Making the World Safe for Capitalism : How Iraq Threatened the US Economic Empire and Had to Be Destroyed

The Iraq War defined the first decade of the twenty-first century – leading to mass protests and raising profound questions about domestic politics and the use of military force. Yet most explanations of the war have a narrow focus either on political personalities or oil. Christopher Doran provides a unique perspective, arguing that the drive to war came from the threat Iraq might pose to American economic hegemony if the UN sanctions regime was ended. Doran argues that this hegemony is rooted in third-world debt and corporate market access. It was protection of these arrangements that motivated US action, not Iraq's alleged weapons of mass destruction or a simplistic desire to seize its oil. This book will provide new insights on the war which still casts a shadow over global politics, and will have wide appeal to all those concerned about the Middle East, world peace, and global development. Cover......Page 1 Contents......Page 8 Part I. Making Sense of the Invasionand Occupation of Iraq......Page 10 1. Introduction: Making Sense of Iraq......Page 12 2. Iraq: A Devastated Country......Page 22 3. A Full-Scale Economic Overhaul:The Rise of Free Market Neoliberalism......Page 27 4. Chile and the Blueprint for Iraq......Page 36 Part II. Iraq’s Potential Threat to Saudi Arabiaas a US Client State......Page 44 5. Nixon, Saudi Arabia and theGeopolitical Roots of the Iraq Invasion......Page 46 6. Petrodollar Recycling, Third WorldDebt and the Washington Consensus......Page 52 7. Neoliberalism, Debt and AmericanEmpire......Page 60 8. Containing Iraq: The Gulf War andSanctions......Page 68 Part III. Dollar Dominance:Controlling the Dollar, Controlling Iraq......Page 78 9. Threat to the Dollar: Iraq, the Euroand Dollar Dominance......Page 80 10. Dollar Challenge Redux:The Global Financial Crisis and Iraqi Oil......Page 88 11. Containing Iraq: Oil, Imperialismand the Rise of Corporate Rule......Page 95 12. Iraq: Resistance and Revolution......Page 105 Part IV. Losing Out: The US Eliminated fromOil and Other Iraqi Markets PostSanctions......Page 114 13. State of Play: Neoliberalism Wounded,US Hegemony Challenged......Page 116 14. Losing Out: The GeopoliticalSignificance of Iraq’s Oil......Page 125 15. The Push for War......Page 132 16. Invading Iraq:Bush’s Agenda from Day One......Page 138 Part V. Regime Change:Opportunity to Create a Brand New,Neoliberal, Free Market State......Page 144 17. Regime Change:The Bremer Economic Orders......Page 146 18. Reconstruction and Corruption:The Next Klondike......Page 156 19. Reconstruction and Corruption:The Halliburton and Bechtel Contracts......Page 163 20. Locking Down Iraq: Post Sovereignty......Page 169 21. Iraqi Oil: A New and Improved SaudiArabia for the Twenty-first Century......Page 176 Part VI. Expanding the Empire: A NeoliberalFree Trade Area for the Middle East......Page 184 22.The US Middle East Free Trade Area......Page 186 23. Case Studies: Jordan and Morocco......Page 194 24. Case Studies: Oman and Bahrain......Page 201 25. Egypt and How to Make a Fortunefrom Hunger and Misery......Page 208 Part VII. Sowing the Seeds of Democracy:A Case Study of Iraqi Agriculture......Page 218 26. Neoliberal Authority: Iraqi Agriculture......Page 220 27. Order 81 and the Genetically ModifiedSeeds of Democracy......Page 225 28. Seeds in the Ground......Page 232 29. Hunger and Misery:A Profitable Occupation......Page 238 Part VIII. Conclusion: Iraq and the CorporateCapture of the Democratic State......Page 244 30. The Corporate Capture ofthe Democratic State......Page 246 Notes......Page 258 Index......Page 284 The Iraq war defined the first decade of the twenty-first century – leading to mass protests and raising profound questions about domestic politics and the use of military force. Yet most explanations of the war have a narrow focus either on political personalities or oil. Christopher Doran provides a unique perspective, arguing that the drive to war came from the threat Iraq might pose to American economic hegemony if the UN sanctions regime was ended. Doran argues that this hegemony is rooted in third world debt and corporate market access. It was protection of these arrangements that motivated US action, not Iraq's alleged weapons of mass destruction or a simplistic desire to seize its oil. This book will provide new insights on the war which still casts a shadow over global politics, and will have wide appeal to all those concerned about the Middle East, world peace and global development. The Iraq war defined the first decade of the twenty-first century - leading to mass protests' and raising profound questions about domestic politics and the use of military force. Yet most explanations of the decision to go to war have a narrow focus either on political personalities or oil A fresh take on the causes of the 2003 Iraq war. Provides a radical new perspective based on analysis of trends in global political economy.