Statements by U.S. military and government A longstanding justification for maintaining military installations worldwide for the United States is that a military presence abroad by the U.S. promotes and strengthens democracy. When asked about the reason behind U.S. military presence in Germany, former
Supreme Allied Commander Europe Alexander Haig said that "the presence of U.S. troops keeps European markets open to us. If those troops weren't there, those markets would probably be more difficult to access." Adding, "On occasion, even with our presence, we have confronted protectionism in a number of industries, such as automotive and aerospace. In addition to economic benefits derived from our presence in Europe, there is perhaps an even more important diplomatic and political benefit."
Statements by others According to Hermann and Kegley, military interventions have boosted democracy in other nations. The majority of academics, however, concur with professor of international politics Abraham Lowenthal that American efforts to spread democracy have been "negligible, often counterproductive, and only occasionally positive." JoAnn Chirico believes that, as of 2014, the U.S. military presence and installations are often considered responsible for suppressing democracy in countries such as Cameroon, Chad, Ethiopia, Jordan, Kuwait, Niger, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and United Arab Emirates. In her 1979 essay, "
Dictatorships and Double Standards",
Jeane Kirkpatrick argued that although the United States should encourage democracy, it should be understood that premature reforms may cause a backlash that could give the Communists an opportunity to take over. For this reason, she considered it legitimate to support non-communist dictatorships, adding that a successful and sustainable democratic process is likely to be a long-term process in many cases in the Third World. The essence of the so-called
Kirkpatrick Doctrine is the use of selective methods to advance democracy in order to contain the wave of communism. == Current deployments ==