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Power without purpose

Dr. David Turner

Not since Richard Nixon has a president tried to be all things to all people on a foreign trip. Donald Trump pandered to the leadership of Saudi Arabia while reawakening the notion of comprehensive peace between Israel and the Palestinians. The only nation not on his honor roll was the Islamic Republic of Iran. He described the government in the most stark terms, even taking a hard pro-Sunni stand. It seemed a hard embrace of “old” friends and allies.

But looking closer at the diplomacy involved, Trump’s idea of America first boiled down to the notion of we will supply the equipment, you will provide the war. Against whom? Of course, the previously mention Iran. Ironically, Nixon’s old practice of arming the Shah, Reza Pahlavi in the 1970s resembles the new effort to arm the Saudis to the teeth. Now Riyadh has replaced Tehran as the new gendarme in the Gulf. Heaven help us.

Nixon’s arms drop on Tehran had disastrous consequences. The Shah became a megalomaniac and his military could not absorb the cash. Magnificent tank parks, airfields, anti-aircraft missile batteries and a spiffy looking group of parade ground soldiers. Little good it did them when the Islamic revolution emerged triumphant in 1979. The Shah saw his lifeguards battalion, “the immortals” disintegrate into the crowd, and he had a jar of dirt as he jetted off to Cairo. Poor Jimmy Carter, he paid a heavy price for Nixon’s error.

Or, if one wants another example, was RN’s effort to transform Pakistan into a world class ally. The toys came and Ayub Khan grew ambitious. When Bangladesh revolted, he believed he could handle both the rebels and India. Turned out he could do neither. In December 1971, the Nixon policy of pouring in the armaments failed at the outset. India’s Indira Ghandi forced Ayub out of office.

For Trump to dust off this rather old playbook says much about his mindset. He lives in the early 1970s before the world had changed. Communist China was not a player, except in Southeast Asia. Now, as Trump would say, it is world class. Russia is a junior partner with Bejing and is Iran’s closest ally. European imperialism, still active in 1971, is no longer in evidence. Moreover, the United States cannot work its will, it couldn’t then, it is less likely now that the American imperium is in existence.

From Southeast Asia to Africa, Central America and the Middle East, the U.S. gave the Soviet Union many unforced advantages. Self-inflicted wounds followed self-inflicted wounds from Saigon to Islamabad. Fortunately, America still had a lot of kick left and rebounded. But it never regained the stature of a moral force nor an important and honest broker.

Peculiarly, Trump resembles George W. Bush, who took the period of American dominance after the Soviet Union disintegrated and squandered the advantage. But Trump eschews the moral imperative and tries to inject the “Art of the deal.” Power without purpose or a realization that we are the most powerful of many nations not the “indispensable” entity should temper Trump.

The United States has gone from the laminated card of “do’s” and “dont’s” to offering an order list of sophisticated weapons. One thing unites Hillary Clinton and Trump, neither’s approach works. A balanced foreign policy reflecting realities and discarding American fantasies has yet to emerge.

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