Essay: Al-Qaeda & foreign policy of the USA against terrorism – theory of realism

Introduction
Al-Qaeda’s 9/11 attack was a turning point for the US in its fight against terrorism. The attack took place on US soil and was the most horrific attack by the terrorist groups. Thousands of people died as a result of the attack. He felt that it was more necessary to use direct military intervention without using a diplomacy method.
In this article, the terrorist attacks of the al-Qaeda terrorist organization in the USA and the foreign policy of the USA against terrorism are examined by the theory of realism which is the theory of international relations. In addition to investigating the reasons behind the US administration’s realistic approach to addressing the problem of terrorism, it cannot be applied to this case study. US foreign policy, the introduction of direct military operations against Afghanistan in a more aggressive manner, gave extreme reactions to overcoming the problem of a preventive war against Iraq and global terrorism.
Literature Review
In this article Amanullah Haidary Azadany examined the Civil War in Afghanistan with the basic concepts of Realism. Realism claimed that civil wars took place when the separation between internal order and international chaos broke out. In such a case, the central government says it has lost its legitimacy and thus the people have begun to take back the freedom given to the central government for security reasons. In Afghanistan, the same dynamics and since the 1990s, people have lost confidence in governments, so that they are moving around ethnic lines to accumulate power and seek security for them.
U.S. Foreign Policy and 11/ Sept
The bureaucrats of the Sept. 11 attack were one of the most common cases of taking radical Islam seriously in the 21st century. The United States, against the al-Qaeda bases in Afghanistan against these attacks to support a united attack was also a supporter.
In order to continue its fight against terrorism, the US administration has been on the agenda and the Taliban government in Afghanistan has asked it to overthrow bin Laden. In the United States, it was rejected, the United States began to destroy Al Qaeda and attempt to overthrow the Taliban regime. We can start a diplomatic campaign for US university western states. He chose the realist for the US government to begin with this situation. Because the terrorists represented an absolute enemy for the United States.
In the first part of the attack, the Bush administration thought to use air force and limited ground forces to destroy Al Qaeda’s educational centers in Afghanistan. This action was supported by the United Nations Security Council and NATO as a defensive action against the terrorist attack and the decision was approved. Thus, other nations saw this as the self-defense of the United States. President Bush called on the military to take the most powerful measures against al-Qaeda and the Taliban leadership. Is it so fast that the US is losing its freedom? He had brought his thinking to mind, and fear of terror in the country had increased.
There is always a strategic structure that accepts the US as a remedy against the countries which it sees weak. When the US administration aims to overthrow a regime or destroy an enemy completely, it will be more comfortable to achieve its purpose. Once the war has been declared, the US goal is to end the war as soon as possible and give the least loss. And it aims to return to peace immediately. In fulfilling this goal, the countries in which he fought do not look anything else. In this context, the US has created a new paradigm with increasing options for military intervention: (civilians slaughter, property loss, etc.)
Discussion
The horrific unexpected attacks of September 11th allowed the United States to react and change its foreign policy in a way that exactly matched the realist theory. This sudden attack by the United States results in a military operation in Afghanistan and all over the world that is trying to destroy Al Qaeda altogether. The United States suffered a great shock after this attack. It was a huge attack on a country that saw itself as a superpower and did not compromise on security. After this attack, the United States felt very unsafe. Immediately after the beginning of Russia and the Middle East countries with oil problems due to the period began to take a number of measures. He launched extensively campaigning deterrent diplomatic embargoes and direct military actions against potential countries. The perception of power that represented the basic concept of realistism manifested itself here.
The US administration, knowing this situation, wanted to solve the terror problem in Afghanistan. He decided to use direct military intervention without any diplomatic solution. Bush, the president of the period, considered the situation as good and bad. As a result of this evaluation, he believed that Osama bin Laden was evil in his character, only to represent evil. At the same time, he thought that his supporters were equally bad. However, the US began to threaten and destroy even those who supported Al-Qaeda and who had the potential to be sympathetic. It also included the countries that the United States considered to be the source of evil (Iraq – Iran – North Kora). Thus, he gave the whole world the opportunity to eliminate terrorism. As stated in classical realism, he wanted to eliminate the unwanted forces.
However, while the war against the Taliban regime was accepted as a war between nation-states, we see that the US has continued the war against Al-Qaeda after it overthrew the regime in Afghanistan. Therefore, it was thought that the war was not only about the person in charge, but also those who supported and obeyed it. This is based on the idea that in the classical realism, the state, which is regarded as a threat to itself, must be completely destroyed.
On the other hand, we have seen that the role of nation-states has become stronger after the September 11 attack. Because the US and Western countries realized that al-Qaeda was a serious threat to them. According to this situation, they strengthened their preparations for terrorism. They increased their military forces by unilaterally or cooperating with nation-states against terrorism. This reality will still be the realist theory of war against al-Qaeda.
In this case, however, it is like a war against the ideology that can be met by using weapons. Therefore, the most realistic answer to the September 11 attacks is the realist theory, which does not bring a long-term solution to the terror problem. Because attacking the terrorists in that region was increasing their motivation for the Afghans to commit suicide to martyrs due to their religious beliefs. In such a case, they would be described as victims of US hegemony instead of being separated from the society.
Another element that may be different in the realist approach, the United States also represented the UN in this war. Therefore, he tried to get the support of the UN in order to justify himself. This is also an indication that the realist theory points to the nation. States do not take into account developments or events in their own countries, especially when they feel threatened and almost never trust other countries. Although it is clear that the United States restarted its relations with China and followed different policies after a communist enemy like Russia, but it is clear that the United States is one of the main partners in the fight against international terrorism, this can be interpreted in terms of real interests.
In this critical stage, the US understood that even a hegemonic country has the same enemy as the West, and then transferred it to the world, and in the fight against terrorism it shared the financial and military costs, and realized that it needed the help of other countries to legitimize its actions. In contrast, this fact reversed the situation in the US war against Iraq, making the US completely ignored the UN and international societies and making the war completely valid for the realist paradigm.
On the other hand, we can see that neo-realist theory does not focus on the effects of domestic policies on foreign policy. As much as President Bush is concerned about replacing the current government in Afghanistan with a democratic regime, the Taliban regime’s support of extremism in Afghanistan is a reflection of this period on terrorist groups that are influencing world politics. Thus, another difference may arise from the neo-realist approach that ignores these internal policies.
Otherwise, in the light of the neo-realist theory, the US believed that Afghanistan would adversely affect the world through terrorist groups as a unit. We therefore see a focus on the use of force to solve such an international problem.
Finally, we can say that the US war in Afghanistan can be explained in general by the realist / neo-realist theory, because it shows that the military uses directly the security problems and military power instead of using diplomatic means to reach their own interests. However, the realist theory may seem to provide a short-term solution to deter terrorist attacks.
Conclusion
After the September 11 attack, the US intervention in Afghanistan is thought to be one of the most important stages in reshaping US foreign policy and changing the current order of the world. US administration led by Osama bin Laden led by al-Qaeda terrorist organizations to cause civilian death as a result of the attacks on this aggression.
US foreign policy, after these attacks, increases its tendency to use its military power instead of diplomacy, and it can be clearly recognized by the US-led coalition, which is led by the United States and is launching heavy military operations against Afghanistan. Thus, the US did not only use military operations to undermine Afghanistan, but aimed at overthrowing the current regime and replacing it with a democratic regime. It also aimed to destroy all the radical supporters in this field. Democracy, according to the US administration, was the best way to solve the terror problem.
The military operations thought they had succeeded by overthrowing the Taliban regime and establishing the necessary democracy, but the US’s main enemy was a non-state actor, and al-Qaeda continued its attacks on the United States in a different way. The theory of realism and neo-realism of international relations can help explain US policies against these attacks. This can be demonstrated in the war against Iraq by the US as a precaution and in the policy of deterrence against Iran. All these measures were taken as a result of the attacks of the United States because of the constant feeling of being insecure and lonely. This led the US administration to adopt a realistic approach to dealing with this event.