Kaplan ha spiegato a perfezione le analogie e le differenze fondamentali tra la crisi iraniana e la questione della stabilità cinese nella regione dello Xinjiang, evidenziando un punto importante:
«China’s regime may have its troubles in Xinjiang, but it still delivers efficient management of a complex society that spans nearly a continent. Iran’s regime simply cannot lay claim to that kind of stability. And the Chinese communist party is not split like the Iranian clergy.While the unrest in China was a matter of ethnic strife, rooted in the illiberal language of blood identity, the demonstrations in Iran had universalist stirrings, reflected in the cry for “democracy.” Thus, while the turmoil in China unsettles us, we find the drama in Iran uplifting. Yet both disturbances remind us not to become too complacent about our assumptions».
