by Sukrit Sabhlok

Created on: January 01, 2009   Last Updated: April 09, 2010

Every American president in recent memory has placed some emphasis on bringing about "change". George W. Bush, during the 2000 campaign, promised that he would deliver a "humble" foreign policy that involved no "nation-building". This was at a time when many Republicans had criticised Bill Clinton's interventions in Kosovo and Somalia. But after 9-11, Bush broke his promise and began nation-building in Afghanistan and Iraq.

During America's recent presidential campaign, President-elect Barack Obama made similar promises in an attempt to distinguish himself from his rival, John McCain.

Obama was widely perceived as the peace candidate, while McCain was seen as a warmonger. But those who think Obama will pursue a foreign policy significantly different from the Bush Administration are likely to be disappointed.

Like Bush, Obama will probably increase intervention overseas. We can deduce this from publicly available statements. Regarding Pakistan, Obama is on record as saying that he would be willing to invade that country to combat terrorism.

A Reuters article, dated August 1, 2007, quotes his exact words: "If we have actionable intelligence about high-value terrorist targets and President Musharraf won't act, we will." His policy has already been adopted by the Bush administration, which in recent months has been violating Pakistan's sovereignty (despite protests) to bomb suspected terrorists.

As for Afghanistan, it is common knowledge that Obama wants to send more troops to the quagmire over there.

And what of withdrawal from Iraq, a policy that formed the centrepiece of his anti-war rhetoric? This promise was a fraud from the beginning. Those who peruse the fine print will learn that Obama never promised to withdraw all troops from Iraq.

He merely promised to take out combat brigades over a period of 16 months. This means that non-combat military personnel will still remain, as will most of the permanent bases. Moreover, he has made it clear that a "residual force" (i.e. an army numbering in the tens of thousands) will be left behind to conduct "targeted" operations against suspected terrorists.

Obama placed withdrawal on even shakier ground when he said that he would be willing to re-invade Iraq if al-Qaida gained a significant foothold there.

Nor has Obama agreed to scale back the American empire. The US, which has hundreds of bases all over the world, is frequently the cause of tension in host countries, especially when American soldiers commit crimes against

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