The Dark Ages of American Diplomacy
In the Washington Post today, three articles have appeared which deal with what is happening in Lebanon from the point of view of strategy and foreign policy in that region.
The first article Counter-Spin will take a look at is that by Charles Krauthammer. In “Lebanon: The Only Exit Strategy”, he states that what has happened in Lebanon is a unique opportunity for Israel to do all the dirty work that the rest of the world refuses to do. Namely, Israel now has the chance to move into Lebanon and clear away Hezbollah. The international conditions are in Israel’s favor, according to him, since even Arab states are blaming Hezbollah for this latest war. All the west is behind Israel too, since western states also recognize that Hezbollah is the aggressor. Further, Israel has complied with all its obligations in Lebanon, therefore there are no legitimate reasons for Lebanese resistance.
Surely, Mr. Krauthammer is living in a world spun out of wishful thinking. What he fails to understand, (not that he has tried much), is that there are legitimate reasons for Lebanese resistance in Southern Lebanon. Lebanese prime minister Siniora stated plainly yesterday that Israel must surrender Shebaa farms and release Lebanese prisoners in Israel. These are the stated goals of Hezbollah, and constitute it’s claims for legitimate resistance to Israel.
As for the international climate that is favorable to Israel’s operations in Lebanon, obviously Mr. Krauthammer is referring to governments and not peoples. In fact, Hezbollah has never enjoyed so much support among Arabs as it does at this point in time. This is no wonder, considering that Hezbollah has managed to wage a successful campaign against Israel that forced it to surrender most of the occupied lands it had occupied in south Lebanon.
Mr. Krauthammer is correct in stating that Arab regimes fear the influence of Iran. The reason is that Iran has stood up to the west and has been successful. Arab populations look on in envy and do in fact wish that their own governments were more like that of Tehran. Indeed, I would be terrified of such developments if I was a corrupt Arab regime. Let’s be honest, along with Lebanon, the only other Muslim state in the region that is remotely democratic is Iran. We in the west may not like this kind of Islamic democracy, but in the end that is not our business. Besides, the last thing Arab regimes that support the US in the region want on their turf is democracy. All these facts Mr. Krauthammer refuses to consider since they would puncture his dreamland bubble…
The second article Counter-Spin would like to look at is that by a Washington think-tank. Robert E. Hunter of RAND Corporation, in his article “Protecting US Interests in the Middle East”, talks about the need for the US to develop a regional ‘grand strategy’ in order to ensure US interests in the region.
According to Mr. Hunter:
In developing a grand strategy for the Middle East, America should seek to create a region not plagued by violence, not fostering terrorism, and without the spread of nuclear weapons. In addition, the strategy should work to create a region where oil and natural gas can flow, where Israel, Palestine and Lebanon can live side by side in peace, fully sovereign and secure from threats, and where no country can dominate the region and block America’s legitimate interests.
His suggests that the US:
* Set standards for national security, political legitimacy and acceptance, and competition for regional influence that apply to all and that will be enforced by all who accept the standard.
* Provide for a principal but not predominant U.S. military role, expressed as much as possible through alliance structures — NATO to start with, transitioning to a region-based system.
* Create a UN-backed means for resolving disputes among regional nations where possible.
* Promote the importance of economic development, education, health, job creation, human rights and representative governance.
The problem with this thinking, to my mind, is that aside from Israel whose interests are served by the US, why should any other regional players trust or rely on the America? Over the last decade, it has become abundantly clear that aside from oil and ‘Israel’s security’ the US has no other interests in the region. All the talk of democracy and ideals is just idle talk that has infused a little hope in some moderates, only to be deflated with subsequent US action or, in most cases, inaction.
I believe that for the US to regain some of its lost prestige in the region, it must play ‘fair’, something it is seen not to do. US policy is seen as always favoring Israel and as being unfair towards the Palestinians. As long as this image persists, the US will continue on its long slide into irrelevance in the Middle East, even as it sinks deeper in the quagmire that is now Iraq and Afghanistan.
Finally, Counter-Spin would like to look at the article “End The Slow-Motion Diplomacy” by David Ignatius. Here, Mr. Ignatius basically warns us that America cannot afford to be a bystander and needs to be a world leader in diplomacy. Given the glimpse we had earlier in the week of Mr. Bush at the G8, his mouth full of ‘diplomatic language’, one can hardly believe that the US is capable, let alone willing, to go on the diplomatic offensive.
The unfortunate reality is that the people surrounding Mr. Bush are as incapable as he himself is. Even Ms. Rice is incapable of putting together a scheme that is the least bit palatable to her world ‘partners’. There is no one in place in the US who is credible enough to truly sway world opinion. Most countries in the west grumble a ‘yes’ or ’sure’ every time the US says something, but it is obvious that no one is taking the US seriously. US diplomacy is seen as having slid into an ‘imperial dark-age’ even before America has had the opportunity to be an empire. I suppose this is the price of Mass Media government. Things go faster than anyone can keep up with…while its players are degraded to the level of ‘media stars’ with juicy sound bites that all forget in a day or two…
The views expressed on this blog are the opinion of the author and should not be taken as fact.