Sankaraland
01-02-2005, 12:35
Iran: This country is a threat to Israel, the U.S.'s main ally in the Middle East. It is also the 2nd-strongest Middle Eastern power. It may be developing nuclear weapons. It has the 3rd-largest oil reserves in the world, and could serve as the terminus for an oil/gas pipeline from the Caspian Sea. The U.S. has troops stationed on 2 of Iran's borders and is talking tough about Iran's nuclear energy program. The U.S. has acknowledged recent covert operations in Iran, but also recently relaxed economic sanctions. Iran has the world's 8th-largest army and a population ready to defend the gains of the 1979 revolution, and would put up a hell of a fight. Iran has reasonably good relations with the UK, the U.S.'s main European ally.
Syria: This is an easier target than Iran. It is also in the Middle East, and is very active in funding resistance to Israel and to the U.S.'s occupation of Iraq. The U.S. has troops stationed on the border with Iraq, and is allied with the neighboring countries of Israel, Turkey, and Jordan. It maintains a sanctions regime against Syria. Syria has the 14th-largest army in the world, including a very large tank force, but likely would put up little resistance as the dictatorship has sapped the will of the people to fight. Syria is also a center for French influence in the region, which threatens American business interests. However, Syria has very little oil.
Sudan: This country has been accused of genocide by the U.S. and is a world pariah for its ethnic/religious persecution, aid to al-Qaeda, and support of slavery. The U.S. maintains a sanctions regime against this country and bombed a pharmaceuticals factory here in 1998. Many liberal forces have called for an invasion. Sudan borders Egypt, a strong U.S. ally, and is strategically located on the Red Sea. In addition to Egypt, it borders Eritrea and Ethiopia, also two strong military powers. Invading Sudan would be a cakewalk, but these strong neighbors would be sure to protest the establishment of U.S. forces here, as would Sudan's powerful trading partners, China and Japan.
Somalia: Neighboring Djibouti is the regional base for France AND the U.S. This country borders Ethiopia and is strategically located on the Red Sea. The U.S. maintains sanctions against this country, which has aided al-Qaeda. Somalia also has substantial amounts of uranium. Although the U.S. ended its 1992-1994 war on Somalia because of what were seen as high casualties at the time, Americans are more willing to accept high casualties now in the name of "fighting terror."
Venezuela: In the past year and a half, the U.S. has backed a military coup, a lockout by employers, and a recall petition, all in efforts to overthrow this government, which has established close trade and diplomatic ties with Cuba (see below) and has encroached on the prerogatives of the U.S.-dominated farming and fishing industries. The U.S. is also believed to be behind the attempted assassinations of Venezuelan officials by Colombian mercenaries, and a recent kidnapping in Caracas by Colombian police. Venezuela is accused of aiding the FARC rebels in Colombia. Venezuela has the largest oil reserves in the Americans and the 5th-largest in the world. The country is now seizing idle farms and distributing them to peasants, raising fears of a communistic evolution in the future. Although it has successfully pushed back 3 direct attempts to overthrow its government recently, Venezuela's capacity for resistance to a direct invasion is unknown.
Cuba: Cuba is the only communist nation in the world. As such, it has been the unceasing target of U.S. hostility for decades. The U.S. has a tight blockade on Cuba, devotes more resources to propaganda and psychological operations against Cuba than any other country, maintains a "dual immigration" policy aimed at undermining Cuba's stability, and has 5 Cuban citizens in its jails for seeking to infiltrate U.S.-based anti-Cuban terrorist organizations. The U.S. criticized Cuba last year for arresting and jailing 75 U.S. spies, and executing 3 boat hijackers. The Cuban government distributes rifles with ammunition, grenades, and land mines to the public, and all citizens receive military training. It recently organized defense exercises involving 4 million out of a population of 11 million. In 1962, the Pentagon estimated that the U.S. would sustain 18,000 casualties in the first 10 days of an invasion of Cuba.
N. Korea: This country is also targeted by the U.S., and its regional ally, Japan, for its revolution against capitalism. The U.S. maintains a sanctions regime against this country and has troops stationed in S. Korea and Japan. It has recently pulled back its troops in S. Korea from the border, indicating its preference for an air war over a ground war. Support for reunification of Korea is strong on both sides of the border, leading to potential reopening of hostilities which would oblige the U.S. to intervene. The U.S. is in multi-party negotiations with N. Korea, demanding that this country give up its nuclear power and nuclear weapons programs. In 1999, the seizure of fuel rods bound for Yemen from a N. Korean merchant ship by a Spanish pirate ship fueled fears that N. Korea is contributing to nuclear proliferation. N. Korea is a nuclear power with the 4th-largest army in the world. It has a mutual defense pact with China, which has the largest army in the world (although nowhere near the technical capability of the U.S.'s military, which is second in terms of number of troops). S. Korea has the 6th-largest army in the world, and Japan is 22nd. If reserves are included, N. Korea has more troops than any other country, and S. Korea is 2nd. With Chinese aid, N. Korea fought the U.S. to a stalemate in 1950-1953.
Nigeria: Spiraling ethnic violence could become the pretext for an opportunistic invasion of this, the most populous country in Africa. The U.S. is far behind France and the UK in economic penetration of Africa, and dominating this large market would go a long way toward reversing that. Nigeria has the largest oil and gas reserves in Africa. It is the strongest military power in the region, but would collapse before the military might of the U.S. Nigeria has strong trade ties with the U.S. and has generally been supportive of U.S. interests in W. Africa. However, similar circumstances didn't stop the U.S. from invading Panama or Haiti. Nigeria is a Commonwealth member and the UK would strongly oppose a U.S. invasion, UNLESS it was British-led and sanctioned by the UN.
Ivory Coast: Maybe the U.S. will try to put France and the UN in their place with a frontal attack on this nation, rich in cocoa, oil, and diamonds, that is hosting a French-led, UN-backed occupation force. The U.S. has a small number of troops in neighboring Liberia, which is a center for U.S. influence on the Gulf of Guinea. A sufficient invasion force would have no trouble taking over here, but it would be sure to meet with strong international condemnation.
Other: Who do YOU think it will be?
Syria: This is an easier target than Iran. It is also in the Middle East, and is very active in funding resistance to Israel and to the U.S.'s occupation of Iraq. The U.S. has troops stationed on the border with Iraq, and is allied with the neighboring countries of Israel, Turkey, and Jordan. It maintains a sanctions regime against Syria. Syria has the 14th-largest army in the world, including a very large tank force, but likely would put up little resistance as the dictatorship has sapped the will of the people to fight. Syria is also a center for French influence in the region, which threatens American business interests. However, Syria has very little oil.
Sudan: This country has been accused of genocide by the U.S. and is a world pariah for its ethnic/religious persecution, aid to al-Qaeda, and support of slavery. The U.S. maintains a sanctions regime against this country and bombed a pharmaceuticals factory here in 1998. Many liberal forces have called for an invasion. Sudan borders Egypt, a strong U.S. ally, and is strategically located on the Red Sea. In addition to Egypt, it borders Eritrea and Ethiopia, also two strong military powers. Invading Sudan would be a cakewalk, but these strong neighbors would be sure to protest the establishment of U.S. forces here, as would Sudan's powerful trading partners, China and Japan.
Somalia: Neighboring Djibouti is the regional base for France AND the U.S. This country borders Ethiopia and is strategically located on the Red Sea. The U.S. maintains sanctions against this country, which has aided al-Qaeda. Somalia also has substantial amounts of uranium. Although the U.S. ended its 1992-1994 war on Somalia because of what were seen as high casualties at the time, Americans are more willing to accept high casualties now in the name of "fighting terror."
Venezuela: In the past year and a half, the U.S. has backed a military coup, a lockout by employers, and a recall petition, all in efforts to overthrow this government, which has established close trade and diplomatic ties with Cuba (see below) and has encroached on the prerogatives of the U.S.-dominated farming and fishing industries. The U.S. is also believed to be behind the attempted assassinations of Venezuelan officials by Colombian mercenaries, and a recent kidnapping in Caracas by Colombian police. Venezuela is accused of aiding the FARC rebels in Colombia. Venezuela has the largest oil reserves in the Americans and the 5th-largest in the world. The country is now seizing idle farms and distributing them to peasants, raising fears of a communistic evolution in the future. Although it has successfully pushed back 3 direct attempts to overthrow its government recently, Venezuela's capacity for resistance to a direct invasion is unknown.
Cuba: Cuba is the only communist nation in the world. As such, it has been the unceasing target of U.S. hostility for decades. The U.S. has a tight blockade on Cuba, devotes more resources to propaganda and psychological operations against Cuba than any other country, maintains a "dual immigration" policy aimed at undermining Cuba's stability, and has 5 Cuban citizens in its jails for seeking to infiltrate U.S.-based anti-Cuban terrorist organizations. The U.S. criticized Cuba last year for arresting and jailing 75 U.S. spies, and executing 3 boat hijackers. The Cuban government distributes rifles with ammunition, grenades, and land mines to the public, and all citizens receive military training. It recently organized defense exercises involving 4 million out of a population of 11 million. In 1962, the Pentagon estimated that the U.S. would sustain 18,000 casualties in the first 10 days of an invasion of Cuba.
N. Korea: This country is also targeted by the U.S., and its regional ally, Japan, for its revolution against capitalism. The U.S. maintains a sanctions regime against this country and has troops stationed in S. Korea and Japan. It has recently pulled back its troops in S. Korea from the border, indicating its preference for an air war over a ground war. Support for reunification of Korea is strong on both sides of the border, leading to potential reopening of hostilities which would oblige the U.S. to intervene. The U.S. is in multi-party negotiations with N. Korea, demanding that this country give up its nuclear power and nuclear weapons programs. In 1999, the seizure of fuel rods bound for Yemen from a N. Korean merchant ship by a Spanish pirate ship fueled fears that N. Korea is contributing to nuclear proliferation. N. Korea is a nuclear power with the 4th-largest army in the world. It has a mutual defense pact with China, which has the largest army in the world (although nowhere near the technical capability of the U.S.'s military, which is second in terms of number of troops). S. Korea has the 6th-largest army in the world, and Japan is 22nd. If reserves are included, N. Korea has more troops than any other country, and S. Korea is 2nd. With Chinese aid, N. Korea fought the U.S. to a stalemate in 1950-1953.
Nigeria: Spiraling ethnic violence could become the pretext for an opportunistic invasion of this, the most populous country in Africa. The U.S. is far behind France and the UK in economic penetration of Africa, and dominating this large market would go a long way toward reversing that. Nigeria has the largest oil and gas reserves in Africa. It is the strongest military power in the region, but would collapse before the military might of the U.S. Nigeria has strong trade ties with the U.S. and has generally been supportive of U.S. interests in W. Africa. However, similar circumstances didn't stop the U.S. from invading Panama or Haiti. Nigeria is a Commonwealth member and the UK would strongly oppose a U.S. invasion, UNLESS it was British-led and sanctioned by the UN.
Ivory Coast: Maybe the U.S. will try to put France and the UN in their place with a frontal attack on this nation, rich in cocoa, oil, and diamonds, that is hosting a French-led, UN-backed occupation force. The U.S. has a small number of troops in neighboring Liberia, which is a center for U.S. influence on the Gulf of Guinea. A sufficient invasion force would have no trouble taking over here, but it would be sure to meet with strong international condemnation.
Other: Who do YOU think it will be?