Changed America from 9/11 and the War with Iraq
Modern American history has begun from the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in 2011. Since the day, the consciousness of an ordinary American has completely changed. 9/11 was a trigger for the war in Iraq, which also formed a new vision of reality, particularly in the context of the American national security and economy, cultural policy and identity. How did Americans begin to realize themselves as a nation after the attacks? What has been changed in people’s minds after the war in Iraq? What was a real reason to start the war in Iraq? The current essay describes the evolution of American history from the terrorist attacks to the end of the war in Iraq and evaluates a new historical phase has been started.
The terrorist attacks could be the beginning of recent American history because, after the fatal hijacking of the airplanes, the familiar picture of the world has been transformed. Sherry mentioned that the hijacked airliners banging into Manhattan’s World Trade Center, Washington’s Pentagon and a field in Shanksville seemed to rip the fabric of American history. All channels of the world endlessly were repeating the same frame again and again: the planes flew in skyscrapers. The picture began a new visual symbol, after which America dramatically has changed its external and internal policies.
It was a turning moment for the US government, the American nation, and the global community because the 9/11 attacks were an unprecedented terrifying event. From the day of attacks, American society has totally rethought the basic life principles, because they understood that there is no protection in the modern world. The government of the United States has established an independent committee for the investigation of the extremist attacks. Moreover, many people have started immortalizing the victims by creating sites, groups, and memorial places. Gessner stated that in light of the patriotic public discourse and the hegemonic domination over the experience of 9/11, the triumvirate of identity, nationalism, and authority has also significantly informed the commemoration of 9/11. At the same time, the United States has approved a policy of revenge that claimed the Bush policy as one of the most distrustful in history. President George W. Bush declared the wage against the terrorist organization al-Qaeda, which organized the 9/11 attacks, and its apparent leader, Osama bin Laden.
After the attacks, the international community treated to the U.S. with compassion; thus, the world was ready to provide any support to the traumatized nation. According to Fallows, at the beginning of 2002, the U.S. functioned in a climate of worldwide sympathy and solidarity. Then in 2004, the Commission published the final report on the investigation into the tragedy. One of the main findings of the 600-page document was the recognition that the perpetrators used the “deep administrative failures” in the work of the U.S. government to their advantage. Hence, the implementation of certain provisions of the new US foreign policy doctrine began immediately after the terrorist attacks of 9/11. Moreover, it became known that the attackers have organized militants al-Qaeda, whose leader Osama bin Laden was protected by the Taliban in Afghanistan. In November of the same year, the United States began the military anti-terrorist operation against the Taliban regime. As a result, it was overthrown, and Afghanistan formed a new secular government of Hamid Karzai’s pro-Western orientation. According to the United Nations Security Council, there were placed in the international auxiliary security forces.
Since the beginning of the 21st century, new trends emerged in shaping foreign policy doctrines of the United States and Russia, the implementation of which significantly affected the overall development of international relations. In early 2002, fewer than 10,000 American soldiers deployed abroad for the war on terror, and dozens of Americans died in the battles. The United States did not arrest Osama bin Laden, but they confronted the Taliban leadership that sheltered him, which seemed to have put al-Qaeda on the run. The U.S. strategy has shifted focus to eradicate global terrorist organizations that threaten the U.S. and its allie