US Foreign Policy and the Multinational Force in Lebanon


Book Description

This book offers a fresh perspective on the impact of the US intervention in Lebanon in 1982 and the decision-making drivers that led the Reagan Administration into the Lebanese Civil War. Based on newly released archival materials from high level Washington officials such as President Reagan, Secretary of State Shultz and Secretary of Defense Weinberger, it argues that the failure of the Reagan Administration to accurately understand the complex political landscape of the Lebanese Civil War resulted in the US-led Multinational Force becoming militarily intertwined in the conflict. This book challenges the notion that Reagan deployed US Marines under the ideals of international peacekeeping, asserting that the US Administration hoped that the Multinational Force would create the political capital that Reagan needed to strengthen the US’ position both in the Middle East and globally. Ultimately, the peacemakers were forced to withdraw as they evolved into antagonists. A case study in the foreign policy doctrines of key Washington decision-makers throughout the 1980s, this project is perfect for any International Relations scholar or interested reader seeking to understand the links between the mistakes of the Reagan Administration and contemporary US interventions in the Middle East.




Lebanon


Book Description

Lebanon - Current Issues & Background







Shaping Lebanon's Borderlands


Book Description

Regional struggles, wars and local confrontations have marked the south of Lebanon since the end of the 1960s. They have transformed this marginalized and rural region into a battlefield and redefined the relationships between international, regional and local actors. The most recent of these actors the Palestinian refugees and their armed resistance, the Islamic Shi i movement Hizbullah, and the UN local mission (UNIFIL) have marked and shaped the place, and in turn operating in this borderland has affected their identities. Based on Daniel Meier s extensive fieldwork in the region, this book offers interviews with militants, his own observations of this conflict-ridden and dangerous region as well as incisive political analysis concerning the armed militias operating in the area. It is through this in-depth examination of the southern borderlands of Lebanon that Meier sheds new light on some of the major Middle Eastern confrontations of the last half a century."




The Function of Intelligence in Crisis Management


Book Description

First published in 1998, this work is a study of the relationship between intelligence and policy and focuses on the function of intelligence in crisis management. It provides an integrated approach to the theory of the intelligence process and the principles of crisis management. It identifies those factors that influence the producer-consumer relationship within the context of the Traditionalist vs. Activist approaches, i.e. The Kent-Kendall debate. New insight into the practical limitations of the Traditionalist approach to intelligence is provided. Using terrorism as a crisis phenomenon, the study analyses the function of intelligence and the reasons behind the intelligence and the reasons behind the intelligence failures during the Reagan Administration’s Foreign Policy initiatives in Lebanon, 1981-1985. With its focus on intelligence theory and management, as well as crisis management and policy making, this book will appeal to academics, scholars, intelligence practitioners, historians, policy makers and business management professionals. Although the work focuses on the U.S. intelligence community and the behavioural trends within American intelligence and security organisations, the principles and lessons learned can be applied to business and government in other democracies.




De Facto States


Book Description

In this new century, the relentless appeal of national self-determination has moved beyond decolonisation. A large group of de facto states, would-be sovereignties, now seek international recognition. In some cases these 'nations in waiting' have already established the exclusivity of their writ on the ground and wait only for the outside world to come to terms with the realities of their existence. In others, there are powerful external players who could undermine their claims on one hand or ensure their success on the other. The cases described in this book are to be found throughout the world: Abkhazia and Chechnya in the Caucasus; Kosovo, Montenegro, Republika Srpska, and Transnistria in eastern Europe; Palestine and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus in the Middle East; Somaliland in Africa; and Bougainville in the Pacific. Are these isolated voices or a harbinger of things to come? Their demands for separate statehood have breached the orthodoxies of territorial integrity and eroded the taboos of secession. Other large states, such as Indonesia, Nigeria, and the Sudan, also teeter on the brink of disintegration.




The Arab-Israeli Conflict


Book Description

In this concise yet comprehensive survey, Kirsten E. Schulze analyzes the causes, course and consequences of the Arab–Israeli conflict, exploring the particular dynamics of this conflict and the numerous attempts at its resolution. Covering pivotal events ranging from the creation of the State of Israel to the first and second Lebanon Wars and the Arab Spring, the book traces the development of the conflict from its intellectual roots in the nineteenth century to the present day. This third edition has been revised throughout to bring the text up to date with recent events, including: • a completely new chapter on the Gaza Wars from 2006 to 2014 • new material on the Arab Spring and its implications for Israel • an updated discussion of the ongoing negotiations for peace. Containing a diverse collection of primary source documents, a chronology of key dates, a glossary, a guide to further reading and a Who’s Who summarizing the careers and contributions of the main figures, this book is essential to understanding the background to and worldwide significance of the continuing violence between Israel and Palestine and is valuable reading for all students of the Arab–Israeli conflict.




The US War on Terrorism


Book Description

The "war on terrorism" has had dramatic impacts on US-Arab relations. Some of these are positive; many are negative, at least in the short term. The US has broken down doors to enter where it has not been invited. Washington seeks and in some cases demands levels of security cooperation that transcend traditional state-to-state relationships. Are these engagements bold and courageous or foolhardy and imperial as defined by critics both in America and abroad? The initial phase of the war on terrorism has passed. Battle lines are clearer. America has had some early success, but progress in the battle for minds is less certain. Many Arab countries, locked in this same battle, also have cause for introspection. The war on terrorism has certainly compelled the Arab world to look inwards more critically and to examine some difficult issues. All parties involved in the war on terrorism should look inward and weigh the extent to which their actions are helping or hurting each other.




Israel and the American National Interest


Book Description

"The single most satisfactory scholarly study, by far, of the United States-Israeli relationship." -- Richard Falk, author of The End of World Order: Essays on Normative International Relations "All of those concerned about the dangerous situation in the Middle East and the protection of our vital interests there should read and benefit from this valuable book." -- Fred J. Khouri, author of The Arab-Israeli Dilemma