Reimagining U.S. Strategy in the Middle East

Reimagining U.S. Strategy in the Middle East PDF Author: Dalia Dassa Kaye
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781977406620
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 190

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Book Description
"U.S. policy toward the Middle East has relied heavily on military instruments of power and has focused on regional threats--particularly the Iranian threat--with the goal of keeping partners on "our side." These long-standing policies have largely fallen short of meeting core U.S. interests and adapting to new regional realities and strategic imperatives. RAND researchers offer an alternative framework, suggesting that the U.S. strategic priority must center on reducing regional conflict and the drivers of conflict. This revised strategic approach puts a greater focus on addressing conflict and socioeconomic challenges that are creating unsustainable pressures on the region's states and immense suffering among its people. Researchers analyze how the tools of U.S. policy--political, security, economic, diplomatic, and informational instruments--would need to adjust to more effectively address such challenges in ways that are mindful of limited resources at home. Researchers also examine how the United States deals with both partners and adversaries in and outside the region and consider how to better leverage policies to the benefit of U.S. interests and the region. The researchers recommend specific actions organized into the following three pillars: (1) shifting resources from the current heavy reliance on military tools to a more balanced approach that prioritizes economic investments, governance, diplomacy, and programs focused on people; (2) favoring a long-term time horizon to reduce regional conflict and support growth and development, even at the cost of short-term risks; and (3) working multilaterally with global and regional partners to address key challenges." -- from the publisher.

Reimagining U.S. Strategy in the Middle East

Reimagining U.S. Strategy in the Middle East PDF Author: Dalia Dassa Kaye
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781977406620
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 190

Get Book

Book Description
"U.S. policy toward the Middle East has relied heavily on military instruments of power and has focused on regional threats--particularly the Iranian threat--with the goal of keeping partners on "our side." These long-standing policies have largely fallen short of meeting core U.S. interests and adapting to new regional realities and strategic imperatives. RAND researchers offer an alternative framework, suggesting that the U.S. strategic priority must center on reducing regional conflict and the drivers of conflict. This revised strategic approach puts a greater focus on addressing conflict and socioeconomic challenges that are creating unsustainable pressures on the region's states and immense suffering among its people. Researchers analyze how the tools of U.S. policy--political, security, economic, diplomatic, and informational instruments--would need to adjust to more effectively address such challenges in ways that are mindful of limited resources at home. Researchers also examine how the United States deals with both partners and adversaries in and outside the region and consider how to better leverage policies to the benefit of U.S. interests and the region. The researchers recommend specific actions organized into the following three pillars: (1) shifting resources from the current heavy reliance on military tools to a more balanced approach that prioritizes economic investments, governance, diplomacy, and programs focused on people; (2) favoring a long-term time horizon to reduce regional conflict and support growth and development, even at the cost of short-term risks; and (3) working multilaterally with global and regional partners to address key challenges." -- from the publisher.

Re-Engaging the Middle East

Re-Engaging the Middle East PDF Author: Dafna H. Rand
Publisher: Brookings Institution Press
ISBN: 0815737629
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 332

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Book Description
It's time for new policies based on changing U.S. interests U.S. policy in the Middle East has had very few successes in recent years, so maybe it's time for a different approach. But is the new approach of the Trump administration—military disengagement coupled with unquestioning support for key allies--Israel, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia—the way forward? In this edited volume, noted experts on the region lay out a better long-term strategy for protecting U.S. interests in the Middle East. The authors articulate a vision that is both self-interested and carefully tailored to the unique dynamics of the increasingly divergent sub-regions in the Middle East, including North Africa, the Sunni Arab bloc of Egypt and Persian Gulf states, and the increasingly chaotic Levant. The book argues that the most effective way to pursue and protect U.S. interests is unlikely to involve the same alliance-centric approach that has been the basis of Washington's policy since the 1990s. Instead, the United States should adopt a nimbler and less military-dominant strategy that relies on a diversified set of partners and a determination to establish priorities for American interests and the use of resources, both financial and military. In essence, the book calls for a new post-Obama and post-Trump approach to the region that reflects the fact that U.S. interests are changing and likely will continue to change. The book offers a fresh perspective in advance of the 2020 presidential election.

Us Foreign Policy Towards the Middle East

Us Foreign Policy Towards the Middle East PDF Author: Bernd Kaussler
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 9780367595333
Category : Middle East
Languages : en
Pages : 192

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Book Description
This book offers a realist critique of US foreign policy towards the Middle East in the past decade. It critically examines four core foundations of contemporary US Middle East policy: US relations with Saudi Arabia after the Arab Spring; US diplomacy towards Iran and the Obama administration's policy of engagement; the road to, and aftermath of, the 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq; and US policy towards nuclear-armed Israel. Because of a closely guarded bipartisan consensus, these four core foundations of contemporary US Middle East policy have largely evaded public criticism and scrutiny. This book argues that US strategy towards the Middle East has rarely been guided by order, stability and the national interest. Rather, successive administrations have created a house of cards built on a series of deceptions and constructed perceptions or myths. Combined, these four aspects of US Middle East policy have ushered in a decade of political violence, instability, sectarian divisions and an imbalance of power which has culminated in the territorial disintegration of Iraq and countries in the Levant as well as the rise of ISIS. Moving forward requires a rational pursuit of the national interest based on realist principles. This book will be of much interest to students of US foreign policy, Middle Eastern politics, security studies and IR in general.

The Middle East in 1958

The Middle East in 1958 PDF Author: Jeffrey G. Karam
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 0755606817
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 249

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Book Description
The revolutionary year of 1958 epitomizes the height of the social uprisings, military coups, and civil wars that erupted across the Middle East and North Africa in the mid-twentieth century. Amidst waning Anglo-French influence, growing US-USSR rivalry, and competition and alignments between Arab and non-Arab regimes and domestic struggles, this year was a turning point in the modern history of the Middle East. This multi and interdisciplinary book explores this pivotal year in its global, regional and local contexts and from a wide range of linguistic, geographic, academic specialties. The contributors draw on declassified and multilingual archives, reports, memoirs, and newspapers in thirteen country-specific chapters, shedding new light on topics such as the extent of Anglo-American competition after the Suez War, Turkey's efforts to stand as a key pillar in the regional Cold War, the internationalization of the Algerian War of Independence, and Iran and Saudi Arabia's abilities to weather the revolutionary storm that swept across the region. The book includes a foreword from Salim Yaqub which highlights the importance of Jeffrey G. Karam's collection to the scholarship on this vital moment in the political history of the modern middle east.

American Universities in the Middle East and U.S. Foreign Policy

American Universities in the Middle East and U.S. Foreign Policy PDF Author: Pratik Chougule
Publisher: BRILL
ISBN: 9004521623
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 176

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Book Description
Using prominent American-style universities as case studies, American Universities in the Middle East and U.S. Foreign Policy explores how these institutions relate to U.S. foreign policy interests and how this relationship has evolved from the mid-19th century to today.

NATO 2030

NATO 2030 PDF Author: Jason Blessing
Publisher: Brookings Institution Press
ISBN: 1947661116
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 224

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Book Description
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) is the world’s largest, most powerful military alliance. The Alliance has navigated and survived the Cold War, the collapse of the Soviet Union, and the post-9/11 era. Since the release of the 2010 Strategic Concept, NATO’s strategic environment has again undergone significant change. The need to adapt is clear. An opportunity to assess the Alliance’s achievements and future goals has now emerged with the Secretary General’s drive to create a new Strategic Concept for the next decade—an initiative dubbed NATO 2030. A necessary step for formulating a new strategic outlook will thus be understanding the future that faces NATO. To remain relevant and adjust to new circumstances, the Alliance must identify its main challenges and opportunities in the next ten years and beyond. This book contributes to critical conversations on NATO’s future vitality by examining the Alliance’s most salient issues and by offering recommendations to ensure its effectiveness moving forward. Written by a diverse, multigenerational group of policymakers and academics from across Europe and the United States, this book provides new insights about NATO’s changing threat landscape, its shifting internal dynamics, and the evolution of warfare. The volume’s authors tackle a wide range of issues, including the challenges of Russia and China, democratic backsliding, burden sharing, the extension of warfare to space and cyberspace, partnerships, and public opinion. With rigorous assessments of NATO’s challenges and opportunities, each chapter provides concrete recommendations for the Alliance to chart a path for the future. As such, this book is an indispensable resource for NATO’s strategic planners and security and defense experts more broadly.

China's Economic and Political Presence in the Middle East and South Asia

China's Economic and Political Presence in the Middle East and South Asia PDF Author: Mehran Haghirian
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
ISBN: 1000642429
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 196

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Book Description
This book explores a range of key issues connected to China’s relations with countries in the Middle East and South Asia. It discusses economic and political connections, and projects which have arisen as part of China’s Belt and Road Initiative. It covers both important countries in the Middle East, and also Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan. It examines current contentious issues including Iranian sanctions and the war in Syria, and assesses the roles of other powers such as Russia, Turkey and Israel insofar as they affect China’s relationships. Overall, the book presents many new perspectives on the subject, with many of the perspectives representing the view from the countries of the Middle East and South Asia.

Military Coercion and US Foreign Policy

Military Coercion and US Foreign Policy PDF Author: Melanie W. Sisson
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 100005683X
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 253

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Book Description
This book examines the use of military force as a coercive tool by the United States, using lessons drawn from the post-Cold War era (1991–2018). The volume reveals that despite its status as sole superpower during the post-Cold War period, US efforts to coerce other states failed as often as they succeeded. In the coming decades, the United States will face states that are more capable and creative, willing to challenge its interests and able to take advantage of missteps and vulnerabilities. By using lessons derived from in-depth case studies and statistical analysis of an original dataset of more than 100 coercive incidents in the post-Cold War era, this book generates insight into how the US military can be used to achieve policy goals. Specifically, it provides guidance about the ways in which, and the conditions under which, the US armed forces can work in concert with economic and diplomatic elements of US power to create effective coercive strategies. This book will be of interest to students of US national security, US foreign policy, strategic studies and International Relations in general.

Orsam Rapor Sayı:32 / Understanding Economic Relations Between Saudi Arabia And Russia

Orsam Rapor Sayı:32 / Understanding Economic Relations Between Saudi Arabia And Russia PDF Author: Murat Aslan
Publisher: ORSAM
ISBN: 6257219450
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages :

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Book Description
The Middle East region was redesigned in the aftermath of the First World War according to the balance and interests between the world powers of the period. Between the two world wars, there had not been much change in local societies and political mechanisms in the Middle East region. After the Second World War, especially since the 1950s, this region has had an important place in the power struggle between the United States of America and the Soviet Union. In the new global order that emerged after the end of the Cold War, the Middle East region continued to undergo regional fluctuations under the influence of new power dynamics. The United States, which was the only global superpower in the 1990s, was acting according to its own interests with its hegemonic power both in world politics and in the Middle East. However, since the 2000s, the world order has become more polarized, and Russia's interest in the region has increased together with China’s. The main focus of this report is to examine the main driving motives behind the economic and trade relations that were formed between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (hereinafter the KSA) and the Russian Federation (hereinafter the RF) since the 1990s. One of the main arguments set forward in this report is that the course of the economic relations between KSA and RF has been guided by the changing political balances and power relations at the global and regional levels. It is clear that explaining bilateral economic relations between countries with only one dimension and simple political (or economic) concepts will be highly unrealistic and extremely insufficient. It is also clear that an explanation based merely on simple economic concepts such as foreign trade, exchange rates, and profit maximization would be incomplete. For these reasons, we find it appropriate to analyze the diplomatic and political relations and developments in the Moscow-Riyadh axis by utilizing an interdisciplinary approach. The perspective of the global political economy offers a powerful explanatory model. In the most recent decades both Moscow and Riyadh have been following proactive foreign policies, and their policy behaviors resemble a complicated mechanism fed from multiple sources. Russia's national economy has been stagnant due to the recent decline in oil prices. Despite the weakening budgetary resources and the economic stagnation, Russia's foreign policy moves are heading towards an extremely proactive trajectory. The important events of the 2000s are the September 11 terrorist attacks, invasion of Iraq by the US, Color Revolutions in the former Soviet geography, 2008 global financial crisis, and the Arab uprisings that have shaken the Middle East since 2010-2011 and their repercussions. These changes have deeply affected the world political system and global governance issues. The Moscow elite focused on two aspects of these changes and developments: the survival of the state and increasing security threats. These major events have fed into Russia's highly assertive and aggressive foreign policy behavior. Military engagement with Georgia in 2008, rapprochement with China and Iran, as well as the improvement of diplomatic relations in the Middle East are some examples in this regard. In particular, Russia's proactive foreign policy behaviors have accelerated since 2012 with Putin’s third term as president, reaching a peak in 2015 when Moscow surprised the international community by actively involving in the Syrian civil war. Since the collapse of the USSR, Russia has been conducting military operations for the first time in a region outside the former Soviet territory. From a global perspective, we observe that Russia's foreign policy has had a significant impact, particularly on Middle Eastern affairs. Russia’s relationship with the Middle East is based on three pillars: restoration of prestige in the global power struggle, security interests, and economic interests (Wasser, 2019). These factors, to a certain extent, also apply to Russia’s bilateral relations with the KSA. Another critical factor in the course of bilateral relations between Saudi Arabia and Russia is the changes in the US perception of global and regional security threats. Especially after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, Saudi Arabia, like all Gulf countries, had its share from the aggressive approach of the US. In the face of Washington's aggressive and unconstructive attitude, the Gulf monarchies had to take some steps for the protection of the status quo. Historically, the relations between the KSA and Russia were mostly shaped by the state of relations between Riyadh and Washington. Yet, the relations between the KSA and Russia have evolved to include economic and political interests in addition to the indirect effects of the power struggle among global powers. Russia's active engagement in the Middle East and the Gulf has both geopolitical and regional dimensions. From the geopolitical point of view, Moscow always looks at the region through the lens of its goal of projecting power at the global level and confronting the West—or simply the US. Thus, regional priorities play a secondary role. Analysts and experts have focused on Russia’s foreign policy actions, including Moscow’s partnership with China, the war against Georgia, conflicts with Ukraine, the annexation of Crimea, military intervention in Syria, and the increasing activism in the Eurasian Economic Union, which can be considered to be in line with Russia’s strategy of balancing the West. Such measures are part of a broader strategy aimed at undermining the cohesion in the rival axis, (US, NATO, and the European Union) thus making the Western alliance unable to plan, formulate, and implement a policy on Russia and its near abroad. As an example of the challenge posed by Moscow to the US and its global liberal order, in June 2021, Russia declared that it would remove its dollar assets and replace them with gold and euros. There is a lack of analytical studies that examine Putin's era in the Russian Federation from a political economy perspective. Many crucial issues and questions are yet to be addressed. The most important question in this regard is what are the main factors behind Moscow’s recent activism in the Middle East? This report tries to answer this question by focusing on the interplay of global power dynamics, ideational and domestic sources of Russian foreign policy under the rubric of the global political economy. In the following sections, the study reviews the bilateral relations between the KSA and RF after the Cold War. In the subsequent section, the main pillars of Russian foreign policy are outlined with a political economy approach. Later, the report reviews the macroeconomic characteristics of these two countries. In the fourth section, the study focuses on bilateral relations in a historical context. In the fifth section, the bilateral relations are discussed under the headings of trade, energy, and investment, to shed light on all those issues. In particular, the study offers an in-depth analysis of trade, investment, and energy questions, where we examine the complex interdependency and other dynamics in the global energy markets that, to some extent, shape the recent coordination between the KSA and the Russian Federation. The final section concludes the report.

Rethinking American Grand Strategy

Rethinking American Grand Strategy PDF Author: Elizabeth Borgwardt
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0190695668
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 513

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Book Description
What is grand strategy ? What does it aim to achieve? And what differentiates it from normal strategic thought--what, in other words, makes it "grand"? In answering these questions, most scholars have focused on diplomacy and warfare, so much so that "grand"? In answering these questions, most scholars have focused on diplomacy and warfare, so much so that "grand strategy" has become almost an equivalent of "military history." The traditional attention paid to military affairs is understandable, but in today's world it leaves out much else that could be considered political, and therefore strategic. Just as contemporary world politics is driven by a wide range of non-military issues, the most thorough considerations of grand strategy must consider the bases of peace and security--including gender, race, the environment, and a wide range of cultural, social, political, and economic issues. Rethinking American Grand Strategy assembles a roster of leading historians to examine America's place in the world. Its innovative chapters re-examine familiar figures, such as John Quincy Adams, George Kennan, and Henry Kissinger, while also revealing the forgotten episodes and hidden voices of American grand strategy. They expand the scope of diplomatic and military history by placing the grand strategies of public health, race, gender, humanitarianism, and the law alongside military and diplomatic affairs to reveal hidden strategists as well as strategies. --