The Flawed Borders of the Middle East

Abstract

In this paper, I will be seeking to introduce the history and the reasons of how and why the flawed border of the Middle East was created after World War I. After World War I, Britain and France as two major ally powers who had defeated Ottoman attempts to divide up the Ottoman post-war territories. As a result, this irrational border was a product of Britain and France tried to expand their influence in the Middle East, instead of the political desire of the local Arabs. To prove this conclusion, I analysed multiple historical primary sources, such the content of Sykes-Picot Agreement, McMahon Hussein Correspondence, U.S King Crane Commission, and Conference of San Remo, as supporting evidence. The McMahon Hussein Correspondence and the U.S. King Crane Commission embodied the Arab demand for an independent Arab state at the time. Conversely, Sykes-Picot Agreement and the Conference of San Remo embodied the interests of European