Variables shaping U.S. Foreign policy in the Middle East in Post-WWII Period

Abstract

The United States has direct interests in the Middle East due to the region's strategic and economic importance in the world. Following the end of the World War II, with the newly acquired American supremacy in the Middle East, several principle concerns made the region crucial to the US¹. First, beginning in the 1950s there was a bipolar competition between the U.S. and the threat of confrontation in the Middle East. The US was threatened by the Soviet Union, a nuclear power, perceived as having expansionist goals, which, if not contained, would lead to serious consequences. Since World War II, U.S. intervention in the region became obvious, its priorities in the Middle East have focused primarily on insuring access to oil and, after 1948, the defense of Israel. Knowing that the variables shaping foreign policy are numerous, the focus in this research will be on three factors that I consider of major importance in the context of U.S. policy in the Middle East. the three factors are: Israel, oil, and the geostrategic importance of te region. Therefore, this research analyzes these factors and their implications on U.S. foreign policy in the Post WWII period.