The Doctrine Of Preemption

The Doctrine of Preemption was the theory in which a country will be invaded before they have in fact attacked the invading country. A pre-emptive attack is a military tactic designed to prevent, or reduce the impact of, an anticipated attack from an enemy.
It was within the Bush Doctrine, and under the United States that the Doctrine of Preemption was used in a war.
How and why has the United States been involved with the Doctrine of Preemption and the case of using preemption as a tactic within a war? It was within the year of 2002/2003 that the President of the United States, George W. Bush asked for an end to all alleged weapons of mass destruction that Iraq may have obtained within the time. Within the case for asking the production of weapons of mass destruction to come to an end, it was only practical that the UN inspectors have all access to areas that were thought of being weapons production facilities.
It was when weapons were found and the fact that not all the weapons that Iraq was thought to have were not found that the U.S. was even more driven to invade Iraq and take away its weapons that it did in fact have, and bring peace to the area that was much needed after the cruelty Saddam had inflicted upon his people. "We know that Saddam Hussein pursued weapons of mass murder even when inspectors were in his country. Are we to assume that he stopped when they left? The history, the logic, and the facts lead to one conclusion: Saddam Hussein's regime is a grave and gathering danger. To suggest otherwise is to hope against the evidence. To assume this regime's good faith is to bet the lives of millions and the peace of the world in a reckless gamble. And this is a risk we must not take." - President George W. Bush

In reaching the conclusions within the case of Saddam, and Iraq’s weapons of mass destruction, the U.S. decided to take action and before Iraq would have the chance to use their weapons on the U.S., they invaded Iraq. It was also after the fact that the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1441 had, on November 8, 2002,

"a final opportunity to comply with its disarmament obligations". It was with this fact that the United States invaded Iraq in March 2003.

In analyzing the strength and weaknesses of the policy of preemption I think it is a very wise way in which to invade and keep our country safe, but I also think it may be a doctrine in which jumps to conclusions before anything even happens. The fact that the Doctrine of Preemption is based upon the idea of attacking before being attacked, I think is very useful because it keeps the country safe in the fact that we have no idea when the opposing country is going to strike. Then again, the Doctrine of Containment could also bring a sense of uneasiness because it may seem as though we are attacking the opposing country for no apparent reason. My opinion on the Doctrine of containment is that, just as in the U.S. and Iraq on weapons of mass destruction, I think if there is enough evidence to attack in relation to the safety of our country then it is a valid tactic in relation to the safety of our country.