Containing Arab Nationalism: The Eisenhower Doctrine and the Middle East (The New Cold War History)

Under the Eisenhower Doctrine, the United States pledged to give increased economic and military aid to receptive Middle Eastern countries and to protect--with U.S. armed forces if necessary--the territorial integrity and political independence of these nations from the threat of "international Communism." Salim Yaqub demonstrates that although the United States officially aimed to protect the Middle East from Soviet encroachment, the Eisenhower Doctrine had the unspoken mission of containing the radical Arab nationalism of Egyptian president Gamal Abdel Nasser, whom Eisenhower regarded as an unwitting agent of Soviet expansionism. By offering aid and protection, the Eisenhower administration hoped to convince a majority of Arab governments to side openly with the West in the Cold War, thus isolating Nasser and decreasing the likelihood that the Middle East would fall under Soviet domination. Employing a wide range of recently declassified Egyptian, British, and American archival sources, Yaqub offers a dynamic and comprehensive account of Eisenhower's efforts to counter Nasserism's appeal throughout the Arab Middle East. Challenging interpretations of U.S.-Arab relations that emphasize cultural antipathies and clashing values, Yaqub instead argues that the political dispute between the United States and the Nasserist movement occurred within a shared moral framework--a pattern that continues to characterize U.S.-Arab controversies today. Employing A Range Of Egyptian, British And American Archival Sources, This Is An Account Of Eisenhower's Efforts To Counter President Nasser's Appeal Throughout The Arab Middle East. It Shows How The Eisenhower Doctrine Had The Unspoken Mission Of Containing Nasser's Radical Arab Nationalism. The United States And The Arab Middle East, 1941-1956 -- Birth Of A Doctrine, November 1956-january 1957 -- Launching The Doctrine, January-april 1957 -- The Conservative Moment, March-june 1957 -- The Syrian Crisis, July-december 1957 -- The Nasserist Onslaught, January-april 1958 -- The Lebanese Crisis, April-july 1958 -- Death Of A Doctrine, July 1958-december 1960. Salim Yaqub. Includes Bibliographical References (p. [347]-359) And Index. Between late 1941, when the United States entered World War II,and late 1956, when it helped force an end to the Suez war, official American attitudes toward the Middle East underwent a radical transformation.