To what extent was the USA’s response to international aggression based solely on protecting its own national interests in the years 1991-2004?
To what extent was the USA’s response to international aggression based solely on protecting its own national interests in the years 1991-2004?
In the years 1991 to 2004 the USA’s response international aggression was often based on protecting its own national interests. Post 9/11 especially saw the USA base nearly all of its responses on protecting its own national interests. However, on some occasions prior to 9/11 they did show some desire to protect global interests rather than just their own.
Due to the events of the 11th September 2001 the USA began its war on terror, and specifically targeted was George Bush’s ‘axis of evil’ which included; Iran, Iraq and North Korea. The USA used their war on terror so to legitimise their actions worldwide thus destroying any hopes for a post cold war collective international security, therefore basing their response to international aggression on protecting their own national interests. This is seen with the invasion of Afghanistan in October 2001. Together with Britain they acted unilaterally in order to remove the al-Qaeda and capture bin Laden, who was the prime suspect for the 9/11 attacks. The USA believed its actions were justified by labelling them as self defence under Article 51 of the UN charter. This clearly shows that the USA based its responses to international aggression on protecting their own national interests.
In addition, the USA further showed that their response to international aggression was based on their own national interests with their invasion of Iraq in March 2003. The USA believed Saddam Hussein to have been harbouring weapons of mass destruction which could be made available to the al-Qaeda to which they invaded with Britain, legitimising their actions by again stating it was due to self defence as they perceived themselves to be under threat. This was against the wishes of member counties in the United Nations (UN), as many believed there was little evidence to support their claim of
In the years 1991 to 2004 the USA’s response international aggression was often based on protecting its own national interests. Post 9/11 especially saw the USA base nearly all of its responses on protecting its own national interests. However, on some occasions prior to 9/11 they did show some desire to protect global interests rather than just their own.
Due to the events of the 11th September 2001 the USA began its war on terror, and specifically targeted was George Bush’s ‘axis of evil’ which included; Iran, Iraq and North Korea. The USA used their war on terror so to legitimise their actions worldwide thus destroying any hopes for a post cold war collective international security, therefore basing their response to international aggression on protecting their own national interests. This is seen with the invasion of Afghanistan in October 2001. Together with Britain they acted unilaterally in order to remove the al-Qaeda and capture bin Laden, who was the prime suspect for the 9/11 attacks. The USA believed its actions were justified by labelling them as self defence under Article 51 of the UN charter. This clearly shows that the USA based its responses to international aggression on protecting their own national interests.
In addition, the USA further showed that their response to international aggression was based on their own national interests with their invasion of Iraq in March 2003. The USA believed Saddam Hussein to have been harbouring weapons of mass destruction which could be made available to the al-Qaeda to which they invaded with Britain, legitimising their actions by again stating it was due to self defence as they perceived themselves to be under threat. This was against the wishes of member counties in the United Nations (UN), as many believed there was little evidence to support their claim of