| Publication |
2012.
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| Summary/Abstract |
Prior to World War II, the US involvement with the Persian Gulf
was minimal as it was regarded as a British preserve. However,
during the war, a US Middle East Command was created to oversee
the supply route of war material to the Soviet Union through Iran
and it consisted of some 30,000 personnel. But after the war, it was
reduced to a small contingent stationed at Jufair and Bahrain under
an arrangement with the British. The task of containment of the
Soviets in the huge arc from the Suez to the Malacas was also left to
the British. When the UK decided to withdraw from the region in
1968 due to financial constrains, Washington was in no position to
fill the so-called vacuum due to its heavy commitments elsewhere,
especially in Vietnam.
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