[War & Business] The Origin of the Term "Middle East"

The appearance of Middle Eastern countries marked on the map [Image source=International Air Transport Association (IATA) website]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunwoo Lee] Among the terms used internationally to refer to specific regions, the most ambiguous word is "Middle East." Literally, it means the area located in the middle among several eastern regions. This term was created in the 19th century when Britain, known as the "empire on which the sun never sets," referred to the Balkans and Eastern Europe near its eastern vicinity as the "Near East," and regions like China, the Korean Peninsula, and Japan in Northeast Asia as the "Far East," with the regions in between called the Middle East.

Originally used only within the British military, the term was popularized internationally by the American naval strategist Admiral Alfred Thayer Mahan. In 1902, during the so-called "Great Game" rivalry between Britain and Russia over global dominance in the Balkans, Iran, and the Korean Peninsula, Mahan argued that for the United States to compete and survive in this power struggle, it needed to first control the Persian Gulf area, i.e., the Middle East, supported by a powerful navy, thus advocating for the construction of a great navy.

However, at that time, the United States had only about 30,000 personnel combined in its army and navy, so his proposal for a great navy did not receive much attention. The main focus of the U.S. then was westward expansion and the construction of the transcontinental railroad, and building a great navy and advancing into the Middle East seemed like distant future concerns.

But just over a decade later, in 1914, around the time of World War I, the United States suddenly rose to become the world's leading power, and Mahan's theory became a reality. Especially after witnessing the power of naval forces in World War I, the great powers were compelled to engage in an even fiercer naval arms race. Following World War I, the world experienced the first pandemic in history, the Spanish flu, and led by the U.S., disarmament talks began. The top five naval powers at the time? the U.S., Britain, France, Italy, and Japan?agreed to disarmament by 1936. However, Japan broke this agreement, ignited the Pacific War, and the unlimited naval arms race resumed.

Having gone through this history, the United States still refers to Admiral Mahan's advocacy for naval power strengthening as "Mahanism" and regards it as the foundation of maritime strategy. The vast naval power maintained worldwide to counter China's ongoing maritime expansion is rooted in this history.

The lesson the U.S. learned from the global power struggles since the 19th century is that in so-called powder keg regions like Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and Northeast Asia, localized conflicts can erupt at any time and escalate into massive wars.

Although fluctuations in Middle East affairs and international oil prices may seem distant, this is why countries in Northeast Asia cannot reduce their military expenditures.