Bush's Unexpected Bright Spot

National Review Online: The Mideast Strategic Landscape Has Never Been This Favorable

(National Review Online)  This column was written by Alexander Benard.

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Amidst the many worrisome trends the next president will face when he assumes office in January, he will be able to take comfort in at least one major bright spot: The strategic landscape in the Middle East will be more favorable to the United States than at any point in recent history.

Throughout the Cold War, every U.S. president encountered a Middle East mired in conflict and largely hostile to U.S. interests. Many countries in the region - including Afghanistan, Algeria, Egypt, Iraq, Iran, Libya, Syria, and Yemen - were aligned with the Soviet Union. Those that were not often chose to focus singularly on the military defeat of Israel. Jordan, for example, sent troops to Syria so that they could participate in the October 1973 attack against Israel, and all the Gulf States - Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates - punished the United States for its support of Israel by coordinating the 1970s oil embargo that crippled our economy. Other major conflicts, such as the Iran-Iraq war that lasted almost throughout the entire 1980s and the Soviet takeover of Afghanistan that same decade, created very difficult policy dilemmas for the United States.

Despite the collapse of the Soviet Union and other factors, the region remained volatile and dangerous to U.S. national security throughout the 1990s. Indeed, in 2001, at the time of George W. Bush’s inauguration, a second Intifada was underway after failed peace talks between Israel and Palestine; Afghanistan was a terrorist sanctuary; Iraq was under the leadership of a violent, anti-American dictator; Iran had begun developing nuclear weapons; Libya was a state-sponsor of terrorism; Saudi Arabia was funding radical madrassas throughout the Middle East and using hate-mongering textbooks in its own schools; and Pakistan’s relations with the U.S. were at best unclear, given the 1999 military coup and the country’s support of the Taliban in Afghanistan.

But today, the strategic landscape is shockingly and fundamentally different. Only two countries - Iran and, to a somewhat lesser extent, Syria - remain hostile to U.S. interests. Another two - Libya, which in a major victory for the Bush administration decided in 2003 to renounce terrorism and its pursuit of weapons of mass destruction, and Lebanon, which for domestic reasons does not currently speak with one clear voice - are pursuing what can be described as foreign policies that are neutral to U.S. interests. Remarkably, all remaining sixteen countries in the region are U.S. allies.

These alliances are more than cosmetic and have several important ramifications, starting with our force posture in the region. The United States now has troops and other naval, air, and ground assets in Afghanistan, Bahrain, Iraq, Kuwait, Oman, and Qatar. This will allow the next president to respond rapidly to threats that develop in the region, whether from terrorist networks or nation-states. Indeed, Iran will not be able to pursue any course of action without first considering whether it would provoke retribution from U.S. troops in the region, including the nearly 200,000 troops stationed along Iranian borders in Iraq and Afghanistan, two new U.S. allies.

With the already noted exceptions of Iran and Syria, the entire Middle East is now taking concrete steps to fight terrorism generally and al-Qaeda specifically. Our allies throughout the region are training and equipping their security forces to better handle counterterrorism missions. They are providing the United States with valuable intelligence and they are helping to disrupt terrorist finances. As important, popular support for al Qaeda is declining along with al-Qaeda’s recruitment figures, no doubt in part because of al-Qaeda-in-Iraq’s indiscriminate brutality towards Muslim civilians in Iraq and because of the U.S. military’s success in defeating al-Qaeda-in-Iraq - nobody wants to join a losing team.

As for Iran, our allies in the Middle East are now in full agreement with the United States that Iran poses a serious threat to international peace and security. Foreign ministers from Amman to Abu Dhabi to Riyadh are eager to aggressively confront Iran, and are in the process of signing arms agreements with the United States for exactly that purpose. To be sure, the threat of a nuclear Iran is very real and is certainly disconcerting, but for once the U.S. warnings of that threat are not falling on deaf ears, and the United States will not have to meet the threat alone.

The Middle East has always posed challenges to the United States, and the same will be true in January 2009. The next president will need to deal with Iran and Syria. He will need to ensure that our gains in Iraq and Afghanistan are not reversed. He will need to continue strengthening our alliances throughout the region, help set Lebanon on the right track, and work towards resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. But what is unique today is that the next president will be able to confront these challenges in the context of an extremely favorable strategic environment.

[wogerwabbit]

"Iraq and Afghanistan, two new U.S. allies"

With friends like these, we don''t need enemies. NRO, hallucinating again.

[hennighg]

Yay! The war we never should have had isn''t stinking as much as it used to! Yay. USA! USA! USA!

[spinproof]

Historians will be brutal with the 8 Bush Jr. years and if Democrats gain a veto proof majority in Congress former Bush officials will no longer be able to ignore Congressional subpoenas and may still end up facing jail time, this drama is far from over unless McCain wins and buries the dirt.

[stopkidding]

That strategic bright spot is maintained with 140000 troops the Iraquis want gone.

[imnho]

This is a bit on the absurd side. We have never been hated more in the middle east then we are now. Thanks to GW we will have an Iran dominate Iraq and AQL rebuilding itself in Afganastan and Pakistan. The price of oil skyrocketting is not what I call a bright spot.

[sculler1956]

N = Never
R = Remotely
O = On-target

[joe68sg1]

OneAmerican7 : Of course, being the incompetent ingrates that Liberals are, they want to seize the White House and screw everything up again.

WOW, are you into standup comedy?
If not, you should be on the stage...
Leaves in 5 minutes

Things are so screwed up because of you republiCONS that it has nowhere to go but up.
McBush will go down as the WORST president ever...and I hope he gets charged for the war crimes his administration has perpetrated, and spends the rest of his miserable life in jail...with the rest of his criminal supporters...
Maybe you should join him...republiCON idiots

[Razzl]

Well, Benard, your analysis looks good except that it contradicts the neocon script about our being locked in an eternal war with islamist terrorists who represent such a threat to our interests that we need to use force throughout the region at the drop of a hat (such as bombing Iran rather than trusting the value of allies so that "the US [is] not having to face the [Iranian nuclear threat] alone"), and curtail all civil rights at home in the name of always being prepared for all those lurking jihadists. Didn''t Cheney or Addington or Perl or Kristol send you the memo?

[nearl4511]

Really rose colored glassess that the NRO is wearing.

Well at least Ohlmert is on his way out....no thanks to BUsh.

[juwboy]

Nearl4511 said:

"... at least Ohlmert is on his way out ..."

But Netanyahu is on his way in.

:-):-):-):-):-)

[clestes-2009]

God, what is he on??

The middle east is a cauldron of anti-American brew. The Taliban in Afghanistan is resurgent, the Iraqis are closer to Iran than to us, Pakistan is on the brink of crumbling into anarchy, al-Quida still roams freely.

This is a FAVORABLE situation for the US??

The NRO must have some extra strong kool-aid these days!

[messiahx4eve]

Imagine the starship Enterprise roving aimlessly through the galaxy, and all of a sudden they go into warp drive and you see that little glimmer of warp drive about two hundred light years away, this is the analogy of the lone brain cell in bush''s brain as it fires, passing in front of his eyes, the vastness of his emptiness in the brain department can be a comparable assessment to the Enterprise and it''s on going mission, this is his unexpected bright moment.

[tawpdawg111]

And all along I had read that the US government is universally reviled.....ESPECIALLY in the middle east. Just goes to show you can''t believe anything you read.

[inventagod2]

The only bright spot ASSociated with Bu$h is the top of his head under the lights...

[pvperson]

"The Mideast Strategic Landscape Has Never Been This Favorable"

would that be the opening of a fourth front in Iraq (with Syria) and the worsening of Afghanistan?

you neo-cons won''t be happy till we''re in World War III

[dredigga]

Is this a joke. This author can''''t be serious.

Posted by avoice


This article shows you that the neocons are really out of touch with not just mainstream America but out of touch with reality as well. No wonder the GOP faithful seems so delusional and one-track minded. Now it is clear to me why the faithful come up with the silliest points when they post, look where they get their information.

[noloyalisti]

Doesn''t the National Republican Order (NRO) realize just how ignorant, dumb and stupid it is to put a ridiculous article like this in print for all of us to see?

I mean the NRO supported this fiasco in Iraq and the mindless puppet Bushoccio (is he wooden or is he a boy?). Keep up the good work NRO making fascist fools of yourselves. Idiots!

[marcosis78]

Im so glad that our hard earned tax money is paying this complete moron to travel the world while he looks down at 95% of us.

[imnho]

I wonder what the people at the NRO are smoking? I bet its illegal. They really should lay of the hard stuff until after there done writing the article.

[omnibus66]

As a result of the Smirkinator''s tragic 8 years, the vast majority of the citizens of all middle eastern countries hate the US and everything it now stands for.

This ''bright spot'' is an enormous black hole.

[jerr11]

The other bright spot for Bush?

His 99,000 acre ranch in Paraguay where he can hide the rest of his life after Jan 2009.

No extradition treaty there.

[freedomscry]

Say what you will about President Bush, but there is one thing you cannot deny: we have not been attacked by foreign terrorists on the U.S. mainland since September 11, 2001.

[jerr11]

Say what you will about President Bush, but there is one thing you cannot deny: we have not been attacked by foreign terrorists on the U.S. mainland since September 11, 2001.

Posted by freedomscry at 11:17 PM : Oct 28, 2008



You forfot ot mention that we were never attacked to that extent before Bush took office too.

Makes you wonder about the timing.

Why do it during Bush''s term?

Could there be some secret understanding between those al qaeda dogs and our neocons?

Hey Saddam it''s your fault!!

Here we come Baghdad!!

[jerr11]

Say what you will about President Bush, but there is one thing you cannot deny: we have not been attacked by foreign terrorists on the U.S. mainland since September 11, 2001.

Posted by freedomscry at 11:17 PM : Oct 28, 2008



You forgot to mention that we were never attacked to that extent too before Bush took office.

Makes you wonder about the timing.

Why do it during Bush''s term?

Could there be some secret understanding between those al qaeda dogs and our neocons?

Hey Saddam it''s your fault!!

Here we come Baghdad!!

[frankistage]

"Say what you will about President Bush, but there is one thing you cannot deny: we have not been attacked by foreign terrorists on the U.S. mainland since September 11, 2001." People say this as if we were attacked monthly prior to 9/11.

[frankie2fing]

That bright spot is going to turn out to be a train running at us in the tunnel.

BTW warp 1 is travelling roughly 1.63 the speed of light. Warp 2 is twice that, roughly 3.26 SoL, warp 9 would be 417.28 times the speed of light. 200 light years would less than a few second.

[frankie2fing]

scratch that ''few''.

[noloyalisti]

"Say what you will about President Bush, but there is one thing you cannot deny: we have not been attacked by foreign terrorists on the U.S. mainland since September 11, 2001." People say this as if we were attacked monthly prior to 9/11.

Posted by frankistage

Yeah, and he was in office when the attack came and did nothing except kill innocent women and children in Afghanistan and then Iraq. Then his administration allowed all those deaths of Americans and huge financial losses by their inept handling of Katrina (done essentially on purpose by gutting FEMA).

Bush, the master of disaster in pushing the right wing wacko agenda of de-regulation caused trillions of dollars in losses for the middle class. His financial fiasco caused who knows how many deaths from poverty and starvation among the American poor. What a great legacy for the Butch family!