In 1956 Allen Dulles, the then Director of the CIA was addressing a meeting in Asia of the newly formed Non-Aligned Nations. The NAN was comprised almost entirely of countries which had previously been colonies of the Western powers. After what was in many cases centuries of Western oppression, they were intent to achieve independence and national sovereignty. At the time the lines were being drawn in the American-inspired Cold War against Russia, none of the attendant NAN members wanted to involve their countries in Western hostilities anymore, they were, they declared, neutral. Dulles explained the situation clearly, “neutrality is an obsolete concept”. In the American black-and-white view of the world, you had to pick a side. And that choice had better been the right one.
Fast forward to 2001 and in the immediate aftermath of 9/11, George Bush told the world, “either you are with us, or you are with the terrorists”. The dilemma may have occasioned pause for thought among many nations’ leaders, but many chose to go along with the U.S. It did this to justify the seven planned Middle Eastern wars. This was not a moral decision, it was about the survival of their own nations. Twenty years ago, no nation could resist American pressure.
Since July 4th, 1976, America has invaded 70 countries, it has interfered in the elections of more than 70 countries and launched many more colour revolutions. These are facts well known to all nations. 120 years ago, the then President Teddy Roosevelt explained his approach to foreign policy, “speak softly and carry a big stick”. America still carries a big stick, but has long since stopped speaking softly. Even the imperialist warmonger Teddy would blush today at the face America shows the world. Trump, Mike Pompeo, John Bolton are all extreme stereotypes of the “Ugly American”. These belligerent, bullying liars are the face of America. One must conclude that America doesn’t care what the world thinks of it anymore. Their bellicose rhetoric is intended exclusively for the domestic American audience.
Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, America has been the sole superpower. Fortunately for humanity that is no longer the case. China, Russia and Iran all individually stand as powerful opposition to America. All three have been under relentless assault by the Empire for years. This has forced them all to develop strong military capabilities, many more advanced than America can muster. America has gamed out war scenarios against all three nations, it loses all of them, quickly. Absent nuclear conflict, Americas military is no longer the omnipotent threat that it was once considered. China, Russia and Iran are co-operating across many areas, technology and trade in particular. There exists no formal military alliance between them, however, a western attack on one, may well be seen as the start of WWIII. In that unthinkable event, expect the united response to be dramatic.
In a nostalgic throwback to America’s Cowboy past, American representatives have been going around the world rounding up a “posse” to go after the Bad Guy, and the Bad Guy de jour is China. Countries once again are being forced to chose, but this time it is different. Tony Blinken and Kamala Harris have imposed themselves upon several Asian countries seeking allies to gang up on China. It didn’t go well, Vietnam, politely showed Harris the door, and Malaysia and Singapore told Blinken not to bother to come. All of China’s neighbours have benefitted enormously from China’s rise and appreciate its non-interference policy. This is stark contrast to its dealings with the U.S. who expect to be able to dictate everything. The recent RCEP trade deal unites 15 Asian nations in the world’s largest trading bloc. It does not include America, must to their chagrin. This would have been unthinkable a few short years ago.
More than 140 countries have already made the choice and joined China’s Belt and Road Initiative. The attraction of investment and development with a strict non-interference policy is an attractive alternative to the insidious Western IMF model. Already more than $11 trillion in trade has passed along the BRI as it extends its reach through Asia, Eurasia and Africa. This has caused great consternation in Washington and attempts to disrupt it have been evident in BRI chokepoints in Xinjiang and most recently in Kazakstan. Yet the BRI rolls on and the number of participating countries continues to grow. Each one a slap in the face to Washington.
Of more alarm is China’s growing influence in regions America considered its exclusive domains. At a recent China-Arab summit more than 270 major deals were signed with Arab countries in the Gulf states, many connected with the BRI. Of particular concern is China’s increasingly close relationship with Saudi Arabia. American-Saudi relations have been fractious since MBS took power. It is Saudi’s oil and its dominance of OPEC that underwrites the petrodollar. It is known that MBS is angry at America for its relentless money printing and its resulting devaluation of Saudi’s considerable dollar holdings. The preservation of the petrodollar is America’s No.1 priority, it enables its military adventures and props up the U.S. economy despite it being functionally bankrupt for more than fifty years. Any attempts to challenge or move away from the dollar are met with extreme measures, as Saddam Hussein and Gahdafi discovered to their cost. This situation could get interesting.
Hitting even closer to home, China’s recent involvement in Latin America, an area America has been treating as its own private plantation for more than 150 years. Dominated by western-friendly oligarchs dating back to the Spanish conquest, Latin America has remained relatively underdeveloped and has been periodically plundered by the IMF and World Bank. China now has agreements in place with several countries, among them Venezuela and Nicaragua. Other Latin America countries have expressed serious interest in the BRI, notably Brazil. The idea of “Communist China” being in America’s backyard must be cause for panic in Washington.
America has no allies, and even those it calls friends don’t trust it. The Germans can see the value of that friendship as they are left to freeze this winter because America doesn’t want them to buy much needed Russian gas. Australia was forced to commit economic suicide by doing in the China hate and alienating its largest customer. The UK and Canada were compelled to abandon Huawei’s 5G, putting back their technological development years and waste the considerable investments already made. America still exerts considerable control over the Western neo-liberal world, all evidence suggests that it will drag its friends down with it on its inevitable decline.
China, and to an extent Russia have demonstrated that America can be rebuffed, its example has emboldened other countries to make choices it couldn’t before. They are choosing no strings investment, growth and non-interference. For the first time countries are able to make choices that benefit their people, not the genocidal Western capital class.
Dr. Eamon McKinney is an eminent Sinologist with more than 40 years’ involvement in China foreign business. He is C.E.O. and founder (1985) of CBNGLOBAl, his company has managed more than 300 major China-Foreign projects. He lives in Qingdao, China.
Originally published on the Strategic Culture Foundation