Oman: Reform, Security, and U.S. Policy
This report describes the relationship between the United States and the Sultanate of Oman, especially with respect to Oman's support of U.S. efforts toward peace in the Middle East, the U.S. free trade agreement with Oman, and Oman's relatively close relations with Iran, the last of which seems incongruous with the other positive aspects of Oman's relationship with the U.S.
U.S. Military Presence In The Gulf: Challenges And Prospects
Abstract : The author considers the critical questions of U.S. military presence in the Gulf, the challenges it faces, and the prospects that lay ahead. He relies, in his presentation and analysis, on a variety of regional sources including newspaper reports and personal interviews conducted in the United States and the Gulf region, as well as government and academic sources. The result is a comprehensive study, including policy recommendations for U.S. military and civilian decisionmakers that makes intelligible the complex subject of U.S.-Gulf relations.
The continuing logic of dual containment
Gulf security necessitates a modest US presence to deter aggression in the Persian Gulf while awaiting the collapse of the Iraqi and Iranian regimes. By reducing the resources with which these regimes can buy arms, sanctions are a more cost-effective threat-reduction tool than the alternative, which would be a more robust US military presence. While isolating the more aggressive Iraq, US policy seeks a dialogue with Iran that can be combined with continuing sanctions, much like the Cold War combination of detente and deterrence in the West's approach to the Soviet Union. Gulf security policy should be set by those who put their forces at risk, principally the US, the UK, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, rather than in acrimonious UN debates.