RANE Podcast Series A Historical Look-back on U.S.-Middle East Relations
Dec 29, 2025
Ryan Bohl, a Senior Middle East and North Africa analyst at RANE, dives into 200 years of U.S.-Middle East relations. He discusses early trade relations with Morocco and America's shift from commercial interests to oil after WWI. Bohl highlights key moments like the 1945 security bargain with Saudi Arabia, the impact of the Cold War, and the rise of Islamic fundamentalism. He also reflects on recent events like the Abraham Accords and ongoing conflicts, pondering whether the U.S. will ever fully disengage from the region.
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Commerce Drove Early Engagement
- Early U.S. engagement with the Middle East was driven primarily by trade and securing Mediterranean routes.
- The Barbary Wars and Morocco treaty established a long-term commercial and naval interest in the region.
Oil Became The Strategic Anchor
- After World War I, oil replaced simple trade as the central U.S. strategic interest in the Middle East.
- U.S. ties with Saudi Arabia grew from Aramco and the 1945 Roosevelt–Ibn Saud security-for-oil understanding.
Religious Ties Shaped Policy
- 19th-century American religious movements seeded lasting political interest in the Levant.
- Missionaries and institutions like the American University of Beirut created enduring domestic constituencies influencing U.S. policy.