Questionable Intensions
... events that, as well as the explain reason why America did not have the opportunity, prior to the 1960s and 1970s, to put into play major policies regarding oil and establish positive relations with the countries of the Middle East. These obstacles were due to America’s manner of how they played both sides and subltely took one side over the other in the war of 1948 and the obvious reasons for American interest in the Middle East. The first was the War of 1948 between Saudi Arabia and Israel, in which the United States although claimed “a position of neutrality,” as well as a “mediator.” Many countries, especially those in the Middle East, saw “the United States position…reflects intense involvement rather neutrality” (Schulz, 1) the United States acted as major supplier of arms, business partners, and military overseers as stated. The thing that made many Middle Eastern countries upset was that the United States seemed to lean towards the support of the Israelis—this connection or partiality towards the Israelis is even seen pass this period to future decades. The second reason why America was not able to establish strong ties with many Middle Eastern countries were because of American’s “fundamental…interests…in the Middle East” (1). These interests consisted of “the containment of the U.S.S.R., the protection of strategic oil supplies, and the security of Israel” (1).These implication of the United States’s interest showed many foreign countries that bared oil that although America may have been offering there help for nothing more than capitalistic and opportunist reasons. To understand theses fundamental interest one would have to know the history behind U.S.S.R and the United States. The United States and the U.S.S.R were in the process of the Cold War, a war that lasted from the end of World War II to 1989. This war, unlike many other wars, was a series of tactical battles and non-military advances between the two countries and the political ideologies of communism and democracy. The Cold War was a political war that launched from the thought and slight observation of the communist bloc party expanding their influence and power after World War II. The second fundamental interest, oil, also tied into this conflict because the U.S.S.R was laying claim to or trying to influence areas that were oil and abundant with natural resource. Another reasons oil location was a interest of the United States was in case of a war, whether with the U.S.S.R or another rival power, our forces would have a strategic supply of oil or even the ability to cut off an enemies oil supply. The final fundamental interest, which dealt with the securing of Israel, was also a strategic move considering that Israel is a major exporter of crude oil and military equipment. The United States fundamental interest, especially the first two dealing with the U.S.S.R and oil, is what made many Middle Eastern countries mistrust and consider taking the side of the U.S.S.R, as well as make them take time to change their opinions about American trust and involvement. It was not until 1960 that when a reporter, Dana Adams Schmidt, from the New York Times reported on study by a Senate Foreign Relations Committee that “the political influence had turned against the Soviet bloc” meaning that now that the Middle East was more “in favor of the West” (Adams-Schmidt, 1). Senate members were even quoted with saying things as “thanks to patient diplomacy and…the mistakes and bellicosity of the Sino-Soviet bloc” (1) or saying that relation between the United States and the Middle East have improved “largely” due to “unobtrusive, discreetly helpful” policies that basically would allow the “Sino-Soviet bloc to make the mistake” (8). The terms they used seemed to implicate that they supplied subtle help to the Middle East only as a method to regain their trust from the Soviets and gain an advantage in the war these two political ideologies where raging. This strategy was a very affective and well-analyzed strategy especially since between 1950 and 1961 the production of Middle Eastern oil went from 86.6 millions of tons to 280 millions of tons, which was about 24 percent of the world’s oil production (Krasner, 83). Not having a positive relationship with such an area rich in oil would and could prove destructive to the United States at this point of time when the communist and democratic tension were at a heightened state. This could be destructive because it would greatly damage America’s industrial development based on resource consumption and basic energy, based upon oil, needs to run and fuel the always-growing nation. Another reason that more or less dealt with the first fundamental interest of the United States to contain the ideological threat of the U.S.S.R, a positive relationship was very detrimental for America. Considering the possibility of if the Middle East continued to view the United States intensions as self-invested and double sided there becomes an opportunity for the U.S.S.R to expand or gain influence in these plentiful oil-baring countries. It was not until1965 that an American oil company had found oil and gas in the “first exploratory well drill in the Persian Gulf” (New York Times, 1965), this event was dually significant. The first significant implication was of a Middle Eastern country allowing an American oil company, the Atlantic Refining, to look for oil in their land meant that the United States were gaining if not already regained the trust of some of the Middle Eastern countries. The Atlantic Refining company was a joint oil company comprised of several major American oil companies, the Murphy Oil Company, the Sun Oil Company, Atlantic, and the Union Company of California. The second major implication was that the United States had discovered, made, and secured another strategic oil supply—this implication relates back to the fundamental interest that caused the Middle East to be suspicious of the dealings they had with the United States prior to the 1960s that dealt with the securing of strategic oil supplies. This event was also significant to the level that it marked the turning point from a negative relationship between the Middle East and the United States, as well as marked the point of where the Middle East was straying away from the influences of the U.S.S.R and communism towards the United States and its democracy. As time passed, the United States continually pushed their influence in subtle ways. The 1967 War, also known as the Six Day War because it started on the June 5, 1967 and ended on June 10, 1967, was an excellent opportunity for the American government to further their subtle campaign towards spreading their influence and looking after their fundamental interest. The Six Day War was a war fought over boarder between Israel and Syria, Egypt, and Jordan increased during the early 1960s, when Syria began actively supporting Palestinian guerrilla groups. In May 1967, President Nasser requested the withdrawal of UN forces from Egyptian territory, mobilized units in the Sinai, and closed the Gulf of Aqaba to Israel. Israel responded by mobilizing. This “escalation of...