherhood would have been blamed for the collapse. As it is, if and when it happens the new government will get the blame.

This is a huge opportunity and an equally huge risk for the West, plagued as it is by weak and vacillating leadership.

The new government in Egypt should be supported in every way, to demonstrate that the world cares about what happens in the Arab world, if it indeed does. Verbally, diplomatically, politically, economically and financially, Egypt must be encouraged and helped to succeed under its new leadership.

If this is not done, history will never forgive the West and it will be largely responsible for the horrific consequences.

Will the right things be done? Doubtful.

The Obama administration has supported the Muslim Brotherhood government since the beginning and tried to save it at the last minute by threatening to cut off financial support for the armed forces.

See also: [ Analyst: Obama has formed strategic alliance with Muslim Brotherhood and Western media fail to report that a foreign regime is occupying Iran ]

It is not by chance that many of the signs and placards carried by the demonstrators attacked Obama as supporting Morsi against the will of the Egyptian people. They are right.

There has been over the past year no condemnations of the many anti-democratic measures taken by the Brotherhood government. The European government have been equally complicit.

If the new government and the armed forces are blamed for the inevitable crash and there is another change of government, it is likely to be even more authoritarian than the Morsi regime. No chances will be taken and society will be “cleansed” in the way it was in Iran after the Khomeini coup. This is the most dangerous outcome possible for both the West in general and Israel in particular.

The Gulf states and Saudi Arabia should also step up to the plate — their future is also at stake in what happens in Egypt.

What, indeed, can be done with the right support?

In an initial phase the gas pipeline to Israel and Jordan should be reopened and protected. Every effort should be made to restart the tourist industry and assure the security of the tourists.

In the longer term, Egyptian agriculture must be rationalized and mechanized, perhaps through the formation of cooperatives made up of the peasants of a particular area.

Cultivation of high-value crops should be encouraged; wheat and beef can be imported.

The country has never been properly surveyed for oil, gas and mineral resources and this should be done as soon as possible, with emphasis on non-traditional deposits that can be “fracked” and rare metals, as well as minerals such as potash.

Laws and regulations should be reviewed expeditiously to remove impediments to innovation and investment. Egypt has a large population and thus a large internal market. This can serve as a base for the rapid development of consumer industries.

In every one of these areas, Israel can be of great assistance and should offer its collaboration freely. It is an opportunity that comes once in a generation. The future of the entire region is at stake.

Norman A. Bailey, Ph.D., is Adjunct Professor of Economic Statecraft at The Institute of World Politics, Washington, D.C., and a researcher at the Center for National Security Studies, University of Haifa. This column was published by Globes, an online business publication in Israel.

  Adli Mansour, Egypt ousts its Muslim Brotherhood leader in a victory for freedom: Now the real crisis begins, Mohammed Morsi, Salafists