Reading List

1. Bourne, Richard. Political Leaders of Latin America. 2nd ed.

New York: Knopf, 1970.

2. Burnett, Ben G. and Johnson, Kenneth F. Political Forces in Latin America: Dimensions of the Quest for Stability. 2nd ed. Belmount, Calif.: Wadsworth, 1970.

3. Casanova, Pablo Gonzalez. Democracy in Mexico.

Translated

by Danielle Salti. New York: Oxford Univ. Press, 1970.

4. Delger, Carl N. Neither Black nor White. (subject: Brazil). New York: MacMillan, 1971.

5. Duncan, Walter Raymond and Goodsell, James N., eds. The Quest for Change in Latin America; sources for a 20th century analysis. New York: Oxford Univ. Press, 1970.

6. Fagen, Richard R. The Transformation of Political Culture in Cuba. Stanford, Calif.: Stanford Univ. Press, 1969.

7. Johnson, William W. Heroic Mexico: The Violent Emergence of a Modern Nation. Garden City, N. Y.: Doubleday, 1968.

8. Lodge, George C. Engines of Change. New York: Knopf, 1969.

9. Needler, Martin C., ed. Political Systems of Latin America. 2nd ed. New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold, 1970.

10. Poppino, Rollie E. Brazil: The Land and People. New York: Oxford Univ. Press, 1968.

11. Ruiz, Ramon E., ed. Interpreting Latin American History From Independence to Today. New York: Holt, 1970.

12. Stephan, Alfred. The Military in Politics: Changing Patterns in Brazil. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton Univ. Press, 1971.

MIDDLE EAST

There is no generally accepted definition of the term, "Middle East". For the purpose of this background reading, it consists of Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Syrian Arab Republic, Arab Republic of Egypt, Yemen (Yemen Arab Republic), Southern Yemen (People's Democratic Republic of Yemen), Oman, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrein, and Kuwait. This area covers approximately 6,000 miles from east to west and 3, 000 miles from north to south, with a population of about 147 million. North Africa we may define as the Arab Berber States of Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia and Libya.

The Middle East is the home of the oldest civilizations known to man. The hud of three continents, it has been a crossroads for many peoples, each of which has left some trace among the present population. These have included the original inhabitants of the valleys of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers in Iraq and the Nile in Egypt and succeeding waves of migrants and conquerors, among them Arabs, Greeks, Mongolia, Turks, and Persians.

The Middle East is the birthplace of three world religions: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. The majority religion in the area is Islam, practiced by most of the inhabitants of the Arab states, as well as Iran. The main languages of the area are: Arabic, Farsi (Persian), in Iran; and Hebrew, the official language of Israel.

The interests of the United States are primarily strategic and economic. The Middle Eastern area contains approximately two-thirds of the world's known oil reserves under its sands. The continuing uninterrupted flow of this oil is necessary to the economic and military strength of our European allies, which is important to the security of the United States.

U.S. Oil companies' investment in Middle East oil is centered around the Persian Gulf. There are also fields in northern Iraq, in the western desert of Egypt, and along the Gulf of Suez. Not only is this oil important to the economic and military strength of the non-communist countries but it is also the main source of foreign exchange for the economic development of the area.

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The other major U.S. interest in the Middle East is the land, sea and air routes which link Asia and its raw materials with Western Europe. The Middle East is also a gateway to Africa and its vast human and mineral resources are just beginning to play a role upon the world stage.

The United States has long been interested in the Middle East and its peoples--not least because the religious traditions of most Americans may be traced back to this area.

Formal relations date from the early period of the new American Republic; the first official treaty with the Turkish Ottoman Empire was signed on 7 May 1830. American educational institutions such as Robert College at Istanbul (founded in 1863), Istanbul Women's College (1871), and the American Universities at Beirut (1866) and Cairo (1919), to mention only a few, have exerted an influence throughout the area for generations.

American trade with the Middle East also has a long history and has grown to substantial proportions. Our heaviest imports are petroleum and petroleum products. The United States imports about 12 percent of its petroleum requirements from the Middle East. The great bulk of oil products from U.S. oil investments in the area are sold to Western Europe.

The United States believes that economic and social progress are the best safeguards against internal unrest or subversion. Our aim is to encourage and help in the development of prosperous and stable societies whose material benefits are widely distributed.

One of the Middle Eastern problems which has been of great concern to the United States is that of protecting the region from external aggression. The Soviet Union after World War II continued its efforts to penetrate the Mediterranean and Persian Gulf areas, first by occupying and setting up a Communistdominated autonomous region in northern Iran, and later by pressure on Turkey to cede rights in the Bosporus and the western Turkish areas bordering on the USSR.

Under pressure from the United States and other Free World powers, and from world opinion, the Soviet Union withdrew its forces from Iran in 1946 and the autonomous regime collapsed. With the backing of the United States, Turkey withstood the Soviet pressure.

Turkey has received large-scale U. S. economic and military assistance, beginning in 1947 under the Truman Doctrine for containing Soviet expansion. Both Iran and Turkey have agreements of cooperation with the United States, and both have received U. S. economic and military aid. Aid to Iran was discontinued in 1969 due to Iran's economic progress but she is now buying a considerable amount of military equipment from us now to build up her military forces.

Turkey and Iran, along with Great Britain, and Pakistan. are active members of the Central Treaty Organization (CENTO), the "northern tier" of defense against potential Soviet military moves in the Middle East. The United States is not a signatory but participates actively with representatives serving on the major CENTO committees and with participation in CENTO naval exercises.

The economy of the Middle East is primarily agricultural, outside of the oil-producing areas of Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Iran, and Iraq. Next to oil, cotton is the most important export item and accounts for 45 percent of Egypt's exports. In Syria cotton is the most important crop and the largest single source of foreign exchange earnings. Other leading products of the area are coffee, fruits, vegetables, and hides and skins.

While the per capita income of the non-oil producing countrie's of the Middle East countries remains low, internal development measures and external economic assistance are slowly improving the standard of living.

Egypt is engaged in an intensive development program. About 20 percent of the budget is for development. Substantial industry has already been established, and particular emphasis is now being put on land reclamation, methods for increasing agricultural output, electric power production and the rebuilding of the Canal cities.

In recent years Syria has completed a number of irrigation projects and is expanding its transport and communications. A dam on the Euphrates River will be used for electric power production and extensive irrigation.

Israel has experienced very rapid growth and has achieved a per capita income on a par with many European countries.

Prior

to the October '73 War, grant aid from the United States had ended, but had to be initiated again as a result of this war; military and economic support is also programmed for FY 75. Technical support ended in 1962.

Iraq has reserved an important share of its oil revenues for development, which has emphasized schools, roads, hospitals, and housing.

Despite limited resources, Jordan has gradually improved its economy. A more adequate road network has been developed, phosphate mining has expanded, and a major irrigation project in the Jordan Valley has been completed.

Saudi Arabia has established a Supreme Planning Board to supervise a development program, and a sizable portion of the budget is allocated to it.

Iran has a development program which uses a large percentage of its oil revenues. A land reform program was inaugurated in 1962, and the government provided the new landholders with credit, technical guidance and assistance, and cooperatives for marketing their products.

The problem in the Middle East between Israel and the Arab states resulted from the creation of the State of Israel in Palestine. Although Israel was recognized by the United States and other countries, the Arab states refused to recognize it and decided to challenge it by force. Fighting broke out in 1948 and continued until an armistice agreement in 1949. No final peace settlements have been reached between Israel and the Arab states. Israel took additional Arab territory in the 1956 fighting and today holds a great deal more, including the west bank of the Jordan River and the Sinai peninsula, as a result of the 1967 Arab-Israel war. Additional gains in Syria resulted from the 1973 war but this territory was returned to Syria as a result of the May 1974 ceasefire agreements.

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