{"id":24171,"date":"2019-02-01T10:05:24","date_gmt":"2019-02-01T15:05:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sciencescosmaincms.cm.ucf.edu\/news\/?p=24171"},"modified":"2019-02-01T10:05:24","modified_gmt":"2019-02-01T15:05:24","slug":"ambassador-shines-light-on-middle-east-challenges","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/news\/ambassador-shines-light-on-middle-east-challenges\/","title":{"rendered":"Ambassador Shines Light on Middle East Challenges"},"content":{"rendered":"

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On Jan. 24, Ambassador Eric S. Edelman, Ph.D., presented a puzzle to an audience of about 70 people: For an American public weary of U.S. involvement in the Middle East, why has U.S. President Donald Trump\u2019s proposal to withdraw troops from Syria received such a negative response? In an event titled \u201cManaging Turmoil in the Middle East,\u201d Edelman used this puzzle to discuss a disconnect between the public\u2019s perception of the Middle East\u2019s importance and the emphasis experts place on the region.<\/p>\n

Edelman is no stranger to the Middle East. He has served as U.S. Ambassador to Turkey and Under Secretary of Defense for Policy, recently authored, \u201cRevolution and Aftermath: Forging a New Strategy Toward Iran,\u201d and co-chairs the Bipartisan Policy Center\u2019s Task Force on Managing Disorder in the Middle East. He currently serves as Distinguished Practitioner-in-Residence at the Philip Merrill Center for Strategic Studies at Johns Hopkins SAIS. Edelman visited UCF for campus and community meetings to discuss timely issues relating to global security, including the Middle East at this public event.<\/p>\n

Addressing the original puzzle, Edelman discussed the history of U.S. involvement in the region, from World War II to the present. While policy goals varied among different U.S. presidential administrations, the overarching strategy has been to strategically counterbalance hostile powers and protect U.S. interests and allies. Examples he gave included helping secure oil resources for Europe after WWII to decreasing the region\u2019s reliance on Soviet coal; having military bases where U.S. aircraft could refuel in the event of a war with the former USSR; and the Carter doctrine that limited Iran\u2019s regional hegemony such that \u201cno hostile power controls the Gulf.\u201d<\/p>\n

Since the attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, and the subsequent direct military involvement in and around the region, Edelman noted that the Obama and now Trump presidential administrations have tried to shift the U.S. focus and efforts elsewhere. This begs the question, \u201cWhy is the Middle East still important?\u201d<\/p>\n

The answer points back to the original strategy of counterbalance and protect allies. While the U.S. is less reliant on oil imports, the Middle East still produces 50 precent of the world\u2019s crude oil and 77 percent of all oil consumed by Japan, he said. Any disruption in Middle Eastern production of oil would lead to huge financial repercussions worldwide, as well as massive security problems for America\u2019s closest allies.<\/p>\n

Problems in the Middle East are also not isolated to the area. Edelman pointed to the refugee crisis currently afflicting Europe and the recent, unfortunate attack in Manbij, Syria. Edelman also noted that whenever the U.S. retreats in the Middle East, Russia has gladly filled this gap and sees the area as a market for Russian weapon systems.<\/p>\n

Managing turmoil in the Middle East is no easy feat. Edelman left the audience with six principles to guide future U.S. policy toward the Middle East:<\/p>\n