1. THE REGEAN DOCTRINE 1
Marquez T. Nance
Strayer University
POL 300
Miriam Altman
May 11, 2015

2. THE REGEAN DOCTRINE 2
Abstract
In the next year, Americans will elect a new person to lead the country for the next four or
eight years. The individual that will be elected has many important tasks to accomplish while in
this prestigious office. In performing these tasks, this person will be judged based more on how
the tasks are being performed versus the fact that the issues are present. The reason in which the
person is judged based on performance is that this shapes the nature in which all tasks are
measured. To be more specific, the set of principals that the individual chooses to apply becomes
known as their presidential doctrine. Each president in the history of the United States has had
such set of goals. In the following the examination of such ideas, one will examine those of
Ronald Reagan. The doctrine in which he used was that of supporting anticommunist guerrillas
who were attempting to overthrow pro-Soviet regimes.

3. THE REGEAN DOCTRINE 3
In the after effect of WWII became yet another war. The war is that of the Cold War. The
Cold War lasted for the majority of the twentieth century. During the decade of the 1980s, the
war took a drastic turn in which government secrets became uncovered. The secrets that were
revealed were that of Iran-Contra and the determinate effects that trickled down to those that
were indirectly affected.
Objectives of A Presidential Doctrine
The goals in which to complete the mission of Communism defeat was murky to say the
least. The reason being that most cases the enemy is visual as opposed to the fight being one of
defending against an idea. The fight was on two fronts the first being that of Iran and the second
being that of Nicaragua. The fight being on two continents, would shape foreign policy during
the 80s as well as now. The reason being the role in which America participates in international
issues. The issue at hand would tested during the presidential administration of Ronald Reagan.
During the 80s, The USSR was on the verge of collapse. As with most empires in this decline,
there was a last attempt at gaining some potential traction. The focus centered on two potential
areas as a show of dominance. Underlying for the USSR in Nicaragua was to show a presence in
the northern hemisphere while the Iraqi-Iranian war was that of a divide- and conqueror
environment. This unilateral decision by the USSR caused fear among the Reagan administration
in two critical areas. The first being the potential move of the USSR to the American shorelines
and the second critical area potential of the USSR destroying America's interests due to
fundamentalism.
Solution to the Problem
With the potential threat eminent, thus created the policy of the Reagan administration.

4. THE REGEAN DOCTRINE 4
The policy became to support those that would help in the defeat of the USSR. The support came
in the form of weapons and financial support. A particular situation would be the Iran-Contra
Affair. In all foreign engagements the issue becomes, at what level does the American
Government participates. The issue is present with the revolution in the middle east.(NPR
Timeline 2011) The policy of the Reagan administration was formed to in core essence to help
support the overthrow of the Nicaraguan government that was in place. ( American Experience
The Iran-Contra Affair) The policy allowed the administration to provide support without the
American people knowing. The reason for what is considered as deception comes from the
Vietnam War. In this particular the issue communism was also present; however the American
people felt deceived when the war became a long and ongoing process due to a civil war. Having
these issues as a backdrop, produce this policy decision. The issues that are addressed in this
doctrine is the defeat of communism, global leadership, and discontinue disturbances in the
regions in question.
The Defeat of Communism
Fundamentalism is known as term, that in recent years taken a new meaning. An example
that best illustrates this is that of ISIS. The reason being that in relation to communism, both
have a core element in religion with the regards of being ultimate ruler in the world. The ultimate
goal of the policy was to use the individuals that disagreed with the majority rule. Using the
minority population in the country under this doctrine, was to create regime change under the
support from a larger country. The policy allowed for the United States to have a military
presence in the battle without the use of its citizens.
Global leadership in an examination of all regions in which communism existed, there was a

5. THE REGEAN DOCTRINE 5
one potential prize in each. In both Iran and Nicaragua, the prize was the potential ability to
control American money in respects to that of drugs and use of oil. The goal of the doctrine was
to be a part of the unethical and immoral segment of Iran and Nicaragua in an attempt to gain
any control that the USSR had.
Discontinued Disturbances in the Region The ability to fight the USSR on two fronts is very
similar to that of the actions taken after September 11, 2001. The reason being that much like the
Reagan Doctrine the same goals applied in a different perspective. The difference in perspective
is that Reagan wanted to dispel communism in retrospective to the North America Continent. In
understanding this view, the regions in which the fight occurred were unstable throughout the
history of each country. In applying the primary goal of communism, USSR could use these
states as a state of terror. The Reagan Doctrine wanted eliminate this possibility for very
distinctive reasons. The first being the acceptance of frequent terror launching sites and the
second being the possibility of funding of terror groups inadvertently from nations such as the
United States.
The Effect of Reagan's Doctrine
As stated at the top of the paper, A presidential administration will always be judged
solely on the actions that are taken during a crisis. In the case of Reagan, his policy can be
analyzed as a 'mix bag' so to say. The reason being that while communism ended towards the end
of his presidency, the environment in which communism still is in existence.
State of Dysfunction
At present, the middle east is in a state of turmoil. The confusion exists through that of
issues of ISIS, and Arab Spring. The vision of the Reagan Policy in this particular region was to

6. THE REGEAN DOCTRINE 6
help this part of the world through the use of supplying the hub of the region with military
support. In exchange for the military support, the nation could become a partner in terms of
building its government and introducing capitalism as a form of economic distribution among its
citizens. The idea was a great vision to incorporate; however the work did not come into full
intuition. It would be only two years later that we would be back in the region, this time with
military force. In a deeper examination of the policy, the primary goal was to defeat communism
at any cost necessary.
The infatuation of the communist physiology entering the United States The goal of the
USSR was to change the economics of a country, through disruption of a country economic
system. During the 1980s, this disturbance can be argued as the a leading achievement for the
USSR. The reason is that the epidemic started during the same time as the Reagan administration
placed emphasis on the communism fight in regards to Iran and Nicaragua. While this battle was
essential in regards to prevention a worldwide disaster, an unstable segment of the American
population is being ignored. The portion being ignored is that of the African-American
community. To be more detailed, the lack of infrastructure in relation to the prevention of
infiltration of harmful ideas. In funding the Nicaraguan uprising, the revenue came from two
resources other than the federal government. The two sources is that of the illegal sale of arms to
Iran and the drug trade of Nicaragua. In applying this information to the Reagan policy, this was
an unintentional cause in an effort to defeat communism. The reason being that the African-
American community crack cocaine devastated these communities, which diverted limited funds
in these areas.( THE CIA-CONTRA-CRACK COCAINE CONTROVERSY:A REVIEW OF
THE JUSTICE DEPARTMENT'S INVESTIGATIONS AND PROSECUTIONS)

7. THE REGEAN DOCTRINE 7
Conclusion
A doctrine of any leadership is a set guidelines that helps in the format of being able to
govern. In most cases, the philosophy becomes a debate based upon factors of if the doctrine is
coherent to the situation that's present. In the Reagan administration, such was the case in the
defeat of Communism. The most adherent advantage being the ability to justify American
interaction in two countries based on a solid mission. The mission being to liberate those that
wished to be free. The clear disadvantage is that the means in which the defeat happened were
not justifiable in future legal proceedings. (Nicaragua v. United States of America)

8. THE REGEAN DOCTRINE 8
References
American Experience The Iran-Contra Affair
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/general-article/reagan-iran/
Doctrines -The reagan doctrine
http://www.americanforeignrelations.com/A-D/Doctrines-The-reagan-doctrine.html
Law of War Nicaragua v. United States of America International Court of Justice June 27, 1986
http://lawofwar.org/nicaraugua_v_us.htm
NPR Timeline: The major events of Arab Spring January 2, 2012
http://www.npr.org/2012/01/02/144489844/timeline-the-major-events-of-the-arab-spring
Peralta, Eyder October 26, 2014 Nicaragua Follows Its Own Path In Dealing With Drug
Traffickers http://www.npr.org/blogs/parallels/2014/10/26/357791551/nicaragua-follows-
its-own-path-in-dealing-with-drug-traffickers
The San Jose Mercury News Articles THE CIA-CONTRA-CRACK COCAINE
CONTROVERSY: A REVIEW OF THE JUSTICE DEPARTMENT'S
INVESTIGATIONS AND PROSECUTIONS https://oig.justice.gov/special/9712/ch01p1.htm