Puppet or independent?
A recent opinion piece circulating in the media alleges that Qatar and the UAE are mere puppets of American foreign policy.
From the article:
US uses Qatar, UAE as surrogates in its ‘regime change’ bids
The US government has secretly used two Persian Gulf states of Qatar and United Arab Emirates (UAE) to ship weapons to rebel groups in Libya and Syria in efforts to help overthrow their governments.
“Relying on surrogates allows the United States to keep its fingerprints off operation, but also means they may play out in ways that conflict with American interests,” leading US daily The New York Times reports Thursday, noting growing worries in Washington that the two despotic Arab regimes have also given arms to “radical jihadist” groups, in Libya and now in Syria, unfriendly to the United States.
Full story: http://www.presstv.ir/detail/2012/12/06/276563/qatar-uae-us-regime-chang...
Is this is a fair assessment, or are these countries acting out of their own independent interests that just happen to coincide with US interests sometimes?
I think small nations are always going to be client nations. Their independence is in choosing which nation to be a client of--and playing larger nations against one another for local benefit.
Qatar seems to be doing a reasonably good job at undermining Iran in the region--Syria, Palestine, Bahrain, are good instances of this. It's not like Iran is a great friend, and in exchange they get to host major events like the WC 2022 and the climate change summit (allowing them to have more influence on big issues than otherwise possible for a small country).
Interesting argument but sure to be oppss. Better post something about byrini instead.
Each country acts for its own best interests.. The US , after the debacle in Iraq and Afghanistan knows that its own public and much of the developing world would not accept a direct involvement.
The smaller nations , know that they get protection and also the chance to play on the world stage, whilst perhaps getting some economic benefits.
As far as using the word despotic .. I would disagree with that..