Political Situation in the Persian Gulf

The present political situation in the Persian Gulf represents the culmination of developments of the past three decades with respect to United States foreign policy and socio-political developments in the Arab states. Arab states are experiencing turmoil as some attempt to Westernize their cultures and economies, while others remain steadfastly fundamentalist and resist all manner of change as a threat to Islam. United States foreign policy has played a significant role in creating the current political situation in the Persian Gulf. The present political situation can be traced back to the fall of the Shah of Iran, when Soviet influence was prevalent in the region and the United States began to look for another stronghold. When Iraq waged war on Iran, the United States began backing Iraq with guaranteed loans. This achieved United States goals - access to oil reserves, expulsion of Soviet influence, etc. - but allowed Hussein to grow in power. When he invaded Kuwait, all bets were off between the United States and Iraq.

The Kuwait invasion by Iraq radically changed the political situation in the Persian Gulf as many Arab nations opposed Hussein's invasion. Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states increased their cooperation not only for mutual defense and security, but also on a broad spectrum of political and economic issues. Israel, in the meantime, had become militarily powerful and at peace with its neighbors. Saddam

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rning history on its head, the Iraqi leader held up the war as a victory, boasting that he fought a brilliant delaying action in Kuwait, thus preventing the allies from crossing the Euphrates into Iraq's interior. What other army but the Iraqi could have achieved such a feat? He boasted. In the face of over half a million enemies, Iraq's army was still intact and the nation was still under the leadership of Saddam Hussein (466). Like the current conflict in the Persian Gulf between the United States and Iraq, some Arab states were reluctant to offer assistance to the United States. After the first Gulf War, General Schwarzkopf expressed the sentiment in public that Syria had drug its feet as a member of the coalition. In an article entitled The Gulf War: Setting the Record Straight, Prince Khalid of Saudi Arabia "rejected any claims of faint-heartedness by the Syrian members of the coalition" (Gordon, 1995, 466). Gordon's work is often prescient in this fashion. It is ironic that the United States is currently aiming its focus on Syria, who it believes may be harboring weapons of mass destruction or Iraqi officials wanted by the United States. United States foreign policy has helped shape the present political situation in

Category: Foreign - P