American Foreign Policy In The Middle East

In spite of long distance between Middle East and United States, U.S. has influenced and has connections in the every country in the region. Strategic interests have forced the US to build the relations with Middle East including the competition with the Soviet Union U.S. has been provoked by the Soviet Union for its interventions from diplomatic overtures of war and friendship. Americans have interests to access the Middle Eastern oil. In this regard they have motivated their presidents and lawmakers to intervene the region. In addition cultural ties bind Arab Americans, Iranian Americans and Turkish Americans. These American groups want to make the voices heard in the U.S. foreign policy arena.

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The aim of this paper is to discuss the United States’ ideological and physical presence in the region of the Middle East. The paper has mainly focused on the points of the foreign policies of U.S towards the Middle East and the crisis which need special attention of America.

Discussion

The Cold War ended with the Soviet withdrawal from the Third World in general, leaving the United States unchallenged at a regional level, for an uncertain period of time. Sudden collapse of the Cold War rival, disintegration of the Soviet Union, brought the super military and economic power in need to readjust from one attuned to the global activities and ambitions of Soviet Union to one with new definitions of security and political interests. The year 1989 proved to be a very important watershed in the world politics with regard to its reflection and influence on the political history. The Cold war period was an idiosyncratic with its governing rules. U.S. and the Soviet Union reflected its spirit on all levels of the interactions among all actors of the system. This had also been observed in the interaction between the superpowers and one particular sub-region, one of the most problematic artificial regions of recent times- the Middle East. After subjecting to a certain level of limitation, factors that had shaped the U.S. Middle East policies during the Cold War did emerge as preventing the expansion of Communism by the Soviet Union, securing the free-flow of the Middle Eastern oil to Western industry, and providing the security of newly formed state of Israel and other pro-Western states.

The Cold War ended with the collapse of the Soviet Union that resulted in the emergence of new independent states, which became the pawns of the new rivalry between big powers to fill the power vacuum after the Soviets to utilize from their natural resources. But for the sake of the aim of the paper, after a brief look at global developments, the study will focus on the U.S. and Middle Eastern relations in more detail. Color of the new period started to become obvious with immediate signs provided by Iraqi invasion of Kuwait, civil war in Somalia, etc. These have been contributions to the demands and claims of the U.S. by the regional states’. `Uncivilized` parts of the world invited the saviors to bring peace and happiness, but on tanks, through mistreating their neighbors and citizens.

Egypt and U.S. relationships have been under the distrustful condition due to nationalization of Suez Canal. During this time Egypt turned towards the Eastern block and Soviet Union and relations suffered with U.S. until the Soviet Advisor was not ousted. After that Egypt began to orient its economic and foreign policies towards the West especially U.S.

Iraq invasion by the U.S. has resulted the distrust and dispersal in Middle East. However U.S kept eyes on the wells of the Iraq, and was forced to withdraw its troops from the region. New president of U.S Obama has committed to withdraw its troops and launch a very comprehensive regional and international diplomatic relations with the brokers to settle the Iraqi people. Obama would withdraw most of the troops from the region and emphasized that troop would be in Kuwait rather than in Iraq itself. Iran is under the pressure of the U.S. Iran’s nuclear program has created concern for the Israel in the region. It is clear that American foreign policies revolve around the benefits of the Israel. Iran’s nuclear program is hurdle in the ways of Israel invasion in the Palestinian territory. However Obama has criticized the Senator Clinton bellicose Kyl-Lieberman amendment targeting Iran. He has preferred to negotiate with Iran directly.

Sustained and aggressive diplomacy combined with tough sanctions should be our primary means to prevent Iran from building nuclear weapons. (Obama U.S. President).

This raises the question why the Obama has not called for aggressive diplomacy and tough sanctions against the Israel, India and Pakistan for their existing nuclear weapons, so no less than Iran is also making violations of UN security resolutions. Although in the case of the Palestine, in start of his regime he has called for balance of power in Palestinian territory with support of the Israeli peace camp and its supporters. He was hopeful to settle the conflict according to the line of Geneva Initiative and also similar efforts by Israeli and Palestinians. However past two years Obama has changed the mind and has insisted to help the Israel with full funding the military assistance. In the presence of the international condemnation the Obama has claimed that Hezbollah was the responsible for these killings of innocent citizens. However the Human Right Watch has found that there was no involvement of the Hezbollah and it was the massive killings of innocent people by the Israeli troops. Obama’s senators always condemn the attacks against the Israeli civilians by Arabs and have never condemned the killings of Pedestrians by the Israeli troops. Syria is the country of the region and lies in the part of the Middle East from where U.S. can get its goals in the Middle East. American has not established a confidant policy towards the Syria.

Conclusions

This paper has examined the points of American foreign policies in Middle East. This paper provides a brief evaluation of the American foreign policy and measures taken to make the region very peaceful for the Obama Administration. We have started from the Cold war pre-circumstances and presently prevailing conditions of the Middle East with perspective of the America foreign policy. This paper ends with a discussion of the potential for a return to liberalism in foreign policy towards the Middle East during the present Obama administration. A very moderate and realistic approach is recommended in specific instances. A foreign policy based on the true realistic approaches is required to be fully reconsidered.