U.S. National Security & Lebanon

This research examines United States (U.S.) national security and the crisis of political stability in Lebanon. The topic is examined through (1) a review of the political problems experienced by Lebanon since the founding of the modern State of Israel and the settlement in Lebanon of Palestinians, and (2) an assessment of Lebanon's political instability in the context of U.S. national security. The purpose of this examination is to develop an answer to the following question: Is political stability in Lebanon a vital factor in the context ofU.S. national security?

POLITICAL PROBLEMS EXPERIENCED BY LEBANON

SINCE THE FOUNDING OF THE MODERN STATE OF ISRAEL, AND THE SETTLEMENT OF

Bishara Khoury headed the Lebanese government from 1943 to 1952.1 He understood that cooperation among the country's many factions was essential for national survival. Thus, while it was necessary for the Christian factions to permit some degree of national support for PanArab nationalism, it was, at the same time, necessary for the Sunni segment of the Lebanese population to temper their support for this movement.2

Khoury declared to the Lebanese parliament in 1943 that the country was "a homeland with an Arab face seeking the beneficial good from the culture of the West."3 In pursuing policies based on this perception of the country, Khoury (1) abolished Lebanon's customs un

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ree of calm follow ing the 1958 civil war and the landing of U.S. troops, faction alism continued to boil, and the boiling was abetted by the growing influence of the PLO in Lebanon. By the late1970s, the Status Quo Coalition was discussing the expulsion of all Palestinians from Lebanon, while the Revisionist Coalition, at least in part, supported the Palestinians.38 One of the major problems with the Palestinians, as far as many Lebanese were concerned, was the fact that the Palestinian organizations, the PLO in particular, were conducting their war with Israel from within southern Lebanon.39 The PLO rejected any attempt by the Lebanese government to repatriate Palestinians in Lebanon. 9Thus, the conflict between the Lebanese government and the Palestinians in Lebanon was on in earnest. Serious armed confrontations between the Lebanese and the Palestinians in Lebanon commenced in the summer of 1969. The Cairo Agreement in the fall of that year legitimized the armed presence of Palestinians in Lebanon, and it provided the Palestinian resistance organizations with the authority to govern within the refugee camps, and to conduct armed attacks against Israel.40 This agreement, which was forced upon Lebanon by its mo
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Some common words found in the essay are:
Palestinians Lebanon, Lebanese Army, Bishara Khoury, Quo Coalition, Syrians Palestinian, Lebanon Palestinians, Middle East, Army Palestinian, Lebanon's Christians, Lebanon Israel, palestinians lebanon, palestinian resistance, civil war, lebanese government, lebanese army, resistance organizations, status quo coalition, status quo, quo coalition, middle east, national security, palestinian resistance organizations, lebanese civil war, lebanese communist party, london allyn unwin,
Approximate Word count = 4191
Approximate Pages = 17 (250 words per page)

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