This study discusses how the US has managed to sustain its dominance in spite of a constantly transforming global scenario, now characterized by powerful supra national actors as the European Union and rising powers like China. It is an attempt to understand United States security and foreign policy embedded in the doctrine of bilateralism, largely situated in the regional security complex and mainly directed towards achieving its larger global objectives. This work considers two classic examples: US engagement in the Persian Gulf region through its strategy of Dual Containment toward Iran...