Word: persian
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: all
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...then, some key aides were objecting that the address drew too specific a line against the Soviets and contained too many details. It described, for example, how U.S. forces would eventually be based at defensive facilities around the Persian Gulf and Indian Ocean (the U.S. is negotiating for use of ports and airfields in Kenya, Oman and Somalia). It was argued that by making the speech more ambiguous, the President would retain more flexibility on critical questions, such as what specific Soviet actions would constitute a threat against U.S. interests in the Gulf region and how the U.S. would respond...
...rhetoric, but for a different reason. According to a close associate, he was concerned that the language was too flamboyant, giving the impression that Carter was overreacting and raising the danger that he would not be able to deliver on his threat of repelling a Soviet assault in the Persian Gulf...
That may be, at least in the short run, a critical deficiency in Carter's policy. The U.S. at present does not have the military forces to repel any Soviet invasion of the Persian Gulf area. The U.S. now has 21 warships, including two aircraft carriers, in the Indian Ocean. But their planes can be used only for lightning strikes. Pentagon officials admit that the U.S. would require at least a month of preparation before landing units that could fight for any length of time. The problem is primarily one of supply. The troops could be moved in quickly...
Another uncertainty about Carter's policy is his unwillingness to define the extent of the Persian Gulf area or what U.S. "vital interests" really are. A senior Administration official tried to make a virtue out of this imprecision, maintaining that it gives Carter room to maneuver. Moreover, if Carter went so far as to draw a clear line against the Soviets, he might inadvertently encourage adventurism on the other side of that line. But the Soviets are just as likely to regard Carter's ambiguity as a sign that he himself is unclear about the area covered by his warning...
Carter's speech also failed to deal with the complexity of potential crises in the Persian Gulf area. The threat to the U.S. is not so clear cut as a Soviet invasion of the oilfields. Hardly anyone expects that. Instead, the U.S. faces the same kind of challenges in Southwest Asia that have frustrated Washington for several years: local revolts, radicalism, tribal rivalries, religious extremism and instability bordering on anarchy. The oilfields of the Persian Gulf are in jeopardy not so much because of Soviet tanks in Afghanistan as because of local outbreaks like the dissident Arab invasion...