King Hussein and the Presidents: Jordan and American Relations Since 1967 By PATRICK ACKERSON Bachelor of Science in Operations and Information Systems Management Pennsylvania State University State College, PA 2001 Master of Arts in Applied History Shippensburg University Shippensburg, PA 2005 Submitted to the Faculty of the Graduate College of the Oklahoma State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY July, 2016 KING HUSSEIN AND THE PRESIDENTS: JORDAN AND AMERICAN RELATIONS SINCE 1967 Dissertation Approved: Dr. Belmonte Dissertation Adviser Dr. Logan Dr. Jenswold ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I first would like to thank Dr. Belmonte for her advice in guidance throughout this process and for her instruction throughout my graduate studies. I would also like to thank my parents for instilling in me the value of an education and for their unwavering support while I completed this dissertation. I would like to thank my wife Ashley for her continued patience and support throughout my education that involved countless hours away from the family. Without her it would have been impossible to complete this project and I will always be grateful for her support. Finally, I want to thank Molly and Katie for making even the hardest days happier. iii Acknowledgements reflect the views of the author and are not endorsed by committee members or Oklahoma State University. Name: Patrick Ackerson Date of Degree: July 2016 Title of Study: KING HUSSEIN AND THE PRESIDENTS: AMERICAN AND JORDAN RELATIONS SINCE 1967 Major Field: History Abstract: The following examines the relationship between the United States and Jordan after 1967. It focuses on the leadership of the US starting with the Nixon administration and ending with King Hussein of Jordan’s death during the Clinton administration. It argues that King Hussein became a vital ally to the United States in preventing the expansion of the Soviet Union during the Cold War. Jordan’s role as an American ally during the Cold War was particularly important because of the inherent hostility of the Arabs towards the US because of its support of Israel. Jordan became an important piece of the American strategy to stop the spread of the Soviet Union in this vital region. In addition, because of Hussein’s practical nature and desire to work with both the US and Israel, Jordan became an important element for American efforts to find a peaceful solution to the conflicts between Israel and the Arabs. Hussein used his role to secure Jordan as an important ally of the United States and that close relationship remains twenty-years after his death. In return for his efforts, the United States granted Jordan military, diplomatic, and economic aid that allowed for the survival of Hussein’s Hashemite dynasty. While ideologically compatible with the US goals in the region, Hussein’s need for American support led him to align with American interests. Hussein’s actions during the period are important to understand the development of the American relationship with Jordan and the broader Middle East along with broader American policy in the region. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter Page I. INTRODUCTION ......................................................................................................1 II. THE NIXON ADMINSTRATION AND THE QUEST FOR PEACE ..................15 III. CIVIL WAR...........................................................................................................43 IV. NIXON AND FOR IN THE SHADDOW OF WAR ............................................89 V. CARTER, HUSSEIN AND THE MARCH TOWARDS CAMP DAVID ..........147 VI. REAGAN’S FIRST TERM AND CONFLICT IN THE MIDDLE EAST……..209 VII. REAGAN’s SECOND TERM & THE MIDDLE EAST PEACE PROCESS...244 VIII. HUSSEIN, BUSH AND THE PERSIAN GULF WAR………………………286 IX. CLINTON AND THE ISRAELI-JORDANIAN PEACE TREATY…………...347 X. CONCLUISION…………………………………………………………………391 BIBLIOGRAPHY………………………………………………………………......407 NOTES……………………………………………………………………………...421 v CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION On July 26, 1994, King Hussein bin Talal of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan addressed a joint session of Congress after the signing of the Washington Declaration and announced the end of the state of war between Israel and Jordan. Hussein spoke of his enduring friendship with the US, saying, “I have sought over thirty-four years, since the presidency of Dwight Eisenhower, to ensure that [the friendship between Jordan and the United States] be honest and true. It has been a friendship built on mutual respect and common interests. I am proud to remind you how we stood shoulder to shoulder during the long years of the Cold War. And now together we share a great hope. To establish lasting peace in the Middle East.”1 Hussein reminded Congress and the American people that for decades, Jordan had been and continued to be a reliable partner in the Middle East for the United States. This speech was the culmination of years of work by Hussein to bring peace to Jordan through the help of the United States. 1 Following the formation of Jordan by the British after World War I, the leaders of Jordan frequently had a tight relationship with the West. While King Hussein was originally supported by the British, he later became one of the most important American allies in the Middle East. Because of his geographical location in the Middle East, his pragmatic disposition, and his need of outside support to survive, King Hussein established a relationship with the United States that is still strong long after his passing. This relationship has endured terrorist attacks on American interests and its allies from groups located in Jordan, a number of Middle Eastern conflicts, the Cold War, the rise of Arab nationalism, the rise of Islamic fundamentalism, and a large scale American war in the region. Despite these challenges, Hussein successfully formed a working relationship with a wide variety of American administrations that both protected his kingdom and demonstrated his increasing value to the United States. The United States responded to that relationship with both civilian and military aid along with the diplomatic support that was fundamental for the survival of the Hashemite dynasty in the Middle East. Since 1967 until his death in 1999, King Hussein worked with seven Presidents to make Jordan one the closest and most strategic allies of the United States in the Arab world. King Hussein was born in Amman, Jordan on November 14, 1935, thirteen years before Israel declared independence and while Jordan still existed under the mandate of Great Britain established by the Sykes-Picot Agreement at the conclusion of World War I. Hussein’s Grandfather, King Abdullah I led Jordan until his death at the hands of a 2 Palestinian assassin on July, 20, 1951. He was succeeded by his eldest son King Talal bin Abdullah until he abdicated his throne due to a medical condition and his increasingly erratic behavior.2 After Talal’s abdication, his eldest son Hussein came of age and took the throne on May 2, 1953, when he was only seventeen years old. King Hussein’s primary education took place at Victoria College, a British-run primary school, in Alexandria, Egypt. After that Hussein attended school in Great Britain at the Harrow School and briefly attended the British military academy in Sandhurst.3 Hussein’s upbringing in British schools combined with Jordan’s already deep connection to Great Britain gave Hussein a special affinity for the West along with the ability to understand Western attitudes and sensibilities. Hussein’s affection for the West was seen throughout his life, but especially in his relationship with his fourth wife, Queen Noor, and his love for Harley Davidson motorcycles. Hussein’s grandfather also had a unique relationship with Jordan’s neighbor Israel that continued throughout Hussein’s reign. Starting with Israel’s declaration of independence and continuing after it, King Abdullah frequently worked with the Israelis to serve the interest of Jordan. He repeatedly attempted to persuade the Jews in the British Mandate of Palestine to join with Jordan under his leadership where he would allow them to live safe and free under his protection.4 Hussein continued that relationship and, despite some setbacks, he had a relationship with Israel unlike any other nation in the Arab world. Through that relationship, Hussein frequently interacted with Israeli leaders to try and solve the issues of the Middle East. 3 After World War II, Great Britain pulled back from its involvement in the Middle East. Until that point, British personnel worked throughout Jordan in all levels of the government including the government bureaucracy and the military. The Jordanian military called the Arab Legion, was led by British officer John Bagot Glubb beginning in 1939. Glubb was usually referred to in the region as Glubb Pasha, an honorary title from the Ottoman period that showed the respect many in Jordan had for Glubb. The other major British figure was Alec Kirkbride, who served as a top advisor to King Abdullah and represented British interests in Jordan.5 British officers had full control over the Jordanian military and while they technically reported to King Hussein, the still took orders from Great Britain. In addition, Kirkbride set up a colonial style government that consisted of Jordanian workers with British officials at the management levels of the bureaucracy. The British position in Jordan ended after the Suez Crisis in 1956. On October 29, 1956, Israeli invaded Egypt and attempted to remove President Gamal Abdel Nasser because of his opposition to the British control of the Suez Canal. Before the invasion, Nasser nationalized the British built and owned Suez Canal, and the invasion was largely a response to that. Great Britain and France soon joined the invasion under the auspice of returning security and stability to the canal zone.6 The American rejection of this invasion led Hussein to want to replace Great Britain with the US as his chief benefactor. On November 9, 1956, Hussein’s chief of staff contacted the American representative in Jordan and told him that Jordan needed aid to replace and £13 million it received annually from Great Britain.