President Jimmy Carter condemned the December 1979 invasion of Afghanistan by the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) in both his 1980 State of the Union message and a subsequent address to a joint session of the United States Congress. Carter claimed a Soviet presence in Afghanistan threatened control of vital oil exports from the Middle East. His pledge to protect strategic U.S. interests in the Persian Gulf region “by any means necessary” became known as the Carter Doctrine. Carter’s critics faulted his assumption that Soviet control of Afghanistan jeopardized U.S. access to the Persian Gulf and its resources. Herbert S. Parmet

Carter Doctrine

Annual Message to the Congress on the State of the Union

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January 21, 1980

Events in Iran and Afghanistan have dramatized for us the critical importance for American security and prosperity of the area running from the Middle East through the Persian Gulf to South Asia. This region provides two-thirds of the world’s oil exports, supplying most of the energy needs of our allies in Europe and Japan. It has been a scene of almost constant conflict between nations, and of serious internal instability within many countries. And now one of the nations [Afghanistan] has been invaded by the Soviet Union.

Address Delivered Before a Joint Session of the Congress

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January 23, 1980

Let our position be absolutely clear: An attempt by any outside force to gain control of the Persian Gulf region will be regarded as an assault on the vital interests of the United States of America, and such an assault will be repelled by any means necessary, including military force.

During the past 3 years, you have joined with me to improve our own security and the prospects for peace, not only in the vital oil-producing area of the Persian Gulf region but around the world. We’ve increased annually our real commitment for defense, and we will sustain this increase of effort throughout the Five Year Defense Program. It’s imperative that Congress approve this strong defense budget for 1981, encompassing a 5-percent real growth in authorizations, without any reduction.

We are also improving our capability to deploy U.S. military forces rapidly to distant areas. We’ve helped to strengthen NATO and our other alliances, and recently we and other NATO members have decided to develop and to deploy modernized, intermediate-range nuclear forces to meet an unwarranted and increased threat from the nuclear weapons of the Soviet Union.

Source: Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States, Jimmy Carter 1980-81, vol. 1. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1981.

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Afghanistan; Carter, Jimmy; Persian Gulf