1960s The 20th Century British Policy Research

Britain had been the most important ally of the United States in the world since the World War Two. The Anglo-American relationship was extremely "special" and had the call of "special relationship". In American global strategy, Britain's position is more important than other countries. But the Anglo-American "special relationship" was not unchangeable. In the 1960s, because the international situation changed and Britain adjusted its foreign strategy, the United States policy toward Britain varied greatly. In the early of the 1960s, though the Suez Canal Crisis produced rifts in the Anglo-American relationship, it was possible for the British leaders to continue to think in terms of the unique links with the United States. In the late of the 1960s and the early of the 1970s,because the United States could not prevent Britain withdrawing from the East of Suez, pound devalued, Britain did not sent troops to the Vietnam War, Britain finally entered the European Economic Community and moved toward Europe, the Anglo-American relationship weakened to the utmost extent and was changing into a "natural relationship". American policy toward Britain realized the transformation .that was, from that the United States looked upon Britain as the most important ally to that the United States regarded Britain as one of its allies. This resulted in British position in the American global strategy's descending and Anglo-American relationship's relatively fade. The 1960s was an important period of transition of American policy to Britain and in this period it represented the characteristics of complex nature, typicality and uniqueness. Using the United States policy to Britain in the 1960s as the research object, applying multi-subject knowledge on History, International Politics, Economics, making use of recently released archive files in the United States and Britain, the dissertation deeply probes into the inner reason why the United States policy to Britain was changingby researching the process in which American Administration formulated its policy to Britain, and reveals the harmony as well as the friction of the Anglo-American relationship, illustrates the whole tendency that Anglo-American relationship was changing from "special "relationship into "natural" relationship.This dissertation is composed of six chapters. The first chapter is the introduction, which summarizes this research's theoretic and realistic significance and some questions which should be paid attention to. The introduction also discusses the present situation of the academic research at home and abroad. Furthermore, the chapter looks back on the United States policy to Britain from the end of the World War Two till preceding the 1960s in order to explain more clearly the United States policy to Britain in the 1960s.The second chapter is American economic policy to Britain. This chapter studies the Britain's two applying for entry into the European Economic Community, its failure, and the United States' rescue for sterling. This chapter deems, by and large.the American economic policy to Britain in the 1960s failed.though the United States' handling these incidents was appropriate and the rescue steps were effective.The third chapter is American nuclear policy to Britain.This section mainly recounts the course in which the American Administration put forward the "multilateral force" plan and the plan ended up with nothing definite and notes that the American policy of ending Britain's independent nuclear force was partly realized in this period.Skybolt Incident and the Nassau Meeting which solved the incident made a great impact on the Anglo-American relationship in the period of Kennedy Administration. The fourth chapter is American defense policy to Britain. This chapter mainly clarifies American response to Britain's reducing defense spending and the efforts of preventing Britain's retreat from the East of Suez. Mean while.this chapter looks into Britain's canceling the order for F-111 jet fighters.the reason why Britain bargained with the U...