Reason #70: Meddling in the Middle East

Ever wonder why the Middle East is such a turbulent part of the world? Sorting out the reasons for the region’s troubles is as sticky as a barrel of Saudi crude. But one thing is for sure: the U.S. - with our bottomless appetite for oil - has made things worse far more often than we’ve made things better. In fact, we’ve consistently played a dangerous game of risking long term trouble for a quick, crude fix.

During World War I the Ottoman Empire, which spanned from modern day Hungary and Turkey through most of the Middle East and North Africa, aligned with Germany and the Axis Powers. The British thought Ottoman power would be pretty easy to undermine, so they got to work rallying Arab tribes to revolt against the controlling Empire (remember Lawrence of Arabia?). The Brits promised that if the Arabs fought the Ottomans, they’d get Arab independence after the war.

But the Brits had something else up their sleeves. In 1916 they signed an agreement (the Sykes-Picot Agreement) that said Britain and France would divvy up the Middle East territories once the war was over. By 1917, the Brits occupied Baghdad. Their neat little trick had worked. But it hadn’t exactly made them the favorites of the Arab populations.

As for America, before World War II our reputation in the Middle East was much better than Britain’s. American oil companies had a habit of corruption, but their presence was generally accepted in a positive light. To most countries in the Middle East, the Americans didn’t seem half as bad as the Brits.

After World War II, things changed. The U.S. government started flexing its muscles in the region. To bring more money to American corporations, and make sure the black gold continued to flow toward the United States, American officials decided they had to accomplish two things:

1) Keep the Soviets from getting too much influence in the Middle East

2) Keep the Brits from controlling the oil-but also keep the Brits just powerful enough in the region so that the Soviets didn’t take over.

These two goals explain practically every U.S. action in the Middle East from 1944 till the end of the Cold War. And if you’re looking for a reason why that region is such a hornet’s nest of violence and instability, look no further.

NEXT: Reason #71: The Truman Doctrine and the Birth of World Boss