ABSTRACT
US-Soviet relations in the Middle East involve three broad questions. First, what are the stakes involved in US-Soviet competition in the Middle East for the overall state of US-Soviet relations. Second, what is the enduring nature of US-Soviet competition in the Middle East viewed within the context of their overall relationship. And third, what are the basic choices for the United States in the region, given the overall setting of US-Soviet relations? The future of Eurasia has been the central focus of US-Soviet rivalry since 1945, and over the years there has been a steady expansion of the geographical scope of this competition. The desire to avoid a head-on collision with the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics has over the years led to some sharp oscillations in the basic US approach to the Soviet Union's role in the region and over the question of Arab-Israeli peacemaking in particular.
