The Impact Of 9/11 in a Global Context - Coursework Example

Assess The Impact Of 9/11, To Date, In A Global Context Similar to the Cold War era, the 9/11 incident divided the world nations into two distinct blocs: the nations that believe in democracy/international brotherhood and against the global spread of terrorism, and the nations that support international terrorism/ religious fundamentalism. Besides, the 9/11 is politically important because it’s after effect is evident in the foreign policies and international affairs. Thesis statement: The impact of 9/11 incident in the global context is huge because the US government was forced to restructure their foreign policy and implemented the War on Terror, and the same indirectly impacted the people’s revolutions (say, the Arab Spring) against dictatorship in Egypt, Libya and Syria. 9/11 incident: The 9/11 incident is an unexpected attack on the US, exclusively by a non-state actor. From a different angle of view, the political importance of 9/11 is not limited to the context of an unexpected attack because it extends to scenario of the global spread of terrorism and religious fundamentalism. Besides, 9/11 incident proves that terrorist organizations are strong and influential enough to threaten and attack the world nations. One can see that Bin Laden is the master mind behind the 9/11 incident. David Malone states ‘Three years after the release of a videotaped meeting in which Bin Laden reveals a level of complicity in the 9/11 attack, Bin Laden finally directly claimed responsibility in October 2004.’1 Within this context, Al-Qaeda, the international terrorist organization, played the most important role in planning and conducting the massive attack on the US. To be specific, the international terrorist organizations, especially Al-Qaeda, deeply influence the international community. For instance, some terrorist organizations which operate from the Middle East consider that religion is not different from national politics. So, these Middle Eastern organizations make use of the revenue from oil export to extend their activities. Within this context, some of the nation states in the Middle East are helpless because the influence of religious belief among the mass is made use by the terrorist organizations. So, Bin Laden’s role in the 9/11 incident is evident because he made use of Al-Qaeda members to intimidate the US. On the other side, 9/11 incident affected the smooth functioning of the political relationship between the Eastern and Western nations. Bush Presidency: Bush’s presidential campaign proves that he was in favour of the financial and political co-operation with the other nations in the American continent. When the 9/11 attack occurred, Bush was forced to provide importance to national security measures related to US foreign policy and defence. Bush never expected such a devastating attack on the US government. One can easily identify that the implementation of War on Terror is an immediate response to hinder the rapid growth and development of international terrorism. Bush was aware of the fact that the oil rich nations in the Middle East provide funding facilities to the international terrorist organizations. The end result of the change in the US foreign policy and defence was the implementation of an innovative policy, named as War on Terror. On the other side, Bin Laden made use of Afghani Taliban as a tool to fulfil his selfish motives (say, 9/11 attack). So, the US government decided to infiltrate into Afghanistan in 2001. Howard Zinn states, ‘The terrible toll of human life in the invasion was justified on the ground that it removed the Taliban, a fundamentalist Islamic group that ruled Afghanistan with an iron hand, and was responsible for countless atrocious acts against the population.’2 From a different angle of view, one can see that the war in Afghanistan helped the US forces to free the people from the influence of religious ideology over national politics. Later, Bin Laden was captured and shot dead in Pakistan. Still, the terrorists make use of Pak-Afghani border areas as a safe place to hide. In 2003, the US government decided to extend the War on Terror to dethrone dictators in the Middle East. The war in Iraq was helpful to dethrone Saddam Hussein and to restore democracy in Iraq. In short, the 9/11 attack forced George Bush to change the US foreign policy and defence and to launch the War on Terror. Changes in Foreign policy: As pointed out, the foreign policy of the Bush administration after the 9/11 attack underwent rapid change. Before the 9/11 incident, the US government provided less importance to the restoration of democracy in the Middle East, especially in Afghanistan and Iraq. But the US government came to know the fact that Afghanistan is the epicentre of international terrorism. For instance, Bin Laden made use of his influence in Afghanistan to provide training facilities to newly recruited terrorists. So, the US government decided to change its foreign policy in Afghanistan from neutrality to direct involvement. In Iraq, the situation was different because terrorism was not a serious problem. But Saddam Hussein’s dictatorship and his interest in nuclear and biological weaponry attracted the attention of the US government. Besides, Saddam Hussein’s dictatorship hindered the US interests in the Middle East Asia. So, the US government decided to extend the War on Terror into the other parts of Middle East Asia. Yakub Halabi notes, ‘In short, under the ‘Ground Zero’ level of trust between the US and the Arab States, the US pursued its policy in the Middle East in two incompatible strands: on one hand, it initialized an unwavering war against terrorist groups; and on the other, it criticized the absence of democratization processes and disrespect of human rights in the region.’3 In 2003, the US and its allies attacked Iraq, dethroned Saddam Hussein, and restored democracy. During this time, the US government did not try to exert much pressure upon Israel, another nation in this area. The US government was aware of the fact that Israel can be used as a launch pad to extend its influence over the nations in the Middle East. So, one can see the US foreign policy in Afghanistan after 9/11 attack reduced the influence of Taliban, in Iraq it helped to dethrone Saddam Hussein, and in Israel it remain unchanged. War on Terror: Economic cost, Human cost, and civil rights The War on Terror resulted in high economic burden for the US government. The deployment of arms and ammunition to the core of the Middle East Asia, especially to Afghanistan and Iraq, was a tiresome and time-consuming effort for the US forces and its allies. Besides, the geographical condition and climate is different in the Middle East. Moreover, the War on Terror resulted in the invasion of Afghanistan and Iraq by the US and its allies. The War on Terror forced Afghanistan and Iraq to suffer high civilian death toll. On the other side, so many soldiers from US and its allied nations lost their life in the war. The 9/11 attack forced the US to be suspicious about the motives of the international terrorist organizations. Paul Rogers opines, ‘Following Bush’s State of the Union address in January 2002, the administration had clearly extended its war on terror to encompass unacceptable regimes, and the assumed decline of al-Qaida meant that it would now further diminish as many of its more senior figures were killed or detained.’4 Within this scenario, the US foreign policy and defence underwent rapid change. This affected the civil rights in the US and in the Middle Eastern nations occupied by the US. More and more people in the Middle East were forced to face the atrocities of the War on Terrorism policy. In the US, the immigrant population from the Middle East faced marginalization in the society. So, the economic and human cost of the War on Terror was high and it affected civil rights in the US and in the Middle East. The global effect of 9/11 incident and War on Terror: The US policy against dictatorships after 9/11 was helpful to reduce the influence of Taliban among the people in Afghanistan. To be specific, the US forces became victorious in their effort to depose the Taliban regime in Afghanistan. The Taliban became less influential in Afghanistan and it eventually led to the formation of the interim government and the origin of democracy. On the other side, the war in Iraq dethroned Saddam Hussein. This eventually led to the formation of a democratic government in Iraq. So, one can easily identify that the 9/11 attack deeply influenced the US policy against dictatorships in the global context. At the same time, the 9/11 incident exerts indirect impact on the revolutionary spirit of the people in the Middle East. For instance, Arab Spring which dethroned the dictators in the Middle Eastern nations can be considered as the indirect impact of the 9/11 attack and the related incidents. In the present condition, the revolutions initiated by the people in Egypt, Libya and Syria extends to other parts of the world. In addition, the fundamental aspect of Arab Revolution and the War on Terrorism is to dethrone dictators and to restore democracy. Alastair Finlan states, ‘The horrifying acts of terrorism on 11 September 2001 against the United States have affected the world in a manner normally reserved for cataclysmic events such as the outbreak of the global wars in the twentieth century.’5 So, the global effect of 9/11 incident and War on Terror deeply influenced the US policy against dictatorships and indirectly impacted the Arab Spring. Summing, the 9/11 attack proves that terrorism based upon religious fundamentalism is an imminent threat to the whole world. Besides, the 9/11 attack led the US government to reconsider their foreign policy in the Middle East. On the other side, the War on Terror restored democracy and peace in the Middle East. Within this context, the US involvement inspired the people in the Middle East and indirectly helped them to fight against dictatorship. The 9/11 attack affected the smooth functioning of international affairs and altered foreign policies. At the same time, the impact of 9/11 attack and the related issues is long lasting because the ongoing revolutions in the Middle East against dictators prove the same. References A Finlan, Special Forces, Strategy and The War on Terror: Warfare by Other Means, Routledge, Oxon, 2008, p.111. D Malone, Bin Laden's Plan: The Project for the New Al Qaeda Century, Trafford Publishing, Oxford, 2005, p.35. H Zinn, The Unraveling of the Bush Presidency, Seven Stories Press, New York, 2007, p.7. P Rogers, Why We're Losing the War on Terror, Polity, Cornwall, 2008, p.129. Y Halabi, Us Foreign Policy in the Middle East: From Crises to Change, Ashgate Publishing, Cornwall, 2009, p.99. Read More