Tuesday, July 21, 2009

Iraq War are we here to stay?

With the trend of conflict moving to the Middle East it is easy to see that America's new forward operating base will be Iraq. After World War II the front line was West Germany. Even now we still have a military presence. Since to fall of the Soviet Union and the dismantling of the Berlin wall the threat of invasion through Europe has lessen over the years. However conflict in our world has not stopped. The first "Gulf War" focused Americas attention to the Middle East. From a realist perspective the instability in the region caused by Hussein's invasion of Kuwait threatened America's security. Some people maintain the reason why we are there is for the oil. Yes oil is important to the U.S. however we only import 11% of what we use from just one Middle Eastern state which is Saudi Arabia. So I ask the people who believe the "oil bandwagon rhetoric" will America also invade Mexico or Venezuela for the oil?
Security is our primary drive and this can only be obtained through stabilizing the Middle East. This is a tall order since most of the region as been in conflict for over 10,000 years starting with great civilizations of Mesopotamia,Babylonia,Hittites and Assyrians. Modern times are not much different ethnic, political and relgious beliefs put many of these states at odds with one another. In addition, states like Iran are troubled by inner political strife. These conflicts play a big part in the instabilty of the region. There is no clear solution on how to reconcile all these conflicts. However, to remain secure America has to play diplomatic or military role in the region. So I do not see us really leaving the area for along time to come.

Sunday, May 17, 2009

Nuclear Arms

The government of Iran does not support President Obama's plans for nuclear disarmament. They feel that the U.S. operates under a double standard when it come to their policy on Israel's nuclear weapons and Iran's nuclear program. The Iranians have stated they want to use their nuclear capabilities for peaceful purposes such as generating efficient energy to power their country. However countries such as the United States and Israel believe they have the capabilities to make weapons which in turn would would threaten the security of Israel since both states are antagonistic to one another. In addition, the Iranians would like the U.S. to make a more concerted effort to change its foreign policy stance in relation to Iran. It would like the U.S. to unfreeze its assets and lift other economic sanctions that are affecting the country. If the U.S. clears away these obstacles then the Iranian government would be more willing to talk about their nuclear capabilities. For President Obama's plan to work it has to overcome years of tension and conflict in the region. (www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,510020,00.html)