Study On The United States Policy In The Middle East Since World War Two

Since World War 2, the realization that reconstruction of Europe—as well as the postwar economic boom in the United States—would become more and more dependent upon Middle East oil boosted the policy significance of the region in the eyes of Washington's policymakers. While the emerging cold war, the geopolitical value of the Middle East became contemporaneously linked to the policy of containment to the Soviet Union by Washington. It came to believe that the strategy could successfully prevent Moscow from extending its influence in the region. In the wake of the end of the U.S.—Soviet cold war ,the United States took advantage of the new regional environment produced by the termination of the cold war and then shaped by the Gulf war and played more role. Since September 11, 2001, the prime focus of Washington has been the management of unprecedented U.S. military interventions in the region, which removed regimes from power in Afghanistan and Iraq. It also aims to transform the region by the western standard.This dissertation endeavors to cover these issues, and provides a critical and historical analysis of U.S. Middle East policy in terms of its objectives, means, and consequences. It attempts to present the major pros and cons of the Middle East policy and draw attention to alternative perspectives in line with the character of different policy tools. The dissertation is organized into five chapters. Chapter 1 focuses on U.S. economic aid policy in the Middle East by concentrating on aid to Israel, Egypt, Iran and Turkey. Chapter 2 discusses U.S. commercial and investment policy in the region. The growth of aid programs, investment, free-trade agreement, joint efforts, and American intervention in the Middle East economic system will be made the United States and the region interdependent. Chapter 3 gives the history of U.S. military aid and armament sales policy in the region., which has been used to established close relations with the governments of such "traditional elites" as Israel, Turkey, Iran (the Shah), and the "moderate" Arab regimes. The chapter indicates that the United States sought to protect its interests in the region by propagating friendly regimes through lavish military assistance. Chapter 4 offers a description of U.S. sanction policy toward the Middle East. The chapter points that the United States continues to utilize sanction means to achieve its objectives in the Middle East. Chapter 5 deals with U.S. military existence and covert policy toward the region, which has been used to intervene in domestic politics of the states in the region in opposition to nationalist and revolutionary forces. In the chapter, the U.S. Central Command, the reflagging of Kuwaiti oil tanker is analyzed.This dissertation indicates that the United States has used a variety of malignant and benign means to achieve its interests in the region. These have included both peaceful and violent methods carried out by means of covert and overt operations. Generally speaking, malignant means have been used against "unfriendly" states, such as Iraq, Afghanistan, Iran, and Libya. On the other hand, benign means have been used with respect to "friendly" states including Israel, Turkey, Iran (in the Shah), "moderate" and conservative Arab states. The dissertation illustrates the reasons that U.S. policy makers select policy tools from the characteristic of economical, political, and social on the Middle East. For example, the dissertation demonstrates that it is the fact that Middle East economies remain largely dependent on the West for their exports markets, financial markets, industrial inputs including technology, and food supplies that could have economies measures to tend to cripple the local economies and consequently to endanger governments.