Order Description

2. Foundations of US-GCC Relations (5-6 pages)
Laying out the significance of the GCC to the US and the interdependent relationship
-Oil (Flow of oil, US Doctrine, Shell Oil sector/energy dependency)
-Military Bases (locations, purpose, significance)
-Arms sales (Military Industrial Complex, mutually beneficial, exhibitions, dependency)
-War on Terror (Overtaken threat of Communism, Strategic allies and moderate/stable partners, sharing intelligence information, GCC-Israel, absence of a unified/powerful Arab lobby)
3. GCC Diversity (4-5 Pages)
This section should address the establishment of the GCC and lay out the argument that although all of the GCC countries share certain commonalities, they are also independent actors with different
interests; there have been various disagreements and the GCC has not always been very efficient
-United yet divided (GCC evolution, similarities and common concerns, stability and economic interests, interconnectedness)
-Competition and Disagreements (stake out a niche—tourism, development, events etc, conflict over borders, spat with Qatar, Kuwait and Oman in their own sphere, Saudi hegemony, failure of agree
on common currency-Gulf Monetary Union)
-US bilateral agreements with GCC states
4. Obama’s Foreign Policy and the GCC (5-6 pages)
What was the essence of US FP towards the GCC under Obama? How did the GCC states perceive the Obama administration?
-Obama doctrine: drones, slow withdrawal of troops, no further interventions
-Move to engage and negotiate with Iran
-Arab Spring Event and US response
-GCC and fear of abandonment, lack of trust, different threat perceptions (exaggerate or insecure), US and its own concerns (economy, etc.)
-More assertive GCC policy (Eastward pivot)
5. Trump’s Foreign Policy Directive in the GCC (5-6 pages)
What are the initial stages/developments of US FP towards the Gulf? How does the GCC perceive the Trump administration? Who are the actors? What are common interests and concerns?