US Foreign Policy and Anti-Americanism in the Middle East

208 Pages·2016·1.92 MB·English

by  Joshua I. Cummins

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Joshua I. Cummins
Wright State University
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HEARTS AND MINDS: US FOREIGN POLICY AND ANTI-AMERICANISM IN THE
MIDDLE EAST
AN ANALYSIS OF PUBLIC PERCEPTIONS FROM 2002-2011

A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment
of the requirements for the degree of
Master of Arts

By

JOSHUA ISAAC CUMMINS
B.A. History, Wright State University, 2010

2012
Wright State University
WRIGHT STATE UNIVERSITY

SCHOOL OF GRADUATE STUDIES

December 4, 2012

I HEREBY RECOMMEND THAT THE THESIS PREPARED UNDER MY
SUPERVISION BY Joshua Cummins ENTITLED Hearts and Minds: US Foreign Policy and
Anti-Americanism in the Middle East BE ACCEPTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE
REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF Master of Arts.

______________________________
Vaughn Shannon, Ph.D.
Thesis Director

______________________________
Laura M. Luehrmann, Ph.D.
Director, Master of Arts Program in
International and Comparative
Politics

Committee on Final Examination:

___________________________________
Vaughn Shannon, Ph.D.
Department of Political Science

___________________________________
Donna Schlagheck, Ph.D.
Department of Political Science

___________________________________
Awad Halabi, Ph.D.
Department of History

______________________________
Andrew T. Hsu, Ph.D.
Dean, School of Graduate Studies
ABSTRACT

Cummins, Joshua Isaac. M.A., Department of Political Science, Wright State University, 2012.
“Hearts and Minds: US Foreign Policy and Anti-Americanism in the Middle East, An
analysis of Public Perceptions from 2002-2011”.

The literature on anti-Americanism in the Middle East suggests that there is a strong
relationship between US foreign policy and public attitudes of the United States in the region.
This study analyzes Middle Eastern public opinion of the United States from 2002 until 2011,
while using quantitative and qualitative analysis to determine whether US foreign policy in the
Middle East correlates with approval levels of the United States. The purpose of this study was
to determine if US foreign policy measures such as US support for oppressive regimes, US
support for Israel, and US intervention in domestic affairs affects the way in which the average
Middle Eastern publics view the United States. The study finds that there were quantitative and
qualitative correlations between the three independent variables and anti-Americanism levels in
the Middle East with the largest drop in approval of the US coming in 2003 after the US invasion
of Iraq. The case of Lebanon’s Cedar Revolution also shows an effective policy that can be
applied to the regime changes caused by the “Arab Spring”.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
I. INTRODUCTION ……………… . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
The Research Questions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3
Literature Review. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4
The “Their Fault” Argument . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9
The “Our Fault” Argument . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12
Case Selection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22
Variables and Operationalization. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23
Research Design. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .26
II. UNITED STATES SUPPORT FOR OPPRESSIVE REGIMES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31
History of US Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
Which Middle Eastern Regimes are Oppressive? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .45
Analysis of US Support from 2002-2011 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .46
Analysis of Anti-Americanism from 2002-2011 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
Analysis of Arab Spring and Possible Policy Shifts. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
III. UNITES STATES SUPPORT FOR ISRAEL. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .72
History of US Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
Analysis of US Support from 2002-2011 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .92
Analysis of Diplomatic Statements form 2002-2011. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96
IV. UNITES STATES INTEVENTION IN THE MIDDL EAST . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .105
History of US Intervention . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
Analysis of US Intervention from 2002-2011 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126
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V. CONCLUSION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134
Analyzing the Hypotheses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .135
US Foreign Policy and Anti-Americanism Theory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141
US Foreign Policy Implications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142
Suggestions for Future Research . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146
APPENDIX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .150
BIBLIOGRAPHY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .182

v
LIST OF TABLES

Table Page
1.1: Independent Variables and Operationalization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
2.1: Oppressive Regimes in the Middle East 2002-2011 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
2.2: Total Foreign Military Sales (FMS) in Millions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .47
2.3: Total Foreign Economic Aid (ESF) in Millions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . .49
2.4a: Total International Trade Exports in Millions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .50
2.4b: Total International Trade Imports in Millions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .51
2.5: Yearly Totals of Anti-Americanism Levels in the Middle East . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
2.6: Regional and Country by Country Correlation Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .61
2.7: United States’ Support for Lebanon, 2002-2011 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .66
2.8: United States’ Support for Lebanon, Mean Totals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
3.1: United States’ Support for Israel, 2002-2011 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
3.2: Regional and Country by Country Correlation Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .95
4.1: Operational Indicators from 2002-2011 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .126
4.2: Regional and Country by Country Correlation Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .129
4.3: US Intervention and Anti-Americanism Levels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131

v i
LIST OF FIGURES

Figure Page
2.1: Yearly Totals of US Favorability Levels in the Middle East . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
2.2 Regional Mean of US Favorability, 2002-2011 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
2.3: Level of approval for the US in Egypt, 2002-2011 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .56
2.3: Level of approval for the US in Jordan, 2002-2011 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
2.5: Level of approval for the US in Morocco, 2002-2011 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
2.6 Level of approval for the US in Saudi Arabia, 2002-2011 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
2.7 Level of approval for the US in Turkey, 2002-2011 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
2.8 Level of approval for the US in Lebanon, 2002-2011 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63

vi i
LIST OF ACRONYMS
AIOC: Anglo Iranian Oil Company
ARAMCO: Arab American Oil Company
AWACS: Airborne Warning and Control System
BP: British Petroleum
CIA: Central Intelligence Agency
CPA: Coalition Provisional Authority
ESF: Economic Support Funds
FMS: Foreign Military Sales
JSAP: Joint Security Assistance Planning Group
NGO: Non-Governmental Organization
OPEC: Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries
PA: Palestinian Authority
PLO: Palestinian Liberation Organization
PNC: Palestinian National Council
SAVAK: Sāzemān-e Ettelā'āt va Amniyat-e Keshvar
SOCAL: Californian Oil Company
TEXACO: Texas Oil Company
UN: United Nations
UNESCO: United Nations Education, Scientific, and Cultural Organization
UNSCOP: United Nations Special Committee on Palestine
US: United States of America
USAID: United States Agency for International Development
vi ii
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Completing this thesis has been the most challenging and rewarding aspect of my
academic career. First, I would like to thank my thesis committee, especially my thesis
director, Dr. Vaughn Shannon, whose knowledge and guidance was essential during the
writing process. I would also like to thank Dr. Donna Schlagheck. Your advice and
guidance set me on this path when I started Model United Nations as an undergraduate,
and without that experience I would not be where I am today. I would like to show my
appreciation to Dr. Laura Luehrmann for believing in me and giving me the chance to
accomplish this. I would also like to thank all of my history professors including Dr.
Awad Halabi, Dr. Edward Haas, and Dr. David Dorn. Without their advice and support
throughout my college career, I would not have made it this far. Finally, I would like to
express the deepest gratitude to my family and friends, especially my parents, Doug and
Rebecca Cummins and my sister, Alex Cummins. Their love and support never faltered
during this long process, and for that, I am forever grateful.

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