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Subject: NEGOTIATIONS IN OUR PREVIOUS ARAB WAR > > > > > > Our Arab War, The One 200 Years Ago > > > > > > Dennis Byrne--He is a Chicago-area writer and > > public affairs consultant > > January 5, 2004 > > > > For those who think it is always wiser to put > > together an international > > panel of negotiators to try to talk foreign enemies > > into being nice, I > > present to you our Arab war. The one 200 years ago. > > The one in which > > diplomacy failed miserably. The one in which Europe > > refused to help. The one > > we conducted alone. And won. The Barbary Wars > > --Talk about forgetting the > > lessons of history. One of the first ones we > > learned 200 years ago was that > > "diplomacy" and "multilateralism" sometimes must > > end and direct action must > > begin. Back then, pirates from the North African > > states of Morocco, Algiers, > > Tunis and Tripoli routinely plundered and seized > > our ships, demanded ransoms > > for captive crews or sold our sailors into slavery. > > European shipping > > routinely suffered the same fate. > > > > Europe's answer was "let's negotiate," which meant > > sitting down with some > > pasha and asking him how much money he wanted to > > leave them alone. Then > > forking over millions. Thomas Jefferson thought > > that approach ridiculous, > > inviting never-ending blackmail. As the American > > minister to France, he > > strongly urged a multinational alliance to "reduce > > the piratical states to > > peace." Pick them off one at a time "through the > > medium of war," so the > > others get the message, and they'll give up their > > piracy too. > > > > Some European powers were "favorably disposed," as > > Jefferson said, to a > > joint operation. But guess who had reservations? > > France. (No kidding, you > > can't make up this stuff). France, because of its > > own interests, was > > suspected of secretly supporting the Barbary > > powers. So, the plan collapsed > > in favor of a policy of continued negotiations > > (read: appeasement) - meaning > > supplicating the blackmailers to tell us how much > > money they wanted for the > > ransom of ships and sailors and for annual > > tributes. > > > > When Jefferson became president in 1801, he finally > > could do something about > > it himself. He simply refused Tripoli's demand for > > a tribute. That provoked > > Tripoli to declare war on us, as if this young, > > upstart pup of a nation had > > any right to stand up for its principles. > > Jefferson's response was a > > no-nonsense piece of clarity. > > > > He sent a squadron of ships to blockade and bombard > > Tripoli. The results of > > these efforts were somewhat mixed. But on Feb. 16 > > of this year, we will > > celebrate the bicentennial of Lt. Stephen Decatur > > leading 74 volunteers into > > Tripoli harbor to burn the previously captured > > American frigate, The > > Philadelphia, so it could not be used for piracy. > > > > It was considered one of the most heroic actions in > > U.S. naval history. The > > next year, Marines bravely stormed a harbor > > fortress, an act now > > commemorated in the "Marine Corps Hymn" with the > > words "... to the shores of > > Tripoli." Eventually, Morocco, seeing what was in > > store for it, dropped out > > of the fight And the threat of "regime change" in > > Tripoli led to a treaty of > > somewhat dubious benefits for the United States. > > > > Demonstrating the need for perseverance and > > patience, a series of victories > > in 1815 by Commodores William Bainbridge and > > Decatur finally led to a Treaty > > ending both piracy against us and tribute payments > > by us. > > > > We even extracted monetary compensation for > > property they seized from us. > > > > Meanwhile, Europeans, continuing their > > multilateral, diplomatic approach > > kept paying and paying and paying. > > > > Lessons? No, it doesn't prove that diplomacy and > > international cooperation > > never work. But it demonstrates a principle: The > > United States, when > > confronted with weak resolve from the international > > community against > > enemies, sometimes needs to stand alone for what is > > right. And it sometimes > > works. > > > > By coincidence, Tripoli today is the capital of > > Libya, whose leader Moammar > > Gadhafi, noticing the pounding that the United > > States gave to tyrants in > > Afghanistan and Iraq, abandoned his own weapons of > > mass destruction program. > > > > Perhaps Gadhafi, unlike some of our own blindly > > anti-war academics, > > commentators and politicians, has read history, > > especially as it happened in > > Libya. > > > > One more footnote: France finally settled the hash > > of the Barbary Coast > > states in 1830 when it simply went in and took over > > the place. The official > > provocation, according to France, was some sort of > > an insult to the French > > consul in Algiers. France, demonstrating its > > superior humanitarian > > instincts, remained there as a colonial power for a > > century. Unlike the > > United States, which, wanting only to protect its > > citizens and its ships, > > got out when it won. >
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