| ||
|---|---|---|
|
Business and personal
46th Governor of Texas 43rd President of the United States
Tenure Presidential campaigns   |
||
.jpeg)
The Bush Doctrine refers to multiple interrelated foreign policy principles of the 43rd President of the United States, George W. Bush. These principles include unilateralism, preemptive war, and regime change.
Charles Krauthammer first used the phrase in June 2001, to describe the Bush administration's "unilaterally withdrawing from the ABM treaty and rejecting the Kyoto protocol."[1] After the 9/11 attack, the phrase described the policy that the United States had the right to secure itself against countries that harbor or give aid to terrorist groups, which was used to justify the 2001 invasion of Afghanistan.[1][2] The Bush Doctrine became strongly associated with the Bush administration's decision to invade Iraq in 2003.[3][4][5]
Different pundits have attributed different meanings to the Bush Doctrine. It was used to describe specific policy elements, including a strategy of "preemptive strikes" as a defense against an immediate or perceived future threat to the security of the United States. This policy principle was applied particularly in the Middle East to counter international terrorist organizations and to justify the invasion of Iraq.[citation needed]
Generally, the Bush Doctrine was used to indicate a willingness to unilaterally pursue U.S. economic interests.[6][7][8] Some of these policies were codified in a National Security Council text entitled the National Security Strategy of the United States published on September 20, 2002.[9]
The phrase "Bush Doctrine" was rarely used by members of the Bush administration. The expression was used at least once, though, by Vice President Dick Cheney, in a June 2003 speech in which he said, "If there is anyone in the world today who doubts the seriousness of the Bush Doctrine, I would urge that person to consider the fate of the Taliban in Afghanistan, and of Saddam Hussein's regime in Iraq."[10]
- ^ a b Krauthammer, Charles (September 13, 2008). "Charlie Gibson's Gaffe". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2012-03-31. According to Charles Krauthammer, who was the first to use it in June 2001, the phrase has had four distinct meanings, each one succeeding another over the eight years of the George W. Bush presidency: firstly, unilateralism, i.e., unilaterally withdrawing from the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty and rejecting the Kyoto Protocol; secondly, after 9-11-2001, the "with us or against us" policy on terror; thirdly, a doctrine of pre-emptive war, e.g., Iraq; and fourthly, the idea that the fundamental mission of American foreign policy is to spread democracy throughout the world.
- ^ Weisman, Steven R. (April 13, 2002). "Editorial Observer; President Bush and the Middle East Axis of Ambiguity". The New York Times.
- ^ Polman, Dick (May 23, 2004). "War policy undone by real war; After Iraq, the 'Bush doctrine' has lost its appeal". The Philadelphia Inquirer.
- ^ White, Hugh (October 3, 2003). "Why the Bush Doctrine is dead". The Age. Melbourne.
- ^ Traub, James (November 12, 2006). "Old World Order". The New York Times.
- ^ Allen, Mike (May 2, 2007). "Edwards Rejects the 'War on Terror'". Time. Archived from the original on May 4, 2007.
- ^ Levin, Mark (August 16, 2006). "...and another thing: First Things First". National Review. Archived from the original on October 4, 2008.
- ^ Page, Susan (March 17, 2003). "Confronting Iraq". USA Today Education.
- ^ National Security Council (September 2002). The National Security Strategy of the United States. The White House.
- ^ Vice President Tells West Point Cadets "Bush Doctrine" Is Serious, American Forces Press Service, June 2, 2003