Changes

In the [[Middle East], now commonly called West Asia, the collapse of the [[USSR]] orphaned [[Iraq]] and [[Syria]], both of which had remained part of the shrunken [[Soviet]] sphere of influence that followed [[Egypt]]'s defection to America after the [[Camp David Accords]] in 1979. No longer constrained by [[Moscow]], Iraq gambled that it could alleviate the [[financial]] exhaustion of the eight-year [[Iran-Iraq War]] by seizing [[Kuwait]] and its [[oil]] riches. In response, a [[UN]]-authorized [[coalition]] of forces led by the [[United States]] and [[Saudi Arabia]] liberated Kuwait. Syria joined this coalition, signaling a willingness to explore relations with the United States as a partial substitute for the support of the vanished USSR, but was rebuffed due to its hostility to [[Israel]].

In the [[Middle East], now commonly called West Asia, the collapse of the [[USSR]] orphaned [[Iraq]] and [[Syria]], both of which had remained part of the shrunken [[Soviet]] sphere of influence that followed [[Egypt]]'s defection to America after the [[Camp David Accords]] in 1979. No longer constrained by [[Moscow]], Iraq gambled that it could alleviate the [[financial]] exhaustion of the eight-year [[Iran-Iraq War]] by seizing [[Kuwait]] and its [[oil]] riches. In response, a [[UN]]-authorized [[coalition]] of forces led by the [[United States]] and [[Saudi Arabia]] liberated Kuwait. Syria joined this coalition, signaling a willingness to explore relations with the United States as a partial substitute for the support of the vanished USSR, but was rebuffed due to its hostility to [[Israel]].

In 2003, the United States [[Iraq war|invaded Iraq]], ousted its [[government]], and attempted to incorporate it into the American [[politico]]-[[military]] sphere of influence. The U.S. achieved military dominance in Iraq only to see [[Iran]] gain a paramount position in its politics. The concurrent U.S. effort to engineer [[regime change]] in Syria failed, entrenching Iranian influence there and providing an unexpected opportunity for a resurgence of [[Russian]] influence in the [[Assad government]]. The destabilization of Iraq and Syria provoked a backlash by [[Islamist]] [[extremist]]s, who briefly erased the border between the two and established an "[[Islamic state]]." [[Turkiye]] incorporated parts of northern Iraq and Syria into its military and [[economic]] spheres. The United States established a blatantly [[illegal]] military presence in Syria. After the withdrawal of all but a residual U.S. military training mission, [[China]] became the preeminent foreign participant in the Iraqi economy. Meanwhile, "[[fracking]]" enabled the United States to resume its historic status as a major [[energy]] [[export]]er and made it the swing producer in global energy [[market]]s. This reduced the centrality of the [[Persian Gulf]] in U.S. global [[policy]]. The [[American]] commitment to Persian Gulf [[security]] diminished concomitantly.

In 2003, the United States [[Iraq war|invaded Iraq]], ousted its [[government]], and attempted to incorporate it into the American [[politico]]-[[military]] sphere of influence. The U.S. achieved military dominance in Iraq only to see [[Iran]] gain a paramount position in its politics. The concurrent U.S. effort to engineer [[regime change]] in Syria failed, entrenching Iranian influence there and providing an unexpected opportunity for a resurgence of [[Russian]] influence in the [[Assad government]]. The destabilization of Iraq and Syria provoked a backlash by [[Islamist]] [[extremist]]s, who briefly erased the border between the two and established an "[[Islamic State]]." [[Turkiye]] incorporated parts of northern Iraq and Syria into its military and [[economic]] spheres. The United States established a blatantly [[illegal]] military presence in Syria. After the withdrawal of all but a residual U.S. military training mission, [[China]] became the preeminent foreign participant in the Iraqi economy. Meanwhile, "[[fracking]]" enabled the United States to resume its historic status as a major [[energy]] [[export]]er and made it the swing producer in global energy [[market]]s. This reduced the centrality of the [[Persian Gulf]] in U.S. global [[policy]]. The [[American]] commitment to Persian Gulf [[security]] diminished concomitantly.

As the 21st century proceeded, U.S dominance of the affairs of the "[[Middle East]]" eroded. Despite the resurgence in Russian influence and intermittent [[French]] attempts to reassert a leading role in [[Lebanon]], regional rather than external powers began to drive politico-military rivalries and dynamics there. China is displacing other [[great power]]s as the region's largest economic partner, but the Middle East is no longer in the sphere of influence of any great power or divided between several, as in the past.

As the 21st century proceeded, U.S dominance of the affairs of the "[[Middle East]]" eroded. Despite the resurgence in Russian influence and intermittent [[French]] attempts to reassert a leading role in [[Lebanon]], regional rather than external powers began to drive politico-military rivalries and dynamics there. China is displacing other [[great power]]s as the region's largest economic partner, but the Middle East is no longer in the sphere of influence of any great power or divided between several, as in the past.