American policymakers have regarded command of the Persian Gulf a foreign policy imperative since it emerged as the world’s economic and military power following the Second World War.   Because of its location and rich resources, it is, in the words of former President Dwight D. Eisenhower (1953-61), the “most strategically important area in the world.”

The U.S. doctrine of dominance that began in the 1940s and has kept the Middle East divided, chaotic and dependent must come to an end so that transformation can begin. Radical and profound change of the region’s social, political and economic order can only come about if the United States departs, Zionism ends and Palestinians return to a free Palestine. Anything less will fail.

Source: Intruder at Large: The United States in the Middle East – CounterPunch.org