The Militarization of the Persian Gulf

Download or read book The Militarization of the Persian Gulf written by Hossein Askari and published by Edward Elgar Publishing. This book was released on 2010-01-01 with total page 181 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Persian Gulf is arguably the most militarized region in the world. The authors of this insightful book examine military expenditures, arms imports and military deployment to analyze how and why this came to be. Muslim teachings have much to say about peace, war and economics, and this book explores the ways in which Islamic thought affects military and economic developments. The authors find that heavy militarization is the result of a combination of factors, including oil wealth disparities among the countries in the region, high oil revenues, corruption and foreign interference. The authors detail and discuss these factors, and follow this analysis with an assessment of the effects of high military expenditures wars, conflicts, regional instability and their heavy economic toll in retarding development and growth. The book concludes by suggesting ways that military expenditures may be reduced to benefit regional peace, stability and economic prosperity. Scholars and students in economics, political science and international affairs as well as anyone interested in the Middle East will find this book timely and illuminating.