Middle East affairs expert Nubar Hovsepian said he believes peace in the Middle East will be hard to attain.

To a crowd of 50 in the Memorial Union Sun Room Tuesday night, the Cairo native spoke on Middle Eastern politics in his lecture, “The Middle East Peace Process: Security, Justice and Democracy.” The lecture was presented by the Arab Student Association and ISU Committee on Lectures.

“I’m afraid that we have obtained a peace under duress that cannot and will not last,” Hovsepian said.

Hovsepian emphasized Palestine in particular, noting that despite claims it is gaining independence, 44 percent of the Gaza Strip remains occupied.

He said he fears that today’s occurrences are foreshadowing a bleak and uncertain tomorrow for world peace.

“With the U.S. backing Israel, it will become the new world super power,” he said.

Production of wealth has shifted from material possessions to the development of technological resources, Hovsepian said.

He also explained that a Fourth World has emerged, including countries such as Somalia, Egypt and potentially Palestine.

“As the First World enjoys globalization, it is the Fourth World that possesses the threats of the 21st century,” Hovsepian said. “American policy toward this region is not appropriate.”

Hovsepian compared the threats of the Middle East to the United State’s “war on drugs.”

Likening the suppliers of drugs to the suppliers of arms, Hovsepian said the suppliers are as much to blame as the users.

It all started in the ’60s, he said.

“In the ’60s and ’70s, policies of Western agencies perpetuated militarization of the Middle East,” he said.

“One out of 50 people in the Middle East is a soldier.”

He also said that military expenditures have increased 1,600 percent since 1967, and that for every dollar the Middle East spends on education, $166 is spent on defense.

With statistics like these, Hovsepian said, he cannot see a good future for the Middle East.

“Authoritarian rule is more likely to continue than discontinue,” Hovespian said.