Israeli+Point+of+View

Janine Berger The Baghdad Pact, 1955-Israeli Point of View First off, the Baghdad Part is sometimes also referred to as the Central Treaty Organization, CENTO. >> The creation was partially prompted by promises made by the United States. > They suggested that they would lend military economic aid to countries in the pact. >> The member included the United Kingdom, Turkey, Iraq, Iran, and Pakistan. >> The organization was modeled after NATO. It was created in attempt to link together the nations of the Middle East who have been intertwined in violence and conflict. >> 3 Main Goals: Ø mutual cooperation Ø protection from outside forces Ø non-intervention in each other’s affairs Ø However, it was also a key point to contain the USSR from expansion into the Middle East. >> The organization was disbanded officially in 1979, when the Iranian Revolution was going on. CENTO is viewed as a considerable failure and is often times compared to the League of Nations. It was tactical mistake on the Americans behalf, because it polarized the Arab world between Iraq and Egypt, it led to the destabilization in many countries in the region, and it was indirectly responsible for bringing the Soviet Union into the heart of the Middle East” (121). Now from the Israeli Point of view… The Baghdad Pact presented some problems for the Arab-Israeli conflict. Furthermore, “Egypt and Israeli had reason to be fearful of one another, and both also had reason to resent the Western powers and their patronage of Iraq” (120). **Israel was not included in the discussions at Bandung, Indonesia · There, decisions regarding the Arab positions in Palestine were made. o It is clear that the Jews would be outraged by the pivotal decisions, which were made without their representation. This initially gave them reason to feel resentment towards the Baghdad Pact. o However, what Nasser decided was that the Arab world should not get entangled in conflict with the Western world and they had to become self-reliant on fellow Arabs and get rid of any foreign influence. This, in theory, would please the Israelis because the Arabs would be getting less assistance, and it’s a huge advantage to their campaign in Palestine. “From the Israeli point of view, the Baghdad Pact, instead of drawing Iraq into the anti-communist front as the British had said, had drawn Turkey into the anti-Israeli front” (// The Baghdad Pact //). Israel was further alarmed when Turkey and Iraq tried to extend the Baghdad Pact to Israel’s neighbors, Syria, Lebanon, and Jordan. >Very important-- one of the main goals of the Baghdad Pact was to with strain the USSR > However, it was the Soviets who supported the UN Partition Plan of 1947, which favored the Jews > The Soviets were the first country to recognize Israel as a state. > Soviet arms, via Czechoslovakia also benefited Israel in its war for independence. > Despite all the support, which the USSR gave to Israel, once the Israelis showed that they were not willing to support North Korea in the Korean War; the Soviets went on an anti-Jewish and anti-Israel campaign. This severely worsened their relations. Bickerton, Ian J., and Carla L. Klausner. //A History of the Arab-Israeli Conflict//. 5th ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, 2007. Print. “Chapter 3.” // The Baghdad Pact: Anglo-American Defense Policies in the Middle East, 1950-1959 //. Frank Cass, 2005. Print.