– 2,400 Year Old “Enemy of My Enemy Is My Friend” Myth Has Led to Insanely Stupid U.S. Foreign Policy (Washington Post, Sep 23, 2014):
America Is Tangled Up In Impossibly Complicated Webs
The ancient idea that “The Enemy of My Enemy Is My Friend” is widely attributed to the Arabs. But it is actually much older … It originated in the 4th century B.C. in India. Kautilya – the “Indian Machiavelli” – wrote about the idea in the Sanskrit military book, the Arthashastra.
U.S. foreign policy has been guided by the “Enemy of My Enemy” idea for decades for decades.
Should we really be following 2,400 year-old advice from ancient India?
More importantly, is the saying even true?
As the following graphics demonstrate, basing modern foreign policy on such an archaic notion from ancient times is leading to ridiculous results:
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