J. K. Gani, The Role of Ideology in Syrian–US Relations, Middle East Today (New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2014). Pp. 256. $105.00 cloth. ISBN: 9781137358349 (original) (raw)

International Journal of Middle East Studies

Abstract

The case study for Oman titled “Sultan Qaboos and Operation Eagle Claw” reinforces Gresh’s argument in that news that the United States had used Oman as a way station during the Iranian hostage rescue attempt without informing the Omanis proved awkward for both the sultan and President Carter. In the end, diplomacy and a bolstered aid package enabled the United States to maintain a small footprint on the island of Masirah at the northwestern end of the Northern Arabian Gulf. Assigned to a Military Sealift Command oiler operating off Masirah during the tanker wars of the mid-1980s, I can attest to the critical role the Masirah facility played in sustaining US Navy operations that kept the Strait of Hormuz open. Perhaps as thought provoking as Gresh’s internal/external security framework are his observations in the concluding section. His first chapter “Oil and War” makes it clear that access to cheap energy sources drove American interests in the region. Now that the United States is reachieving energy independence, how will American foreign policy in the region change? Certainly the United States will want to continue to contain Iranian nuclear aspirations and support efforts to defeat radicalized terrorists. Gresh hints at a coming changing of the guard as China is becoming as dependent on the Gulf for energy supplies. As demonstrated by the Chinese construction of bases in the South China Sea and the opening of a facility in Djibouti, the Chinese are working to secure their sea lanes to and from the region. The forthcoming regional competition between the United States and China need not be confrontational. It’s a coming reality that warrants further examination. Most impressive is Gresh’s use of primary source materials. I found it strange that no bibliography of secondary sources was provided. Instead, secondary sources, when used, are buried in the endnotes. One personal annoyance is that he misidentified me as an employee of the Naval History and Heritage Command (NHHC) and identified the Bahrain book research papers I loaned him as being part of the NHHC archives. There are Winkler Papers at NHHC—the collection of papers associated with my US–USSR Incidents at Sea dissertation. For the near future I intend to retain the Bahrain book papers at my Naval Historical Foundation office.

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