Reagan and the Crisis of Southwest Asia

Abstract

This chapter explains the impact of Ronald Reagan's administration on the crisis of Southwest Asia. The crisis ranges between the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan and the Iranian revolution. The chapter notes ethnonationalist autonomy movements disrupting state-focused politics and politicizing Islam as the key consequences of Reagan's focus on state sovereignty and survival. For example, the Pashtun ethnonationalism in the Afghan–Pakistan borderlands had been a major hurdle in US relations with both Afghanistan and Pakistan throughout the twentieth century. The chapter notes that Southwest Asia represents an enduring paradox in US foreign policy. The Reagan administration's policies highlight the postcolonial importance of states and international states system in international politics.