By Mario Dorizas
In 1823, President James Monroe announced what would become one of the most enduring tenets of American foreign policy: the Monroe Doctrine. Originally intended as a warning to European powers to keep out of the Western Hemisphere, the doctrine has since evolved far beyond its original scope. Today, the United States applies these principles on a global scale, using economic leverage, military might, and covert operations to achieve global dominance. This modern application of the Monroe Doctrine has seen the U.S. ruthlessly and covertly interfere in the internal affairs of other countries, often destabilizing them to serve its strategic interests. While the doctrine was initially framed as a defensive measure, it now serves as a blueprint for asserting U.S. supremacy, regardless of the cost to other nations.
From Regional Policy to Global Strategy
The original Monroe Doctrine was rooted in the desire to protect the Americas from European colonization. However, its practical application in the 19th and 20th centuries, especially with the Roosevelt Corollary, set the stage for U.S. interventionism in Latin America. The U.S. began to see itself not merely as a protector but as a regional hegemon. This led to numerous interventions in Latin American countries, from the annexation of Hawaii to the interventions in Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic, under the pretext of maintaining order and stability.
Over time, the U.S. extended this interventionist approach globally, redefining the doctrine to include safeguarding its interests around the world. It now operates under an implicit global doctrine that justifies interference in the domestic affairs of other nations, using both overt and covert means to ensure a world order aligned with American supremacy.
Economic Power: The Silent Weapon of Hegemony
A key element in the United States’ pursuit of global dominance is its economic power. By leveraging its position as the world’s largest economy and the central role of the U.S. dollar in global finance, the U.S. exerts immense pressure on other nations to conform to its strategic interests.
Economic Sanctions: Crippling Nations into Submission
Economic sanctions have become one of the most powerful tools of U.S. foreign policy. The U.S. frequently uses sanctions to penalize countries that resist its influence or challenge its hegemony. These sanctions target countries like Iran, Venezuela, Cuba, North Korea, and Russia, crippling their economies and isolating them from global markets. While these sanctions are often justified under the guise of promoting human rights, combating terrorism, or halting nuclear proliferation, they serve a deeper purpose: forcing non-compliant states into submission and shaping their political and economic systems to favor U.S. interests.
These economic sanctions are devastating for the targeted nations, leading to shortages of essential goods, rampant inflation, and widespread suffering among ordinary citizens. By attacking the economic lifelines of these countries, the U.S. creates internal instability, often leading to protests, unrest, and in some cases, regime change. The U.S. Treasury’s control over the global financial system means that it can unilaterally impose these sanctions, cutting off access to the U.S. dollar and international banking systems for targeted nations. This financial isolation forces countries to change policies or face economic collapse, demonstrating how the U.S. uses its economic power ruthlessly to impose its will on others.
International Institutions as Instruments of Control
The U.S. exerts significant influence over global economic institutions like the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank. These institutions, while ostensibly aimed at promoting global development and stability, often serve as tools of U.S. policy. When countries seek financial assistance from the IMF or World Bank, they are often required to implement structural adjustment programs that include austerity measures, privatization, deregulation, and opening markets to foreign investors—conditions that align closely with U.S. economic interests.
For instance, during the 1990s, several countries in Latin America, Asia, and Africa were forced to undertake market-oriented reforms under the pressure of IMF loans. These reforms often led to severe economic disruption, including widespread unemployment, reduced public services, and social unrest. The resulting economic environments frequently benefitted American corporations and investors, who were able to acquire key assets in these countries at fire-sale prices. By leveraging international institutions, the U.S. can dictate the economic policies of other nations, ensuring they remain within its sphere of influence.
Military Power: The Enforcer of Hegemony
While economic power is the silent weapon of U.S. dominance, military might is the enforcer. The United States boasts the world’s largest and most advanced military, with a network of hundreds of bases in over 70 countries. This global military presence allows the U.S. to project power and protect its interests on every continent.
Direct Interventions: The Pursuit of Control
The U.S. has not hesitated to use military force to achieve its strategic objectives, often under the pretext of promoting democracy, fighting terrorism, or preventing the spread of weapons of mass destruction. Notable examples include the invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan, the intervention in Libya, and the ongoing military involvement in Syria. In each of these cases, the U.S. sought to overthrow regimes or factions that posed a perceived threat to American interests, subsequently installing or supporting governments that were more compliant with its policies.
The military interventions often lead to prolonged instability and chaos, leaving nations in a worse state than before. For example, the 2003 invasion of Iraq not only led to the toppling of Saddam Hussein but also unleashed a cycle of violence, insurgency, and sectarian conflict that continues to this day. In Libya, the NATO-led intervention resulted in the overthrow of Muammar Gaddafi, plunging the country into a state of lawlessness and civil war. The U.S. justifies these actions as necessary for global security, but the reality is a ruthless pursuit of control over regions rich in resources and strategically significant locations.
Covert Operations: The Hidden Hand of Destabilization
When direct military intervention is not feasible or politically viable, the United States turns to covert operations and proxy wars to achieve its goals. The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) has a long history of meddling in the internal affairs of other nations to install pro-U.S. regimes. From the overthrow of Iran’s democratically elected Prime Minister Mohammad Mossadegh in 1953 to the 1973 Chilean coup that ousted President Salvador Allende, covert operations have been a hallmark of U.S. foreign policy.
In the modern era, the U.S. continues to engage in covert actions, supporting insurgencies, funding opposition groups, and conducting cyber operations to destabilize governments that do not align with its interests. The U.S.’s support for rebel groups in Syria is a clear example of this strategy. By funneling money, weapons, and intelligence to factions fighting the Assad regime, the U.S. aimed to shape the outcome of the Syrian conflict in a way that would weaken Iranian and Russian influence in the region.
The repercussions of these covert operations are devastating for the targeted countries. They often lead to prolonged conflicts, humanitarian crises, and massive displacement of people. The U.S., while claiming to promote stability and democracy, leaves behind a trail of broken nations, perpetually embroiled in chaos that prevents them from challenging American hegemony.
Destabilization of Other Nations: A Calculated Strategy
One of the most insidious aspects of the U.S.’s global strategy is its willingness to destabilize other countries to achieve its objectives. Whether through economic sanctions, military interventions, or covert operations, the United States has repeatedly shown a readiness to plunge nations into chaos if it serves its strategic interests.
Latin America: The Backyard of U.S. Influence
In Latin America, the U.S. has historically employed a mix of economic pressure, military intervention, and support for authoritarian regimes to maintain its influence. During the Cold War, the U.S. actively supported military coups and dictatorships in countries like Guatemala, Chile, Brazil, and Argentina to prevent the spread of communism and protect American corporate interests.
In more recent times, Venezuela has become the focal point of U.S. efforts to destabilize regimes that resist American dominance. Economic sanctions aimed at undermining the Venezuelan economy, coupled with support for opposition movements, have exacerbated the country’s economic and political crisis. While the U.S. claims to be promoting democracy in Venezuela, its actions reveal a strategy focused on regime change to install a government more amenable to American interests.
The Middle East: Engineering a Balance of Power
In the Middle East, the U.S. has employed a strategy of controlled destabilization to maintain its dominance. By supporting certain factions, backing coups, and engaging in direct military interventions, the U.S. has reshaped the political landscape of the region. The invasion of Iraq, the intervention in Libya, and the ongoing conflict in Syria have created power vacuums, allowing the U.S. to manipulate the balance of power and limit the influence of regional rivals like Iran and Russia.
This calculated destabilization has resulted in humanitarian catastrophes, with millions of people displaced, economies shattered, and entire nations plunged into long-term instability. For the U.S., the chaos serves as a means to an end: securing control over strategically important regions and resources, regardless of the human cost.
The Global Price of Hegemony
The modern, ruthless application of the Monroe Doctrine by the United States comes at a steep price for the rest of the world. Economic sanctions lead to poverty, deprivation, and unrest. Military interventions create power vacuums, spawning civil wars and extremist groups. Covert operations and regime changes disrupt political systems, leaving nations unstable and dependent on foreign aid. The U.S. asserts that these actions are necessary for global security and the promotion of democracy, but in reality, they are manifestations of a relentless pursuit of global supremacy.
By acting as the self-appointed enforcer of a global order that prioritizes its interests, the United States perpetuates a cycle of intervention, destabilization, and domination that undermines the sovereignty and self-determination of other nations. This global extension of the Monroe Doctrine is not about protecting freedom or democracy; it is about securing and maintaining U.S. hegemony at any cost.
In a world where power dynamics are constantly shifting, the United States’ application of these principles continues to shape global politics. As countries grapple with the consequences of U.S. interventionism, the question remains: how long can this cycle of domination and destabilization persist, and what will be the ultimate cost to the world?