Former US president George W Bush's concept of an “axis of evil”, introduced in his 2002 State of the Union address, came to define the post-9/11 era. The phrase encompassed Iraq, Iran, and North Korea, three countries that Bush identified as posing significant threats to global security due to their support of terrorism and pursuit of weapons of mass destruction.
Building on a concept he articulated in a June 2002 speech at West Point, President George W. Bush adopted a new emphasis on preemption in his foreign policy approach. This doctrine justified the invasion of Iraq in 2003, as Bush argued that the United States had to act before threats materialized.
Twenty years ago this month, the U.S. launched a major invasion of Iraq. President George W. Bush and his administration at first drew broad support for this decision, citing the need to eliminate Saddam Hussein's alleged weapons of mass destruction and his regime's ties to terrorism.
On January 29, 2002, in his first State of the Union address since the September 11 attacks, President George W. Bush described Iraq, Iran, and North Korea as part of an "axis of evil" that threatened global security. This rhetoric helped justify the subsequent invasion of Iraq and shaped U.S. foreign policy for years to come.
Bush branded three countries — North Korea, Iran, and Iraq — as rogue states that he said harbored, financed, and aided terrorists. This characterization fueled the narrative of the war on terror and justified military interventions in the region.
The events of September 11, 2001, set in motion sweeping changes to U.S. intelligence and counterterrorism practices, launched two major wars, and altered the trajectory of American foreign policy. The axis of evil concept played a significant role in shaping the post-9/11 landscape and justifying military actions in the Middle East.
Sixteen years after the United States invaded Iraq and left a trail of destruction and chaos in the country and the region, one aspect of the legacy of the war on terror is the ongoing instability in the region. The axis of evil rhetoric contributed to the destabilization of Iraq and the broader Middle East.
Twenty years after the Iraq War began, scholarship on its causes can be usefully divided into the security school and the hegemony school. The axis of evil concept falls within the security school, which emphasizes the threat posed by rogue states and the need for preemptive action to address these threats.
