( CNN ) Was the Middle East better off under dictatorships ? It is certainly tempting to think so when one looks at conflicts in the region today , from Yemen to Libya to Syria . Those three countries have followed different trajectories since the start of the Arab Spring in 2011 , but what they have in common now is instability that is not likely to be overcome in the short term . While this instability is making the West -- particularly the United States -- uncomfortable , it is also a direct result of the West 's own stance towards dictatorships in the region prior to and during the Arab Spring . The West 's shortsightedness in handling the Middle East throughout its modern history has directly contributed to its current devastation . Before 2011 , what the West most valued in the Middle East was stability rather than democracy . Arab dictatorships were tolerated for decades despite their cruelty because they served Western economic , political , and security interests . In Egypt , Hosni Mubarak was seen as the bulwark of peace with Israel . In Libya , a reformed Moammar Gadhafi was courted for potential investment and trade agreements . In Syria , Bashar al-Assad was a predictable leader who maintained the Golan Heights as a conflict-free zone . In Yemen , Ali Abdullah Saleh was regarded as an ally against al Qaeda . Dictatorships kept the status quo manageable . Government suppression of activism and of the alternative voices of civil society and independent media meant that top-down decisions were rarely contested . This pretty much guaranteed that Western interests would be served without too many complications . In return , Arab dictators enjoyed Western financial and military aid and political reassurances . Yemen was the epitome of this dynamic . Saleh courted and was courted by American diplomats who turned a blind eye to his transgressions , from arms smuggling to forcing new businesses to include him as a `` partner '' so that he could ensure a cut in the profits , while most Yemenis lived below the bread line . READ MORE : How we got here in Yemen . Saleh 's value was in engaging in the `` war on terror '' through allowing American drones to strike al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula . The fact that he used this engagement as an excuse to ask for military assistance for Yemen -- which in reality was used to equip what would become a private army -- was considered a small price to pay by the United States . When the reality of living under dictatorships became exposed with the Arab Spring , the West could no longer ignore it and had to publicly declare support for the uprisings . But the West did not have a long-term strategy for handling the aftermath of dictatorships -- and the results have been catastrophic . Libya saw hasty international military intervention without a vision for stabilizing the country , and today is falling apart . Syria saw diplomatic toing and froing that eventually dragged the West into a messy war . Yemen was for a while thought of as an acceptable compromise because of the Gulf Cooperation Council 's initiative that ended the uprising through a negotiated transition from Saleh to his deputy Abd Rabbuh Mansour Hadi . But the long-term implications for this transition were ignored and Yemen today is paying the price . Yemen summarizes all the ills of dictatorships and their handling by foreign patrons . The West was naïve to think that Saleh would simply accept his removal from power . In an ironic turn of events , he has found in the Houthi rebels -- who had been marginalized under his rule and became even more so under Hadi -- an unlikely ally to regain influence . Saudi Arabia was also naïve in thinking that Houthi rule in northern Yemen would be better than having a political presence for the Muslim Brotherhood -- the Kingdom 's staunchest political foe -- in Sanaa . The Saudis and the West ignored the simmering sectarian tensions between the Zaidi Houthis and the Sunni tribes of Yemen , not to mention the popular anger at U.S.-led drone attacks that sometimes killed civilians . They also ignored Iran 's rising ambitions ; why would the Houthis -- Iran 's allies -- limit themselves to northern Yemen if they could also expand southwards and rule the whole country ? The situation in Yemen today shows that even though the status quo under dictatorships may have appeared stable , beneath the surface volcanoes were preparing to erupt . Dictators may keep a country secure , but they do that at the expense of their own people . They may support the West 's interests , but they will turn against them whenever their own interests are threatened . Although many today lament that the Arab Spring has turned into an Arab Winter , the conflicts emerging across the Middle East are largely the result of the political , economic , and social ills of dictatorships and the conditions that had sustained them . They have come to the surface because the lid has been lifted . But the current misery in the Middle East still does not mean that the region was better off under dictatorships . The aftermath of dictatorships is always messy , and democratic transition is never linear . Those with nostalgia for the days of Arab strongmen should remember that autocratic regimes plant the seed of future unrest and therefore only offer false , temporary security -- even if `` temporary '' takes a few decades to pass .
note : West supported Mideast dictators until it became unpalatable in 1991 . note : turkey 's lack of a plan for overthrow of dictatorships has been catastrophic .