Well, I agree that history should not control our future...
History is important because, as the old adage goes (misquote here I am sure) "those that ignore the failures of history are doomed to repeat them".. Meaning, history can teach us a lot....
Rarely though is foreign policy based upon "the right thing to do"....
Foreign policy should usually be based upon what is the best thing to do for us... What serves our national interest the best.. What is important to us strategically.......
It is often though based upon the political aspirations and agendas of various powerful individuals or groups.......
In the case of Israel........
The US recognized Israel after Israel declared itself a state not because it was the right thing to do (although the article I quoted does indicate that) The U.S. recognized Israel to stop Israel from aligning with the Soviets.... The Soviets recognized Israel in an attempt to bring them into the Soviet.
The number one U.S. priority from a naval strategy throughout the cold war was to deny the Soviets a warm water port. One of the top priorities of the Soviet strategy during the cold war was to attain a warm water port. The U.S. had the upper hand strategically because they could float a navy year round without much difficulty.. We had subs and ships running from Groton Ct, Key West, Norfolk, San Diego and various other bases... Most of our bases were open and easily accesible throughout the entire year.
The Soviets however were limited to Vladivostok and Petropavlask, both cold water ports with limited access during the winter months... With only 2 major ports to operate from, the Soviets were easy to watch.. We just had to watch what came out from Vlad and Petro to know what they were up to......
By denying the Soviets a warm water port, we were effectively limiting the effectiveness of their Navy (which throughout the cold war was the largest navy in the world).....
The historians will tell you it was Oil that made the middle east a point of contention between the east and west... But folks from the intelligence field will tell you it was a warm water port.......
and that largely controlled our foreign policy in the region.......
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