Reagan's Doctrines

Ronald Reagan articulated and instituted three principles that have guided U.S. defense strategy in the Middle East for decades. This book reconsiders Reagan’s inimitable legacy on U.S. politics and international affairs.

Reagan’s Doctrines argues that Ronald Reagan played a pivotal role in reshaping norms of U.S. conduct, engagement, and intervention in the Middle East.

Randall Fowler reveals how Ronald Reagan’s contribution to U.S. policy in the Middle East was doctrinal – defined as a sustained rhetorical action undertaken by a presidential administration to reconstitute the norms of U.S. foreign policy – rather than episodic. Fowler identifies how, during his presidency, Reagan confronted a region marked by upheaval, terrorism, the Iran-Iraq War, and the rise of political Islam by developing three doctrines to guide U.S. actions in the Middle East: (1) Israel is a strategic ally, (2) state-sponsored terrorism is an act of war, and (3) a holistic commitment to Persian Gulf security. By sketching the origin, articulation, and application of each doctrine, this book revises mainstream accounts of the Reagan Revolution by showing how his inimitable impact on American politics and international affairs extended to U.S. defense strategy in the Middle East. Reagan’s legacy therefore includes establishing principles that have guided U.S. defense strategy in the Middle East for decades since his presidency.