Editing Reagan Doctrine (section)

==="Rollback" replaces "containment" and "détente"===
[[File:Johnas Savimbi, leader of Unita, the Angolan Rebels (larger picture) (cropped).png|thumb|U.S.-supported [[UNITA]] leader [[Jonas Savimbi]]]]
The Reagan Doctrine was especially significant because it represented a substantial shift in the post–World War II foreign policy of the United States. Prior to the Reagan Doctrine, U.S. foreign policy in the Cold War was rooted in "[[containment]]", as originally defined by [[George F. Kennan]], [[John Foster Dulles]], and other post–World War II U.S. foreign policy experts. In January 1977, four years prior to becoming president, Reagan bluntly stated, in a conversation with National Security Advisor [[Richard V. Allen]], his basic expectation in relation to the Cold War. "My idea of American policy toward the Soviet Union is simple, and some would say simplistic," he said. "It is this: We win and they lose. What do you think of that?"<ref>{{cite web|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110501052925/http://www.hoover.org/publications/hoover-digest/article/7398 |archive-date=1 May 2011 |url=http://www.hoover.org/publications/hoover-digest/article/7398 |website=hoover.org |title=The Man Who Won the Cold War |first=Richard V. |last=Allen |author-link=Richard V. Allen }}</ref>

Although a similar policy of "rollback" had been considered on a few occasions during the Cold War, the U.S., fearing an escalation of the Cold War and possible [[nuclear warfare|nuclear conflict]], chose not to confront the Soviet Union directly. With the Reagan Doctrine, those fears were set aside and the United States began to openly confront Soviet-supported governments through support of rebel movements in the doctrine's targeted countries.

One perceived benefit of the Reagan Doctrine was the relatively low cost of supporting guerrilla forces compared to the Soviet Union's expenses in propping up client states. Another benefit was the lack of direct involvement of American troops, which allowed the United States to confront Soviet allies without sustaining casualties. Especially since the [[September 11 attacks]], some Reagan Doctrine critics have argued that, by facilitating the transfer of large amounts of weapons to various areas of the world and by training military leaders in these regions, the Reagan Doctrine actually contributed to "[[Blowback (intelligence)|blowback]]" by strengthening some political and military movements that ultimately developed hostility toward the U.S., such as [[al-Qaeda]] in [[Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (1996–2001)|Afghanistan]].<ref>[https://archive.today/20090209220235/http://media.www.thedailycougar.com/media/storage/paper1206/news/2008/08/25/Opinion/Think.Tank.Fosters.Bloodshed.Terrorism-3401834.shtml "Think Tank Fosters Bloodshed, Terrorism," ''The Cougar'', August 25, 2008.]</ref> However, no direct U.S. aid to [[Osama bin Laden]] or any of his affiliates has ever been established.<ref>{{cite book|author-link=Peter Bergen|last=Bergen|first=Peter|title=The Osama bin Laden I Know: An Oral History of al Qaeda's Leader|publisher=[[Simon and Schuster]]|year=2006|isbn=9780743295925|pages=60–61}}</ref>