An Analysis On The Greater Middle East Initiative Of The Bush Administration

The article aims at attempting to analyze"the Greater Middle East Initiative"of the Bush Administration, analyze its foundations, and evaluate what it brings. The whole article includes the foreword, the text, and the epilogue. The text consists of three parts.After"9·11", the Bush Administration vigorously pushes the strategy of changing and reshaping the world, especially changing the policy that pursuing for a long time. It began to enlarge the democracy in"the Greater Middle East", and carried out"the Greater Middle East Initiative"to change the status quo. The"Greater Middle East"approximately includes Algeria, Unite Arab Emirates, Yemen, Oman, Egypt, Palestine, Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Tunis, Syria, Iraq, Jordan, Djibouti, Comorin, and Somali, furthermore Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Kirgizstan, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekhstan, Tajikistan and so on. There are 34 countries.The first part of the text summarizes the process, the aims, and the means of"the Greater Middle East Initiative". The policy makers of the Bush Administration think that the USA should enlarge the democracy to achieve the peace, the stabilization, and the development in Greater Middle East. The USA changed its policy in Middle East after"9·11"event. It began to carry out"the Greater Middle East Initiative". According to"the Greater Middle East Initiative", it has three clear aims. Firstly, there are promoting democracy and good governance. They include free elections initiative, parliamentary exchange and training, women's leadership academies, grass-roots legal aid, independent media initiative, transparency/anti-corruption efforts, and civil society. Secondly, there is building a knowledge society. It includes basic education initiative, the literacy decade program, education reform and so on. Thirdly, there is expanding economic opportunities. It includes finance for growth initiative and partnership for financial excellence. The Bush Administration exerts several means, including military occupancy, economic aid, improving women's state to enlarge political participation and promoting civil society, publicizing western values, especially bringing up youths with western values, and trying to solve the clash between Israel and Palestine for fulfilling the aims.The second part analyzes the foundations of"the Greater Middle East Initiative". Firstly the historical foundation is American export of democracy. The so-called export of democracy is that the USA scales other countries, especially the actions and cultural tradition of developing countries according to its own standard, and considers that it has the obligations to enlarge the American democracy to other places. American export of democracy has profound roots, including manifest destiny, expanding based on the concept of racial grade, and the idea of acting without any limit. American export of democracy is that it considers American culture, values, regimes, and life styles as the only standard in the world and the USA uses the standard to reshape the whole world. American policy makers think that its national security has connections with the export of democracy. And the cultural factor is upgraded after the Cold War. The export of democracy not only is very charming, but also brings shocks to the world. Secondly, the academic foundation is the democratic peace theory. The democratic peace theory has existed for a long time as a mode of security. It comes from"the permanent peace"of Kant. The theory thinks that democratic countries seldom or never war. When they have conflicts, they will use peaceful modes to solve the problems. There are three reasons why democratic countries do not war. The administrations of democratic countries are selected by citizens. So the administrations should answer for the citizens. Democratic countries have the democratic institutional constraints. They also have the democratic norms and cultures, including normative elements and cultural elements. As one of rules of American foreign policy, the theory has relations with two factors. One is the pragmatism in American political culture, the other is the factor of ideology. Thirdly, the realistic foundation is the strategic interest in Greater Middle East, including geo-interest, the interest of energy source, and the interest of security. If one country wants to become a great power, it must have a key role in Greater Middle East. Because the Greater Middle East has a key role in global geopolitics and also has the richest oil mines. And the Islam countries are the powerful strategic group.The third part comments on"the Greater Middle East Initiative". Firstly, the policy has the strategic efficiency for the USA. The Bush Administration publicizes American cultures and values with enlarging the democracy in the Greater Middle East and it has advantage in the interest of American security. They can support the countries and groups who have peaceful relations with the USA and effectively control the oil and the martial base. Then they can realize the aims of American global strategy."The Greater Middle East Initiative"is part of the strategy of global democracy. Secondly, I analyze the effect to other countries. For Greater Middle East, it is not only the pressure, but also the threat. It also grows on the gap between the USA and Europe. For China, the policy could make Chinese western environment peaceful, but it has some uncertainty in the future. Thirdly, I judge the future of the policy. The policy has not only disadvantages, but also some advantages. The USA will persist in performing the policy.Democracy is the only way of the modern politics. And any country or leader can not hold it up. But it is a long-time and formidable task. If we democratize the countries who have the mature conditions, the countries will be in trouble. It is not a good new for the whole world.