The United States, as a nation, hasn't had a single true enemy since 1991. That's when the Soviet Union disintegrated. And we weren't even enemies after the Reagan Administration. Since then, American foreign policy in some ways has floundered. We're acting at times like we're back in the Carter administration, with an insane obsession with human rights. Not like human rights is a bad thing, but in this "new world order," we can't afford to make that the first priority in international relations. Another problem with our current policy in foreign relations is that we often subordinate "American policy" to "United Nations policy." Sorry, folks, but the UN is out of date. It was a adequate buffer against unilateral American or Soviet moves during the Cold War, but now we're giving up authority to an organization the majority of whose members aren't big fans of the US. First, the General Assembly is made up largely of Third World nations, who've never really liked us. Second, the Security Council has an American veto, but it also has a Communist Chinese veto, a Russian veto, and a French veto, all of whom could be used against the United States. NATO is out of date, too; who's it going to fight against, the Serbs? So we've got ourselves in a bit of a pickle, and what are we supposed to do? I'm not the National Security Advisor (yet), but what I'll do here is go through and look at things nation by nation, situation by situation. I'll give you, the reader, my spin on it, but you have to make up your own mind.
1. Great Britain: Being an Anglophile, I have to start off with the mighty British, a seafaring nation, a great empire. In my opinion, we need to be as tight with the Brits as possible. Not only do we have historic ties to them, but shared regional and world security concerns, as well. In my opinion, they could teach us a lot, especially when it comes to secrecy and intelligence gathering. They've also got a crackerjack special ops force to go with everything (the SAS), and they're just sooo cool.
2. China: I'm certainly no Chinaphile, but the rise to prominence of the Communist Chinese requires the attention of all the world, in my opinion. I feel that sooner rather than later, we will have to face the Chinese, and we'd better be ready. That's why I think we should ally ourselves with India, Taiwan and Vietnam. However, the Chinese could, possibly (although I don't hold much stock in it), be of great assistance to ourselves. That's why right now, we have to handle them with kid gloves, but that doesn't mean that every time they screw up we slap them on the wrist. At least make them sit in the corner.
3. Israel: I like the Israelis almost as much as I like the Brits, and that's saying a lot. I think we need to hang tight with them, and remember that they have security concerns which can't be ignored. Even with the current dilemnas facing him, I like Ben Netanyahu, too. If any war ever came in the Middle East, and we didn't support the State of Israel wholeheartedly, I would be ashamed to call myself an American. It's not just the Holocaust, either; any nation as committed as Israel gets my support, especially since they have the Mossad and the best military, man for man, in the world.
4. Russia: Russia is a problem. If I had my way, we'd have pulled out of there so fast that the vodka bottle on Boris Yeltsin's desk would still be spinning. But it would be unconscientible to do this. When a nation has a stockpile of nuclear weapons the size of Russia's, with many of them free-floating in the black market, one has to be VERY careful. And if an ultra-right or ultra-leftist took over, we'd have problems. Frankly, I wish we didn't have to worry about Russia, but we do. I'd stay out of there as much as is possible.
5. France: Good Lord. The French get on my nerves in a way that only a select few nations have the talent to do. I've only respected one Frenchman ever, and that's Charles De Gaulle. Why? He did what he felt was best for France, and whatever he did, he did it with dignity and character. But even so, he was still anti-American. The French simply get on my nerves so much that it's infuriating. I'm going to have to stop writing before I break my computer.
6. India: India is a strange predicament. In the past, we always supported the Pakistanis against them. But I think this was a mistake. If we come into confrontation with China, India could be the most important partner. Why? They don't like the Chinese, their population is second only to the Chinese, and they have nuclear weapons. In the past, they were allied with the Soviets, but they would be a perfect match for us, if worked out correctly.
7. Pakistan: We used to support these folks, but in my opinion, not anymore. They've become increasingly allied with militant Islamic factions, they've got weapons from us, and if my information is correct, they're involved in the Afghan opium trade. This isn't the old days, when great CIA officers like Milt Bearden were working out of Pakistan to stop the Red Army in Afghanistan. And if we ally with India against China, the Paks aren't sticking around to play footsie with us.
8. Vietnam: I know some people who aren't going to like what I have to say here, but I think that closer relations with Vietnam are vital. They're close to China, they don't like the Chinese, they've got a big army and excellent ports (Haiphong, Da Nang, Cam Ranh Bay), and they're willing to work with us, or so it seems. I think hanging with the Vietnamese is a capital idea, no matter what happened 25 years ago.
9. Taiwan: Taiwan is, in my opinion, one of the great tragedies of the modern age. A group of people is driven from their home, given support from the US in their new home, and then in 1972, when it's convenient for us, we screw them over royally. My personal opinion is that we should recognize both the People's Republic of China and the Republic of China, even if the powers that be in Beijing don't like it.
10. Iran: Another sticky situation. If the Iranians weren't so darned fundamentalist, I'd love to have them as allies. In my opinion, a three-way, US brokered union of Israel, Saudi Arabia and Iran could promote stability in the Gulf region. Think of it: a Christian nation allied with a Jewish nation, a Sunni Muslim kingdom and a Shiite Muslim republic. But even if this didn't work out, I still want alliances with Iran, because I think they could help us in the Gulf as well as in Central Asia.
11. Iraq: Screw 'em.
12. Libya: Screw 'em, too.
That about covers all the hot spots I can think of, right now. I'm sure I'll come up with more later, and if I do, I'll be sure to mention them in another editorial. But there's one more nation I've thought of which we have to deal with. We may not want to, and we may not think about it, but we must. What are we going to do about the United States?