The Origins of the Eisenhower Doctrine

During the Cold War, few regions offered the American policy-makers a greater challenge than the Middle East. The Eisenhower administration's attempt to balance its Cold War requirements with the demands of the new forces of nationalism established the blueprint of America's policy toward the Middle East for the next four decades. In a richly comprehensive account, Dr. Takeyh employs new documentary evidence to reevaluate US policy toward the revolutionary Egyptian regime; the dynamics of the Anglo-American relations; the evolving nature of the Arab-Israeli conflict; and the Suez crisis and the Eisenhower Doctrine.

Autorentext

RAY TAKEYH is Research Fellow at the Center for Middle Eastern Studies at the University of California, Berkeley. He was educated at New York University, the University of California, Berkeley, and Oxford University, where he obtained his PhD in modern history.

Zusammenfassung
During the 1950s, Gamal Abdul Nasser dominated the political life of the Middle East. The Egyptian regime gave content to Arab desires for greater unity and reduction of external influences. The ideals of autonomy and progressive reform resonated throughout the region that had only recently achieved its formal independence. This was the age of Nasserism as Egypt embodied the Arab nationalists' hopes and calls for the construction of a new society.No one understood the power and appeal of Egypt better than President Dwight Eisenhower. Employing many declassified American and British documents, Takeyh examines the intricate containment policy. Along this path, Takeyh sketches Eisenhower's attempt to reconcile the demands of Britain's imperial strategies with the Arab decolonization movements. Contributing to the evolving 'Eisenhower revisionist' scholarship, Takeyh portrays a president in command of American policy as it sought to contain the Soviet moves in the Middle East, resolve the Arab-Israeli conflict and ultimately resuscitate Western influence in the Middle East in the aftermath of the Suez crisis.

Inhalt

Acknowledgements Introduction The United States' Cold War Priorities and the Middle East, 1945-1953 American Diplomacy and the Anglo-Egyptian Treaty The Baghdad Pact and the Alpha Plan From Cooperation to Confrontation: The Unveiling of the Alpha Plan Operation Omega and the Policy of Antagonism The Suez Crisis The Eisenhower Doctrine Conclusion Footnotes Bibliography Index