America's Credibility at Stake: Arab Perceptions of US Foreign Policy
Abstract
Arab perceptions of US foreign policy toward the Arab world, particularly since the onset of the second, or Al-Aqsa intifada, are abysmal United States foreign policy is viewed by Arab populaces and Arab governments as biased against the Arabs and in favor of Israel From the Arab view, two lesser factors that contribute to Arab feelings that US policies are unjust include the long-term American presence in the Arabian (or Persian) Gulf and America giving only lip service to promoting democracy in the Middle East, Two dominant issues that incite Arab opinion against US foreign policy are America 5 dealings with Iraq over the past decade and America's handling of the Arab-Israeli conflict, This paper seeks to introduce and explain in detail Arab reactions to US foreign policy toward the Arab world, For his research, the author relied heavily on interviews he conducted and discussions he had during from his tour in Syria and on interviews conducted with subject matter experts in Washington, DC, Finally, the author relied on press reporting from the Arab world and from some US sources, The author believes that although Arab resentment over US policies is unlikely to become positive in the immediate future, certain proactive US initiatives can more favorably affect Arab opinion over the long term. To better promote its interests in the volatile Middle East, America must adopt an enhanced and integrative approach to fuse together the military, economic, diplomatic, and informational instruments of power.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Mar 19, 2002
- Accession Number
- ADA420655
Entities
People
- Michael B. Meyer
Organizations
- Air Command and Staff College