Professor Stephen Walt’s succinct summary of US Mideast
Policy:
“One thing is
clear: The playbook we’ve been using since the 1940s isn’t going to cut it
anymore. We still seem to think the Middle East can be managed if we curry
favor with local autocrats, back Israel to the hilt, constantly reiterate the
need for U.S. “leadership,” and when all else fails, blow some stuff up. But
this approach is manifestly not working, and principles that informed U.S.
policy in the past are no longer helpful.”
Related:
What Would a Realist World Have Looked Like?
An extraordinary and thought-provoking piece by Stephen
Walt (Professor of International Relations at Harvard University):
Professor Walt’s description of the realist school of
international affairs:
“Realism sees power
as the centerpiece of political life and sees states as primarily concerned
with ensuring their own security in a world where there’s no world government
to protect them from others. Realists believe military power is essential to
preserving a state’s independence and autonomy, but they recognize it is a
crude instrument that often produces unintended consequences. Realists believe
nationalism and other local identities are powerful and enduring; states are
mostly selfish; altruism is rare; trust is hard to come by; and norms and
institutions have a limited impact on what powerful states do. In short,
realists have a generally pessimistic view of international affairs and are
wary of efforts to remake the world according to some ideological blueprint, no
matter how appealing it might be in the abstract.”