The Middle East/West Asia is the focal point of the imperialist agenda of the US and its Western allies. Leveraging 9-11, the US government has launched its long-term agenda of securing control of the Middle East/West Asia for its economic and political interests. This neo-liberal agenda of a “New Middle East” has been advanced through US military aggression in Afghanistan, the military occupation of Iraq and the threat of an attack against Iran. At the center of this agenda is the United States’ unwavering support for Israel and the leveraging of Israel’s own expansionist, military and economic designs for the region.
The recent neo-colonial phase of US and Western intervention in the ME/West Asia are part of a long history of military interventions, exploitation and occupations in the region. That history of US involvement whether in Iran or Iraq has consistently pushed for US regional interests while undermining progressive and popular movements in the region. Resistance by groups in the ME/West Asia to neo-liberalism and imperialism continues today under repressive governments and difficult circumstances, recognizing their work and working in solidarity with them is crucial to the struggle for peace and justice in the ME/West Asia.
Purpose
⇨ To provide historical context to US intervention in the Middle East including attacks Afghanistan and Iraq; US aid to Israel; and threats against Iran;
⇨ To show domestic political, economic, and social impact of this history on people in US and people in the ME/West Asia;
⇨ To provide an overview of historic and current resistance struggles against US imperialism and the repression and dictatorships created by that history;
⇨ To show how US and Western intervention has consistently worked against progressive movements and parties in the ME/West Asia;
⇨ To discuss the role of US solidarity with progressive social movements and popular resistance in the Middle East and West Asia.