Throughout the 20th Century, the primary goal of US empire in the Semitic region had been to safeguard the Saudi-led Sunni Bloc regimes to exploit them for oil.
This relatively straightforward goal was met in three ways: securing Saudi Bloc regimes from regional threats like Iran and Iraq (eg: supporting Iraq in the Iran-Iraq War, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia in the Persian Gulf War), preventing the spread of nationalism and pro-Sovietism in the region (eg: supporting the Hashemite Kingdom during the Black September Revolt, the Mujahideen in the Soviet-Afghan War), and regime-pleasing for the governments in charge of the production and trade of oil – often coming at Israel’s expense (eg: forcing Israel out of Sinai in 1957 to appease Suez Canal-controlling Egypt, forcing Israel to relinquish Yom Kippur War territorial gains in 1974 to end the Oil Crisis).
This goal, however, was greatly complicated by the 9/11 Attacks and subsequent “War on Terror.” At this point, Washington was forced to balance the needs of fighting Islamic terrorism with maintaining its Muslim regional allies.
This was most obviously laid bare in Israel’s 2002 Operation Defensive Shield, hailed by US President George W. Bush as one front in his War on Terror, just before he pushed Israel into the 2005 Gaza Disengagement policy.
Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon at the time correctly identified Bush’s efforts to “appease the Arabs at our expense“ to maintain regional support for America’s War on Terror. But against the tremendous economic control the US maintained over Israel, threatening necessary loan guarantees numerous times forced Sharon to eventually concede.
US policy was even further complicated by Saudi Arabia’s alleged culpability for the 9/11 attacks, as well as the Saudi ruling family’s refusal to support the US wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. At the same time, through advancements in fracking and offshore drilling, the US has rapidly begun to achieve energy independence, greatly diminishing Washington’s interest in securing the Saudi Bloc.
Moreover, due to advancements in fracking and offshore drilling, as well as a political will to decouple American interests from the region, the US began moving towards energy independence, greatly reducing their reliance on regional oil imports.
Following the toppling of Saddam Hussein in 2003, the US sought to stabilize the region so that Washington would be free to realign its forces and attention to South Asia, Eastern Europe, and the South China Sea.
This was the birth of the “Balance Doctrine” – the guiding philosophy behind US policy in the Semitic region since the Iraq War, which mandates that the region be held in balance between the four regional powers: Saudi Arabia, Israel, Iran, and Turkey.
While the latter two have historically been seen as adversaries by Washington, that perception changed after their cooperation in Iraq, in contrast to Saudi Arabia and Israel’s opposition to the war. And with energy independence rendering oil imports from the region far less important, Washington has become free to pursue a policy that would not be predicated on the Saudi bloc’s security needs.
Since 2003, the US has systematically intervened to “balance” the Semitic region between Saudi Arabia, Israel, Iran, and Turkey: chief among which the support for Turkish-backed regime changes across the region during the Arab Spring and the 2015 Iran Deal.
As far as Israel is concerned, the strengthening of Turkey and Iran mandated by the Balance Doctrine is at the root of Washington’s opposition to proposed Israeli strikes against Iran or any path to deal decisively with Hezbollah, the Assad Regime, or until Simḥat Torah, Hamas in Gaza.
While Washington is “helping” Israel in this current war with Hamas through weapons transfers and diplomatic cover, it is necessary to remember that this help is only part of Washington’s larger balancing act in the region, a balancing act which has strengthened Hamas and put Israel in a position where it requires this “help” in the first place.
Even during the war, the US is mounting pressure to install a Fatah-run puppet dictatorship in Gaza and the West Bank, further enshrining its grip over the region and curtailing the possibility of Israel upending the regional balance. Israel must reject this and break Washington’s destructive status quo.
Israel in this war must launch a reconstruction of the Semitic region, charting a future for regional independence from Washington and the powers it has propped up to maintain its regional hegemony.
Beautifully written article. The US is only following in the footsteps of its spiritual progenitor Rome, which also sought to prevent any one regional power from becoming too strong. This is why, shortly before the Maccabean revolt, Rome prevented the Seleucid Greek empire from taking control of the Ptolemaic Greek empire based in Egypt, and perhaps it even explains why they agreed to make an alliance with Yehuda HaMaccabi – they didn’t care about us, only about maintaining their hegemony over the region. This article expressed this idea eloquently and clearly, thank you!
Cozying up to the US is like taking the blue pill. Instant gratification and long-term, lethal side effects… On the other hand, solidifying regional relations is painstaking and tough, but… is there another option? This is the red pill.