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United States foreign policy a threat
to American security By Dr Muqtedar Khan
THE world is becoming anti-American. Not
only do most people across the planet look upon the United States with
disfavour, they also dislike President George W. Bush, who is not the most
popular leader even in America where British Prime Minister Tony Blair is
more trusted and admired.
More and more people are less keen on
co-operating with the US in foreign policy or in the war on terror.
Growing anti-Americanism will not only undermine the war on terror, but
its extreme manifestations in the Muslim world is attracting new and
numerous recruits to the ranks of Al-Qaeda and their associates.
Experts are in agreement that the primary reason why people now
hate America is American foreign policy. Its exclusively self-regarding
outlook, its arrogant unilateralism, its unwise and untrustworthy rhetoric
and its belligerent posture, is alienating.
A recent poll of
people’s perceptions of America taken by the Pew Research Centre in 20
countries, indicates that since last year America’s popularity has
declined considerably across the globe. Even in traditional allies such as
Turkey, 83 percent of the population views the world negatively. Last year
this number was only 55 percent.
In Europe, America’s long time
ally and cultural mate, majorities of people disfavour the US. According
to the Pew study, there are two basic reasons why anti-Americanism is
becoming a global culture: They are US Foreign policy and the persona of
President Bush.
September 11, 2001 essentially identified two
goals for American foreign policy — eliminating immediate security threats
to the nation and its interests and winning the hearts and minds of the
Muslim world.
This essentially translated into taking care of Al
Qaeda and the Al Qaeda phenomenon. While Al Qaeda posed grave threats in
the short term, Al Qaeda phenomenon, the rise of anti-America- nism in the
Muslim world, which attracted recruits to Al Qaeda and associates, posed a
more severe and long-term challenge.
President Bush and his
foreign policy team were correct in their initial diagnosis, but
unfortunately the policy decisions that they have made since have merely
contributed to enlarging rather than shrinking the Al Qaeda phenomenon.
The Pew study essentially confirms the claims of most policy
analysts outside the government. The war on Iraq has conveyed the
impression that the US is determined to exercise force against Arab and
Muslim nations more as a revenge for September 11, than as a strategy to
prevent more attacks.
The problems that Iraqis have faced during
the continuing US occupation and the failure to find the huge stockpiles
of weapons of mass destruction that Bush claimed Iraq possessed, has hurt
American credibility and raised serious questions about its motives and
its policy objectives.
The continuing chaos in Afghanistan and the
post Iraq-war threats to first Syria and then Iran has created a climate
of apprehension and resentment.
Citizens of Pakistan, America’s
primary ally in the war on terror, Nigeria and Indonesia feel that their
country is next on the US list. The fear that the US is out to attack
other countries makes the global security environment less stable. It
discourages co-operation, makes the world unsafe for Americans to travel
and do business and radicalises moderates.
It increases the flow
of material and moral support to militant groups, weakens and places
American allies and pro-democracy intellectuals and groups on the
defensive. In general anti-Americanism makes it difficult to promote peace
and stability and fight extremism.
Rather than ensuring American
security, it seems that American foreign policy, particularly its invasion
and now occupation of Iraq, have created conditions which put the US and
its interests at greater risk.
President Bush is surrounded by
policy hawks that view September 11 as an opportunity to reassert the
prerogatives of the American Empire through unilateral use of force. They
wish to reshape the world to perpetuate America’s imperial aspirations.
Unfortunately for them the world is unwilling to co-operate. The
harder they push the more resentment they will generate and the more
difficult it will become to save the empire and its interests.
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The writer is a visiting fellow at the Brookings Institution’s Saban
Centre for Middle East Policy. |
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