Carter Doctrine
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The Carter Doctrine was a policy proclaimed by President of the United States Jimmy Carter in his State of the Union Address on 23 January 1980, which stated that the United States would use military force if necessary to defend its interests in the Persian Gulf region. The doctrine was a response to the 1979 invasion of Afghanistan by the Soviet Union, and was intended to deter the Soviet Union—the Cold War adversary of the United States—from seeking hegemony in the Gulf. After stating that Soviet troops in Afghanistan posed "a grave threat to the free movement of Middle East oil," Carter proclaimed:
- Let our position be absolutely clear: An attempt by any outside force to gain control of the Persian Gulf region will be regarded as an assault on the vital interests of the United States of America, and such an assault will be repelled by any means necessary, including military force. (full speech) (http://www.jimmycarterlibrary.org/documents/speeches/su80jec.phtml)
When the Carter Doctrine was announced, the United States did not have significant military capabilities in the region, and so the Carter administration began to build up the Rapid Deployment Force, which would eventually become CENTCOM. Carter's successor, President Ronald Reagan, extended the policy in 1981 with the Reagan Corollary to the Carter Doctrine, which proclaimed that the United States would intervene to protect Saudi Arabia, whose security was threatened after the outbreak of the Iran-Iraq War.
The strategic principles of the Carter Doctrine and the Reagan Corollary were reflected in the 1990 Persian Gulf War and the 2003 Iraq War.
References
- Brzezinski, Zbigniew. Power and Principle: Memoirs of the National Security Adviser, 1977-1981. New York: Farrar, Strauss, Giroux, 1983. ISBN 0374236631
- Teicher, Howard and Gayle Radley Teicher. Twin Pillars to Desert Storm: America's Flawed Vision in the Middle East from Nixon to Bush. New York: Morrow, 1993.
- Yergin, Daniel. The Prize: The Epic Quest for Oil, Money, and Power. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1991.
External links
- National Security Directive-63 (http://jimmycarterlibrary.org/documents/pd63.pdf)
- Department of the Navy—Naval Historical Center (http://www.history.navy.mil/history/history4.htm)
- Defense Secretary William Perry remarks to CFR (http://www.dod.gov/speeches/1995/s19950518-perry.html)
- Straits, Passages and Chokepoints, A Maritime Geostrategy byJean-Paul Rodriguez (http://people.hofstra.edu/faculty/Jean-paul_Rodrigue/downloads/CGQ_strategicoil.pdf)
- Carter Doctrine in Perspective, US Air Force’s College of Aerospace Doctrine, Research and Education (CADRE) at Maxwell Air Force Base (http://www.airpower.maxwell.af.mil/airchronicles/aureview/1983/jan-feb/grinter.html)
- Nuclear Strategy and the Modern Middle East (http://www.mepc.org/public_asp/journal_vol11/0409_russell.asp)
- Michael Klare speaks with Darley (http://www.globalpublicmedia.com/transcripts/245)