Legacy of empires: academic expertise and USA policy in Afghanistan and Iraq in 2001-2014

The heritage of the European colonial empires should be perceived as «missing dimension» while studying the history of the USA foreign policy at the beginning of the XXI century. The comparative-historical analysis as well as transfers of colonial experience of the European powers should be discussed. It promotes making a fuller picture of imperialism as a phenomenon in the history of international relations as well as a certain style of thinking during a decolonization era. At the same time the American case became the most striking example of reception of the European powers colonial experience in political practice of the 2000th. The main characteristic feature of the USA foreign policy decisions examination was its realization in the form of historical modeling of the asymmetric conflicts - the analysis of Washington policy prospects in Afghanistan and Iraq in a wide context of experience of global colonial empires. While working with such researches a constant methodological reflection caused by their political involvement as well as restrictions of disciplinary character is necessary. At the same time a special role in this case belonged to the academic world representatives who professionally studied colonial experience of the European. It is them who were the most serious competitors to the Pentagon representatives with academic degrees as well as to «think tanks» analysts who cooperated with the military in fight for their own expert opinion domination about historical modeling of the asymmetric conflicts in the Middle East. It is this aspect of the academic examination of the USA policy in Iraq and Afghanistan in 2001-2014 that the following paper deals with.