Master Thesis: "Preemption in the U.S. National Security Strategy The Doctrine and The Application".
This master thesis studies the doctrine of Preemption in the U. S. National Security Strategy (Sept. 2002), and its application in the War on Iraq(March, 2003), through using the Decision Making Approach. The main research problem is identifying the actual reasons behind that change in the U. S.strategic thought, and whether it’s a reaction to the Sept. 11th attacks that showed the danger of international terrorism - as claimed by the U. S. administration- , or it is representing a well planned and organized policy finally found its way to be formally adopted and applied after the attacks.
The study is divided into three chapters , beside an introductory chapter presenting the theoretical basis for the thesis . The first chapter tackles the definition of Preemption and another related term "Preventive Wars", and some recent cases for both. It also studies the preemptive and preventive experience in the U. S. Strategic Thought during the Cold War in the period 1945-1949. The second chapter explains the circumstances behind the changes in the U. S. National Security Strategy, Sept. (2002). The Sept. 11th attacks have played a role in changing U. S. political thought through stressing the foreign policy and defense issues. The management of Sept. 11th crisis resulted in building an International Coalition against terrorism which started its military mission in the War onAfghanistan (Oct. , 2001). The Neoconservatives have their own perspective about theU. S. role in the new international system after the end of the Cold War, and they succeeded to present a well prepared management for the strategic and political situation after the attacks through their influential positions in the Republican Administration(2000-2008). The study articled that there were certain circumstances forced the change in the American Strategic Thought. The third chapter address the American Preemption as it was declared in the National Security Strategy (Sept. 2002), and the first application to that doctrine in the War onIraq (March 2003). The chapter continues to study the development in the American policies after the war, and its effects on the role of preemption in theU. S. strategic thought, as it was declared in the National Security Strategy (March 2006).
The thesis concludes that adopting Preemption is not a reaction to the Sept. attacks as long as it is reflecting the imperial ambition for the U.S. Republican Administration in a world that is clearly showing the American hegemony.