Volume XVIII – Number 1
Louis J. Cantori
Abstract: The influence of the United States and the Soviet Union on the Middle East is best examined through the context of the Cold War. This article argues that the Middle East provides significant evidence of a general phenomenon, which is that of the primary importance of regional conflicts and the frequently secondary importance and influence of superpowers. American policy interests in the Middle East are examined, such as the containment of Soviet influence, the safeguarding of strategic oil reserves, and the security of Israel. Pre-Reagan foreign policy towards the Middle East is examined as well, as the world oil shortage, coupled with conflict between Egypt and Israel over the creation of an autonomous West Bank dominated America’s foreign policy towards the Middle East. President Reagan’s Middle Eastern policy is also examined, with a focus on his doctrine of anti-Soviet “strategic consensus”, as the question of the containment of Soviet influence in the region was the center piece of American Middle East policy. This policy changed upon further conflict in the Middle East between Israel and Lebanon, as the U.S. took a more proactive policy in encouraging peace with Israel and Lebanon. While this effort has been relatively successful in establishing a tentative peace, after 1983 the situation may become so polarized that the U.S. will have to take sides.
Key Words: Middle East, United States, Carter, Reagan, Israel, Egypt, Lebanon, West Bank, Soviet Union
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