The Analysis Of America's Gains And Losses In The Iraq War

Started from the US launching the first missile to Baghdad on March20,2003,the Iraq War which lasted42days came to an end when George W. Bush announcedthe end of the war on aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln on May1,2003. The militaryattack was ended quickly, but it gave us endless thinking. The first part of the thesisgeneralizes and elaborates the reasons why the US started the Iraq War as well as theUS strategic objectives. These objectives were: the strategic implementation of theglobal hegemony; maintaining the strategic interests of the US national security;aiming to dominating the pipelines of the global energy through controlling theMiddle East countries; forcibly spreading and outputting the US democracy, hittingthe Arabic anti-American forces and eliminating the obstacles for the US toreestablish the regional orders in the Middle East. Generally, the US had gains andlosses in the Iraq War. The second and third part of the thesis is the core part whichanalyzes and elaborates the US gains and losses in the Iraq War. The thesis concludedthat the US losses are more than the gains. The gains were: the war strengthened theUS control of the energy production base and the US control of the energy-supplyingpipelines; eased the pressure for the development of the US military industry, andstimulated the recovery of the US economy indirectly; not only crewed out the USmain strategic rivals, but also led the post-war reconstruction in Iraq, consolidated andexpanded its overall control in the Middle East. Each coin has two sides. The USlosses in the Iraq war could be summed up as followed: severely damaged the US softpower, influenced the US global strategic interests; meanwhile, caused heavy fiscalburdens for the US government because of the huge consumptions and costs resultingfrom the long-lasting war; led to the rise of forces of terrorism and threatened theoutcomes of the US war on terrorism; to some extent, the war intensified the domesticsocial contradictions and conflicts in the US, influenced the US social and politicalstability, and then frustrated the US Greater Middle East Initiative. The forth part analyzes the Iraq War and gives relevant reflections: the Iraq war caused constantturbulence in the Middle East, strengthened the US policy in hegemonic orientation,caused the worldwide terrorism to upgrade and expand, triggered a worldwidemilitary race, undermined the favorable atmosphere of the world peace, andthreatened the world peace. In view of the above analyses and reflections for ourtimes, corresponding suggestions are put forward: we should maintain correct conceptof national security, oppose hegemony and power politics, concentrate onenhancement of the overall national strength in pursuit of development and progress.