[Mb-civic] The World's Warmonger

[ean at sbcglobal.net]

Here is a very clear and vivid description and expose of the remarkable 
and repetitive foreign policy hypocrisy of the governement of the USA.  
This is definitely worth reading, re-reading, sharing and discussing with 
other Americans.  (Thanks again to Ed!)

February 21, 2005

The World's Warmonger

by Garry Leech

Colombia Journal http://www.colombiajournal.org/colombia203.htm

According to the Bush administration, it is Venezuelan President Chávez'
desire to purchase weapons from Russia that threatens to destabilize the
Andean region, not the $3 billion in military aid that Washington has
provided to Colombia over the past five years. Likewise, in the Middle
East, it is Syria's efforts to obtain purely defensive anti-aircraft
missiles that pose a threat to that region, not the $1 billion a year in
U.S. military aid to Israel. And on the nuclear front, while there is no
evidence that Iran is intending to build nuclear weapons, it is the regime
in Tehran that is threatening to further destabilize the region, not
President Bush's apparent pledge to support any future Israeli attack
against Iran. Meanwhile, North Korea's withdrawal from the Nuclear
Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) in order to develop nuclear weapons 
makes
the Asian nation a "rogue state," but Washington's abandonment of the
Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty (ABM) to build its missile defense system,
which could lead to the weaponization of space, apparently does not
justify the same anti-multilateralist label being applied to the United
States.

In December 2004, the Bush administration sent a letter of protest to the
Russian Embassy in Washington, DC, and also expressed its concern to
Russia's defense and foreign ministers about Moscow's decision to sell
AK-47automatic weapons to Venezuela. The Bush administration claims 
that
President Chávez's arms purchases pose a threat to neighboring Colombia
and could lead to a regional arms race, destabilizing the Andean region.
The Bush administration failed to note the possibly destabilizing
consequences of Colombia's recent massive U.S.-funded military build up.

A State Department spokesman stated: "Venezuela's plans to purchase
various types and large quantities of weapons are extremely troubling. And
we believe that Venezuela should consult with its neighbors on such
armament acquisitions." Which raises the obvious question: Has the United
States ever suggested that the Colombian government consult with 
President
Chávez or other regional leaders regarding the massive amounts of military
aid it has received from Washington over the past five years? This answer
is definitely not.

The Bush administration also contributed to increasing instability in the
Andean region by supporting Colombia's flagrant violation of Venezuelan
sovereignty in December 2004. The U.S. Ambassador to Colombia 
William Wood
stated that the United States supported the Uribe administration "100
percent," even after the Colombian government admitted lying when it
initially announced that FARC guerrilla representative Rodrigo Granda 
had
been arrested in the Colombian city of Cúcuta. Instead, the Colombian
government had paid mercenaries to kidnap Granda in the Venezuelan 
capital
and smuggle him across the border.

The Bush administration's confrontational rhetoric has also included
repeatedly labeling President Chávez as anti-democratic. Such accusations
reek of hypocrisy given the Bush White House's immediate endorsement of
the military coup that temporarily overthrew the democratically-elected
Chávez in April 2002-not to mention the likelihood of a U.S. role in the
coup itself. Not surprisingly, Colombia was the only other country in the
hemisphere to follow Washington's lead and immediately recognize the 
coup
government.

Clearly, Venezuela poses no military threat to the United States. However,
given the horrendous history of U.S. military intervention in Latin
America, the Bush administration's anti-Chávez rhetoric and the close
military ties between the United States and Colombia, the Chávez
government has plenty to fear from Washington. And yet, Bush
administration officials would have us believe that it is the United
States that is being threatened by Venezuela, whose only weapons are
social policies aimed at helping the poor and words that criticize U.S.
imperialism in the region.

The Bush administration has not only criticized Russia's arms sales to
Venezuela, but also Moscow's recent announcement that it intends to sell
anti-aircraft missiles to Syria. The United States has threatened Russia
with sanctions because it considers Syria a state supporter of terrorism.
The Bush White House has not addressed Syria's legitimate concerns with
regard to defending itself against acts of aggression by the better-armed
Israeli military. In September 2003, Israeli agents carried out a car
bombing in the Syrian capital of Damascus and the Israeli Air Force has
violated Syrian sovereignty on numerous occasions by bombing alleged
Palestinian training camps.

According to the Bush administration, Syria's purchase of purely defensive
anti-aircraft missiles to defend itself against blatant Israeli violations
of its airspace poses a threat to the region. While Syrian policies may
contribute to the turmoil in the region, the Bush White House refuses to
entertain the possibility that the provision of $1 billion a year in U.S.
military aid to Tel Aviv and Israel's repeated use of U.S.-supplied
weapons to attack neighboring countries such as Syria, Lebanon and the
Occupied Territories may also be a significant destabilizing factor.

President Bush also recently pledged to support Israel if it decides to
turn its U.S.-supplied weaponry against Iran. The Bush administration's
threatening rhetoric towards Iran is intended, as is also the case with
Venezuela and Syria, to make the country an international pariah and to
eventually achieve regime change. The Bush administration has repeatedly
accused Iran of violating the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT)
because U.S. officials believe Tehran intends to build nuclear weapons.
Astoundingly, Washington is not threatening the Iranian government 
because
it is developing nuclear weapons, but because it might develop them. This
is clearly a case of the Bush administration taking its new pre-emptive
strike doctrine to the extreme.

U.S. officials are most concerned about Iran's plans to enrich uranium,
which is a necessary ingredient for nuclear energy but can also be used in
nuclear weapons. However, neither the building of nuclear power plants 
nor
the enrichment of uranium constitute a violation of the NPT. In fact,
while the International Atomic Energy Agency admits that it would like to
more closely monitor Iran's nuclear energy project, it has definitively
stated that Tehran has not violated the NPT. Furthermore, Article 4 of the
NPT states that nothing should impede a country's "inalienable right" to
develop nuclear energy.

The fact that Iran has not violated the NPT has not discouraged the Bush
administration from continuing its propaganda campaign intended to
convince the U.S. public and the world otherwise. At the same time it is
propagandizing against Iran, the Bush administration is itself violating
the NPT by developing a new generation of nuclear weapons called
"mini-nukes" and "bunker busters." These new weapons violate Article 2 
of
the NPT, which calls on states "not to manufacture or otherwise acquire
nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive devices." The Bush 
government
has also failed to live up to its obligations under Article 6 of the NPT
calling on nuclear powers to commit themselves to nuclear disarmament.

Washington's propaganda alleges that Iran's intentions to build nuclear
weapons pose a threat to the Middle East. It fails to the destabilizing
effects of the U.S. invasion and occupation of Iraq or President Bush's
outspoken support of possible Israeli aggression against Iran.

The hypocrisy of the Bush administration is also evident in its relations
with North Korea. While the United States is busy developing a new
generation of nukes, the Bush White House has tried desperately to
politically isolate North Korea because of its nuclear weapons program.
However, unlike Iran, North Korea is no longer beholden to the NPT, 
having
pulled out of the treaty in April 2003. As a result, North Korea is now in
the category of non-NPT states that possess nuclear weapons along with
Israel, India and Pakistan.

Apparently though, Israel, India and Pakistan are permitted to possess
nuclear weapons because they are allies of the United States, or so goes
Bush administration logic. In contrast, North Korea has long been an 
enemy
of the United States and has had to confront increasingly threatening
rhetoric from Washington and more than 30,000 U.S. troops and scores of
U.S. Air Force bombers stationed on its southern border.

Bush administration attempts to force North Korea, even after its
withdrawal from the NPT, to refrain from developing nuclear weapons is
clearly hypocritical given the U.S. withdrawal from the Anti-Ballistic
Missile Treaty (ABM) in order to develop its missile defense system, or
"Star Wars" project. As the Bush White House is accusing North Korea of
destabilizing Asia with its nuclear weapons program, the United States is
attempting to establish an anti-missile system that could include basing
weapons in space. The placement of weapons in earth's orbit by the United
States, as some defense planners have called for, would go far beyond
destabilizing one region of the globe, it would threaten the entire planet
and beyond.

While global nuclear disarmament is clearly the desired goal of many
nations, the United States is undermining such a possibility by developing
its own new generation of nukes and selectively targeting some countries
that are developing nuclear weapons while ignoring others. At the same
time, it is the Bush administration that is threatening nations in every
corner of the world, particularly those regimes critical of the U.S.
global military and economic project. While there are valid reasons to be
concerned about some of these countries targeted by the Bush
administration, they are no more a destabilizing factor than some U.S.
allies, or the United States itself for that matter.

The hypocrisy of the Bush administration is clearly evident in its
targeting of alleged rogue states-Venezuela, Syria, Iran and North
Korea-while supporting non-democratic and repressive regimes in Saudi
Arabia, Egypt, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan, among others. The
Bush administration's militaristic rhetoric and actions have not only
resulted in increasing numbers of people around the globe viewing U.S.
foreign policy as a significant destabilizing factor in international
relations, it has also made clear exactly who is the world's principle
warmonger.

-----


-- 
You are currently on Mha Atma's Earth Action Network email list, 
option D (up to 3 emails/day).  To be removed, or to switch options 
(option A - 1x/week, option B - 3/wk, option C - up to 1x/day, option 
D - up to 3x/day) please reply and let us know!  If someone 
forwarded you this email and you want to be on our list, send an 
email to ean at sbcglobal.net and tell us which option you'd like.


"In times of universal deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act."
   ---   George Orwell


-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://www.islandlists.com/pipermail/mb-civic/attachments/20050224/483e2c6a/attachment.htm