Wow! eBook
Syria and the USA: Washington's Relations with Damascus from Wilson to Eisenhower: v. 56
Author(s): Sami Moubayed (Author)
- Publisher: I.B.Tauris
- Publication Date: 28 Feb. 2012
- Edition: 1st
- Language: English
- Print length: 240 pages
- ISBN-10: 1848857055
- ISBN-13: 9781848857056
Book Description
The early years of Syrian-US relations can be described as hopes dashed, hopes revived. Although American missionaries had visited the Middle East in the nineteenth century, it was not until after World War I that Syrian and US dignitaries met in an official capacity. The relationship had its ups-and-downs: warm under Woodrow Wilson; virtually non-existent under Warren Harding and Calvin Coolidge; revived under Franklin Roosevelt when Syria sided with the Allies to declare war on Nazi Germany. In the aftermath of World War II the relationship took a new turn, as the US was accused of involvement in the series of coups and counter-coups that rocked the young republic from 1949 until the ill-fated Syrian-Egyptian union of 1958. Engagement and the right to self-determination were the rule of the game in the post-Wilson era, but this quickly transformed into espionage and covert activity during the Cold War when the US saw Syria as a Soviet proxy in the Middle East. In the forty years between 1919 and 1959, envoys from the White House, along with presidential candidates from both the Republican and Democratic parties, Secretaries of State, and US celebrities like Eleanor Roosevelt and Helen Keller all came to Damascus and reported – in many different ways – their observations. Featuring original research and previously unpublished material, this book will be essential reading for scholars of the Middle East and US Diplomatic History and twentieth-century International Relations.
Editorial Reviews
Review
‘Sami Moubayed is one of Syria’s leading scholars and commentators, and he is uniquely qualified to provide important insights into the history of the Middle East in the 20th century. Anyone wanting to understand how what was an amicable and respectful US-Syrian relationship early in the 20th century deteriorated by the 1950s into a confrontational one would do well to read Moubayed’s book. He weaves together a scholarly yet entertaining tapestry of information that presents the all-too-often ignored Syrian perspective of its relationship with the United States. The US-Syrian relationship today is still fraught with mistrust and misunderstanding. Moubayed shows in his book that this is not a new phenomenon it has a rich and interesting history.’ –David W Lesch, Professor of Middle East History, Trinity University
‘The history of relations between Syria and the United States up until the 1960s is little known and understood. Sami Moubayed, one of Syria’s leading young historians, now offers us a remarkably comprehensive study that illustrates how a positive start in diplomatic relations in the early part of the 20th century eventually began to unwind in unfortunate ways by mid-century. Using a variety of sources including the US State Department archives and the private paper collections of Syrian political leaders, Moubayed sheds new light on the political intrigue and shenanigans that were so characteristic of the Cold War era. Scholars and foreign policy experts will appreciate the author’s efforts at reconstructing the history of an important chapter in America’s relationship with the Middle East region.’ –Philip S Khoury, Ford International Professor of History, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
‘Sami Moubayed is one of Syria’s leading scholars and commentators, and he is uniquely qualified to provide important insights into the history of the Middle East in the 20th century. Anyone wanting to understand how what was an amicable and respectful US-Syrian relationship early in the 20th century deteriorated by the 1950s into a confrontational one would do well to read Moubayed’s book. He weaves together a scholarly yet entertaining tapestry of information that presents the all-too-often ignored Syrian perspective of its relationship with the United States. The US-Syrian relationship today is still fraught with mistrust and misunderstanding. Moubayed shows in his book that this is not a new phenomenon it has a rich and interesting history.’ –David W Lesch, Professor of Middle East History, Trinity University
‘The history of relations between Syria and the United States up until the 1960s is little known and understood. Sami Moubayed, one of Syria’s leading young historians, now offers us a remarkably comprehensive study that illustrates how a positive start in diplomatic relations in the early part of the 20th century eventually began to unwind in unfortunate ways by mid-century. Using a variety of sources including the US State Department archives and the private paper collections of Syrian political lead –Philip S Khoury, Ford International Professor of History, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
‘Moubayed has done an excellent job of shedding some light on US-Syrian relations…The author brilliantly presents the Syrian perspective on US-Syrian relations during this era. His research in US archival materials and the private paper collections of a number of Syrian political leaders, his interviews with some of them and his use of newspapers and scholarly journals, as well as his personal interest in the history of cinema, all combine to offer an interesting, entertaining, and informative narrative of a subject that has been seldom discussed, and yet is so critical to the stability of the area.’ –N. Rassekh, Choice (US)
‘The history of relations between Syria and the United States up until the 1960s is little known and understood. Sami Moubayed, one of Syria’s leading young historians, now offers us a remarkably comprehensive study that illustrates how a positive start in diplomatic relations in the early part of the 20th century eventually began to unwind in unfortunate ways by mid-century. Using a variety of sources including the US State Department archives and the private paper collections of Syrian political leaders, Moubayed sheds new light on the political intrigue and shenanigans that were so characteristic of the Cold War era. Scholars and foreign policy experts will appreciate the author’s efforts at reconstructing the history of an important chapter in America’s relationship with the Middle East region.’ –Philip S Khoury, Ford International Professor of History, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
