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it." The Eisenhower Administration
decried the move. Unable to see the
tie of Mideast oil to power and eco–
nomic growth, the Administration
forced the European powers to back
off.
·
"That significant miscalculation,"
continued
Business Week,
"underlies
a myopia that has affiicted every suc–
ceeding Administration : the inability
(qr
unwillingness) to see the econom–
ic and moneta ry impl ications in for–
eign policy."
Then, over parts of the next two
decades, the United States got mired
in Southeast Asia, a far-off place of
little economic or strategic impor–
tance, especially when stacked up
against the Middle East.
1At the same time, chronic inflation
in the U.S. and endless payments
deficits-due in large part to the
huge cost of tbe Vietnam war–
sapped the economic health of the
U.S. dallar, once the kingpin curren–
cy of the free world. America's trad–
ing partners have literally been left
holding the bag-a monstrous sack
of over 500 billion surplus and cheap–
ening dollars!
"Now there are signs of U.S.
weakness everywhere," adds
Busi–
ness Week ,
"and cracks are appear–
ing in the [free world's economic]
system. The policies set in motion
during the Vietnam war a re now
threatening the way of life built since
World War
ll .
" 'The biggest reason we've lost
our zip is because of the decline of
the dallar,' says Raymund A. Kathe,
a senior vice-president of Citibank in
Japan who has been in Asia for 33
years. 'We wasted ourselves in Viet–
nam. Now we've got too many of our
dollars abroad that sooner or later
we'll have to redeem, and you can't
maintain a military abroad wben
people won't accept your curren–
cy.' "
Alllance Structure at Stake
Europe and Japan are absolutely de–
pendent upon a continuous, rel iable
ftow of oil from the Middle East.
And access to the same oil means the
difference between continued pros–
perity or economic depression for the
United States.
This saber realization is undoubt-
6
edly the reason why Washington has
dispatched military aid to a belea–
guered North Yemen government
under assault by troops from Marxist
South Yemen in the Arabian penin–
sula's southwest corner. The South
Yemeni forces are aided by Cuban
and East German "advisers."
Sbould the government of North
Yemen be overthrown, tbe shock
waves in neighboring Saudi Arabia,
its prime patron, would be great.
Over a million Yemenis work in Sau–
di Arabia.
The U.S.-finally showing sorne
backbone- also dispatched several
warships to stand watch off the
southern Arabian coast. Washing–
ton's action, not a very risky one,
seems to have made tbe invaders
think twice. Yet, in parts of the U.S.
predictable críes of "another Viet–
nam" were raised.
Few Americans and others in the
free world realize that much more is
at stake in the Middle East than tbe
supply of oil. The real danger, ac–
cording to the
Business Week
special
report, "is that a vast, global shift in
political alignments could occur if
control of the Persian Gulfs oil were
to fall into hostile hands. ' There
would be a dramatic shift in the re–
gional balance of power,' says Ener–
gy Secretary James R. Schlesin–
ger. ... Given their dependency on
that part of the world, Japan and
Western Europe would have to
change their orientation.'"
In which direction ?
"Such a geopolitical realignment,"
continued this noted economic week–
ly, "could force the U.S. allies to seek
accommodation with a militant Is–
lamic bloc or with the Soviet Union.
The result, in either case, would be a
loosening of ties with the U.S., wbicb
up to now has been the main guaran–
tor of the oil flow from the area. Tbe
strain on U.S. military alliances with
Europe and Japan, in turn, would
weaken the political framework of
the Western economic system...."
Dangerous Days
Tbe world is heading into a very dan–
gerous period. And the overriding
single cause of world instability is tbe
precipitous decl ine of the power and
prestige of the United States.
Even the "peace" negotiated be–
tween the Middle East's two most
powerful foes, Egypt and Israel,
could be dangerous in a broader con–
text. Saudi Arabia, for one, may be
forced closer to the radical Arab "re–
jectionist" cause, as well as into a
cozier relationship with the Soviet
Union.
Meanwhile, the Soviets continue
to pick off areas of strategic import
around the world once controlled by
Britain and the United States. They
are close to controlling the southern
entrance to the Red Sea with clients
Ethiopia on one side and South Ye–
men (formerly the British protecto–
rate of Aden) on the other.
With the' overthrow of the pro–
Western Shah, the Strait of Hormuz
between l ran a nd Oman (where
Communist insurgents have periodi–
cally erupted) is also dangerously ex–
posed. The strait is roughly 30 miles
wide and through it from lran, Saudi
Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, and the
various smaller emi rates passes a p–
proximately two-thirds of interna–
tional oil exports.
The Soviets know what they want.
They want control of the key en–
trances to the world's oceans, the so–
called " narrow seas"--or, as Soviet
military strategists sometimes refer
to them, "cbokepoints."
The Bible calls these strai ts and
canals "gates" (Genesis
22:17
and
24:60) and predicted thousands of
years ago that their possession would
be part of the birthright of the En–
glish-speaking world in the "latter
days.''
Britain's sun has already set. She
has abandoned Aden and the entire
line of bases "east of Suez." The
United States is giving up the Pana–
ma Canal. The Soviets are filling the
vacuum.
The nations of Western Europe, as
well as Japan, are viewing events in
the Middle East with deepening con–
cero.
rt
is becoming plain for all to
see that the United States is no long–
er willing to forcefully contest the
inroads of the Soviet Union into re–
gions vital to the free world.
Watch world events in the next
few months. A dramatic shift in
world power alignments is certain to
take shape. o
The
PLAIN TRUTH May 1979