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The article written by Jeffrey Sachs is aimed at discussing the policies of the Western governments in the Middle East, Africa, and Asia. One of the main arguments that the author advances is that the military, political, and economic intervention into such countries as Libya, Iran, Mali, or Sudan will not bring any substantial benefits to the citizens of these states. More importantly, the writer believes that this strategy will not serve political or economic interests of the United States, the United Kingdom, France or other countries that currently attempt to overthrow various autocratic or totalitarian regimes and spend billions of dollars in order to achieve this goal (Sachs unpaged). Certainly, it is possible to accept some of the ideas expressed by Jeffrey Sachs, especially the belief that military campaigns will not eradicate poverty, diseases, or violence in African or Middle-Eastern countries. Nevertheless, the author does not take into account the complexity of international relations in these regions, their culture, and their colonial history. Each of these factors should be considered by policy-makers. This is why the analysis that Jeffrey Sachs provides is not complete.
In his article, Jeffrey Sachs argues the policies of the Western countries are driven by the need to get access to the sources of energy, namely oil. To some extent, this objective can explain the economic or military campaigns against Libya, Iran or Iraq (Sachs unpaged). However, Jeffrey Sachs does not mention that the countries in the Middle East are not unanimous. For example, such countries as the UAE, Qatar and Saudi Arabia supported the war against Muammar Gaddafi and his regime (Beydoun 29). More importantly, the Arab League agreed with the necessity to intervene into the civil war in Libya (Beydoun 29; Vandewalle 23). This is one of the issues that are overlooked by Jeffrey Sachs in his discussion. One should be taken into account that oil-states in the Middle East compete with one another in terms of political or economic influence in the region. This is one of the reasons why Saudi Arabia, Qatar or the UAE are opposed to the policies of Iranian or Syrian governments (Cordesman 252). Thus, one can argue that the so-called oil states should not be perceived as a single entity that is guided by similar principles or goals. Jeffrey Sachs believes that the recent military conflicts can be attributed primarily to the decisions of the Western governments, but this claim is not quite accurate. Still, it is possible to accept his premise that the use of military force can hardly be justified from ethical or economic perspectives.
Additionally, the author focuses on the influence of the Western policies on non-oil states Mali, Chad, Afghanistan, or Niger. The authors argument is that social and economic growth will be crucial for maintaining stability in these regions (Sachs unpaged). In his opinion, it is vital to invest into technologies, small business initiatives, or agriculture (Sachs unpaged). In other words, the authors premise is that by raising the standards of living in these regions, western states will be able to maintain political stability in these regions. Certainly, economic difficulties often lead to political tensions within a state. Nevertheless, it is possible to dispute this claim because Libya had one of the highest standards of living in Africa, but it was engulfed into the civil war (Coppa 251; Amineh 273). Such countries as Mali or Niger can hardly be compared to Libya in terms of infrastructure or economic prosperity. This example indicates that close attention should be paid to their political systems of these countries, their inner tensions, and colonial past. Jeffrey Sachs does not discuss the tribal or ethnic divisions and hostilities existing in many African countries. Instead, the author focuses on such issues as undeveloped agriculture, climate, famine, and lack of infrastructure as some of the factors which greatly contribute to instability (Sachs unpaged). Nevertheless, these causal relations can be reversed; in other words, numerous military conflicts prevent these countries from achieving any sustainability. For example, one can mention such a county as Rwanda in which the genocide against the Tutsi people (Waugh 7). To a great extent, this genocide takes its origin in the colonial past of Rwanda in which some tribes or ethnicities enjoyed a privileged position while others were treated as inferiors (Barrington 305; Lorey 200). This policy greatly contributed the long-lasting hostilities in this country. This problem is typical of other African states. One should take into account that there have been more twenty civil wars or military conflicts within or between various African countries (Appiah and Gates 294). In such an environment, any country will find it difficult to achieve prosperity. This is one of the issues that should not be overlooked. It seems that it is the duty of the Western countries to avert such conflicts. This argument is particularly important when one speaks about such a country as Rwanda in which more 500,000 people were killed. Therefore, one cannot argue that military intervention into a sovereign state can never been justified while Jeffrey Sachs does not speak about this issue in great detail.
It is possible to agree with the statement that even a thousand drone missiles will not bring any improvements to the citizens of non-oil countries (Sachs unpaged). Such an approach will hardly contribute to the welfare of poor people who are often deprived of their civic rights. Overall, this premise is quite acceptable. Nevertheless, the investment into the infrastructure of Mali, Niger, or Rwanda can be effective only if their governments become accountable for their policies or decisions. Furthermore, the loans offered to these states will not increase the welfare of people provided that the problem of corruption is not properly addressed. It should be taken into consideration that the countries discussed by Jeffrey Sachs have very corrupt or at best ineffective governments (Jackson 34). Therefore, the policies of the Western countries should be aimed at transforming these governments. This means that one cannot disregard the necessity for political interference.
Surely, the ideas of Jeffrey Sachs should not be disregarded, because he demonstrates that the strategies of Western countries are poorly developed. In most cases, they do not produce any positive effect on people living in such countries as Libya, Mali, Sudan or Egypt. There are several aspects that should not be overlooked. First, the military campaigns against some of the oil states were actually supported by other Arab countries. Additionally, it is impermissible to overlook some of the factors that shape the developments of states in the Middle East or Africa. In particular, one should focus on the ethnic or tribal hostilities and corruption since these factors eventually lead to the instability and poverty in these regions.
Works Cited
Amineh, Mehdi. TheGreater Middle East in Global Politics: Social Science Perspectives on the Changing Geography of World Politics, Boston: BRILL, 2007. Print.
Appiah, Kwame, and H. Gates. Encyclopedia of Africa, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2010. Print.
Barrington, Lowell. After Independence: Making and Protecting the Nation in Postcolonial and Postcommunist States, Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 2006. Print.
Beydoun, Nasser. The Glass Palace: Illusions of Freedom and Democracy in Qatar, London: Algora Publishing, 2012. Print.
Cordesman, Anthony. Saudi Arabia: National Security in a Troubled Region, New York: ABC-CLIO, 2009. Print.
Coppa, Frank. Encyclopedia of Modern Dictators: From Napoleon to the Present, Boston: Peter Lang, 2006. Print.
Jackson, Terrence. International Management Ethics: A Critical, Cross-cultural Perspective, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2011. Print.
Lorey, David, and W. Beezley. Genocide, Collective Violence, and Popular Memory: The Politics of Remembrance in the Twentieth Century. New York: Rowman & Littlefield, 2002. Print.
Sachs, John. Mali is just the latest example of failed western thinking . Financial Times, 2013. Web.
Vandewalle, Dirk. A History of Modern Libya, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2012. Print.
Waugh, Colin. Paul Kagame And Rwanda: Power, Genocide and the Rwandan Patriotic Front, Philadelphia: McFarland, 2004. Print.
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