US regional support for democracy served only to displace old colonial powers

Evidence

Indeed, despite rhetoric about spreading democracy, the government’s track record shows a clear preference for bases in undemocratic and often despotic states such as Qatar and Bahrain. — David Vine, Base Nation_ How U.S. Military Bases…, 33 (#complicates, via linked claim)

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: US policy repeatedly wrecked democratic movements and installed dictators in MENA; US support for decolonization served its own imperial aims — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of Empire, 207; US anti-colonialism aimed to supplant old empires for its own economic access — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of…, 246 (+3 more)

Broader Connections

• U.S. basing favors despotic states over democratic ones #complicates (0.72) — David Vine, Base Nation_ How U.S. Military Bases…, 33