US Foreign Policy in the Middle East: From American Missionaries to the Islamic State

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The dawn of the Cold War marked a new stage of complex U.S. foreign policy involvement in the Middle East. More recently, globalization and the region’s ongoing conflicts and political violence have led to the U.S. being more politically, economically, and militarily enmeshed – for better or worse―throughout the region. This book examines the emergence and development of U.S. foreign policy toward the Middle East from the early 1900s to the present. With contributions from some of the world’s leading scholars, it takes a fresh, interdisciplinary, and insightful look into the many antecedents that led to current U.S. foreign policy. Exploring the historical challenges, regional alliances, rapid political change, economic interests, domestic politics, and other sources of regional instability, this volume comprises critical analysis from Iranian, Turkish, Israeli, American, and Arab perspectives to provide a comprehensive examination of the evolution and transformation of U.S. foreign policy toward the Middle East. This volume is an important resource for scholars and students working in the fields of Political Science, Sociology, International Relations, Islamic, Turkish, Iranian, Arab, and Israeli Studies. Cover Half Title Title Page Copyright Page Table of Contents List of illustrations List of contributors Introduction: US foreign policy in the Middle East Complex relationships Volume overview Note References PART I: Historical Cultural and Economic Interests 1. From“heathen Turks” to “cruel Turks”: Religious and political roots of the changing American perception towards the Middle East Early American perception of the Muslims, Turks, and the Middle East: Commoners, religious elite, and the founding fathers From imagined to real Muslims: Merchants, missionaries, and diplomats From “heathen” to “cruel” Turks Note References 2. How big tobacco used Islam and modernity to conquer Saudi Arabia “I never smoke in public and rarely do so in the presence of visitors” “There is no … Islamic text from the Qur’an or the Sunnah …in this regard” Conclusion Notes References PART II: Cold War Challenges 3. How geography and ideology shaped US foreign policy during the Cold War and beyond The tug of history The tug of a promising protector: US foreign policy towards Turkey Testing the tug: the US–Turkish strategic relationship Tug back: Turkey grabs the rope Conclusion The tug of the future References 4. The ties that bind: Postwar US foreign policy toward Turkey From Pax Britannica to Pax Americana Becoming the frontier country: The Griddle Plan Economic integration via foreign assistance Conclusion Notes References 5. American atomic policy and Hashemite Iraq, 1954–1958 Baghdad Pact as legal basis “Technopolitical regimes” Commonwealth of Nations United Kingdom United States Conclusion Notes References PART III: Balancing Regional Alliances 6. Understanding the US-Israeli alliance Israeli national security US national security Policy disagreement Conclusion Notes References 7. The United States’ strategic relationship with Iran and Turkey: Implications for Cold War and post-Cold War order US strategic engagement with Iran, 1945–1979 US strategic engagement with Turkey, 1945–1979 Iran–Turkey relations and the US strategy in the Northern Tier The emergence of a negative balancer Deployment of US military forces in the Gulf Restoration of American–Turkish strategic relations The instrument of US foreign policy towards Iran: Economic sanctions Iran–US nuclear negotiations Proxy war in the Middle East Conclusion References 8. American-Qatari partnership in the post-Gulf War era: A mutually beneficial relationship The Persian Gulf security structure in the post-Gulf War period Qatar’s mediating role in the Middle East Potential for growth: American-Qatari commercial ties American-Qatari collaboration in the educational sphere Conclusion Notes References 9. US-Gulf Cooperation Council Relations in the age of the Obama Doctrine Changing factors influencing a new US foreign policy strategy Why the GCC (still) matters to the United States in an age of retrenchment Why the GCC (still) needs the United States What “retrenchment” has meant in practice towards the GCC Points of contention as a result of retrenchment Where Iran represents a challenge in GCC-US relations US policy regarding regime security Conclusion Notes References PART IV: Rapid Political Change and the Spread of Regional Instability 10. When partisanship displaced strategy: American foreign policy and war in Iraq The politics of foreign policy The United States and Iraq before the Persian Gulf wars The politics of regime change: The Iraq Liberation Act From inauguration to occupation Conclusion Disclaimer References 11. The United States and Political Islam: Dealing with the Egyptian Muslim Brothers in the Arab revolutions Thinking about political Islam in the American debate: Between suspicion and opportunities for cooperation Integrating the Muslim Brothers into the political game: Applying the democratic push to Islamists At the time of the revolutions: Gradually open the door to the Muslim Brothers The Muslim Brothers in power: Taming the revisionist potential Since the coup d’état: Do not close the door again Notes References 12. Promoting or resisting change? The United States and the Egyptian uprising, 2011–2012 Realism and idealism in the foreign policy of Obama’s firstadministration Supporting the status quo while singing for change in Egypt (2011–2012) US administration’s support of the SCAF SCAF protection of US interests US suspicions of SCAF alternatives – the case of the MuslimBrotherhood Conclusion References 13. Set-up for failure: The Syria-United States relationship US national interests in the Middle East: What role for Syria? Syria as a weak state and of marginal US concern, 1946–1961 Setting up a failed US-Syrian dynamic, 1963–1970 The Asad era and the United States: Stronger state, impossible foreign policy, 1970 to present Syria’s impossible foreign policy Conclusion Notes References 14. The United States and Iran: The view of the hard-line conservatives in the Islamic Republic Factions in the Islamic Republic of Iran Hard-line conservatives and Iran’s foreign policy Hard-line conservatives and the United States of America Conclusion Note References 15. Losing hearts and minds: The United States, ideocide, and the propaganda war against ISIS US government mistakes A brief history of ISIS and its roots ISIS’ greatest weapon: Propaganda that gets results ISIS propaganda is complex, multi-layered, and demands an entity that can handle it No one is in charge of strategic communication coordination A lack of credibility Countering the narrative: Possible strategies and approaches Establish a Department of Information (DoI) Interview sources Notes References 16. An imperial design or necessity of political economy? Understanding the underpinnings of a Trump administration Political economy of foreign policy Who designs US foreign policy? US foreign policy: From the Cold War to the post-Cold War era Donald Trump’s political team: Former generals and the economic elite Will Trump be able to change US foreign policy? References Acknowledgments Index