during Nasser's visit to United Nations in New York, September 1960 The Middle East became increasingly important to foreign policy during the 1950s. After the 1953 Iranian coup, the U.S. supplanted Britain as the most influential ally of Iran. Eisenhower encouraged the creation of the
Baghdad Pact, a military alliance consisting of Turkey, Iran, Iraq, and Pakistan. It had little impact. As it did in several other regions, the Eisenhower administration sought to establish stable, friendly, anti-Communist regimes in the
Arab World. The U.S. attempted to mediate the
Israeli–Palestinian conflict, but Israel's unwillingness to give up its gains from the
1948 Arab–Israeli War and Arab hostility towards Israel prevented any agreement.
Suez crisis In 1952, a revolution led by
Gamal Abdel Nasser had
overthrown the pro-British Egyptian government. After taking power in 1954, Nasser played the Soviet Union and the United States against each other, seeking aid from both sides. Eisenhower sought to bring Nasser into the American sphere of influence through economic aid, but Nasser's
Arab nationalism and opposition to Israel served as a source of friction between the United States and Egypt. One of Nasser's main goals was the construction of the
Aswan Dam, which would provide immense hydroelectric power and help irrigate much of Egypt. Eisenhower attempted to use American aid for the financing of the construction of the dam as leverage for other areas of foreign policy, but aid negotiations collapsed. In July 1956, just a week after the collapse of the aid negotiations, Nasser nationalized the British-run
Suez Canal, sparking the
Suez Crisis. The British strongly protested the nationalization, and formed a plan with France and Israel to capture the canal. Eisenhower strongly opposed military intervention, and he repeatedly and explicitly warned British Prime Minister Anthony Eden that the U.S. would not tolerate an invasion. Eisenhower feared that a military intervention would alienate Middle Eastern countries from the West and to the Soviet Union. Israel attacked Egypt in October 1956, quickly seizing control of the
Sinai Peninsula. France and Britain launched air and naval attacks after Nasser refused to renounce Egypt's nationalization of the canal. Nasser responded by sinking dozens of ships, preventing operation of the canal. Angered by the attacks, which risked sending Arab states into the arms of the Soviet Union, the Eisenhower administration demanded a cease fire and used heavy economic pressure to force France and Britain to withdraw. The incident marked the end of British and French dominance in the Middle East and opened the way for greater American involvement in the region. Later, Eisenhower used economic sanctions to coerce Israel into withdrawing from the Sinai Peninsula, and the Suez Canal resumed operations under the control of Egypt.
Eisenhower Doctrine In response to the power vacuum in the Middle East following the Suez Crisis, the Eisenhower administration developed a new policy designed to stabilize the region against Soviet threats or internal turmoil. Given the collapse of British prestige and the rise of Soviet interest in the region, the president informed Congress on January 5, 1957, that it was essential for the U.S. to accept new responsibilities for the security of the Middle East. Under the policy, known as the
Eisenhower Doctrine, any Middle Eastern country could request American economic assistance or aid from U.S. military forces if it was being threatened by armed aggression. Though Eisenhower found it difficult to convince leading Arab states or Israel to endorse the doctrine, but he applied the new doctrine by dispensing economic aid to shore up the Kingdom of
Jordan, encouraging
Syria's neighbors to consider military operations against it, and sending
U.S. troops into Lebanon to prevent a radical revolution from sweeping over that country. The troops sent to Lebanon never saw any fighting, but the deployment marked the only time during Eisenhower's presidency when troops were sent abroad into a potential combat situation. Though U.S. aid helped Lebanon and Jordan avoid revolution, the Eisenhower doctrine enhanced Nasser's prestige as the preeminent
Arab nationalist. Partly as a result of the bungled U.S. intervention in Syria, Nasser established the short-lived
United Arab Republic, a political union between Egypt and Syria. The U.S. also lost a sympathetic Middle Eastern government due to the
1958 Iraqi coup d'état, which saw King
Faisal I replaced by General
Abd al-Karim Qasim as the leader of Iraq. ==South Asia: India vs. Pakistan==