|
|
What is happening today before our eyes is the end of one international system and the birth of a qualitatively different one.
Interestingly, Vladimir Putin has declared that for him the point of no return was reached when the USA and its allies at the UNSC and NATO clearly and grossly twisted the intention of the UNSC on Libya and "upgraded" what should have been a "no fly" zone to a free-fire zone to attack and bomb Libya. (Of course, it was pretty darn clear to Putin that the "all necessary means to protect civilians" of the resolution was an open ended invitation for the Anglo-Zionists to "interpret" it in any way they wanted; now he says that Russia was "lied to" in order not to blame Medvedev for walking into a 10-foot-wide hole. But that is irrelevant here.) Putin says that from then on he had acquired the conviction that the West could not be negotiated with and had to be simply stopped. Then Syria happened: for the first time since the end of WWII the USA had decided to do something and was stopped by an outside power in the most humiliating way possible.
The Russian stance on Syria was an overt challenge to US world hegemony. It was clearly understood as such in Washington and now, following the crisis in the Ukraine, the Russians have openly admitted this.
So this is the real stake of the civil war in the Ukraine: for the USA it is to punish Russia for daring to challenge the world hegemon; for Russia it is to unseat this hegemon and replace him by a multi-polar international system in which sovereign countries act within the bounds of international law. You could say that even though most of the Security Council is vehemently opposed to that, Russia is trying to show to the world that the USA does not own the UN and that it only represents 1/5th of the P5 and 1/15th of the UNSC.
The West has slouched into a position of total submission to the USA and its domination tools over Europe: the EU and NATO. The central Europeans have even volunteered to become a US protectorate, a territory to house US missile systems and secret CIA prisons.
With the exception of Iran and Syria, the Arab and Muslim world has sold out too, some to the USA, others to Saudi Arabia, most to both at the same time. Latin America tries hard, but is still heavily dependent on the USA while Africa just wants to survive the best it can. As for Asia, some parts are as sold out as Europe (Japan, Korea), others are trying to keep a low profile, while China is clearly quietly standing behind Russia but in an externally undeniable way even though China stands to benefit more than any other country on the planet from a change in the international order.
The Russians would have much preferred to wait, to buy time, but the US determination to punish it for daring to oppose it on Syria literally forced them to fold and surrender or openly accept the US challenge and stand firm.
I will repeat that again and again — Putin had no other choice.
And now that this is all in the open, you can be absolutely sure that Russia is not planning to return to the status quo ante. With an amazing candidness both Putin and Lavrov have openly spelled out their goal on Russian TV (Lavrov on the show "Sunday Evening with Vladimir Soloviev" and Putin on during his 4-hour-long Q&A yesterday).
So this is the Russian end-goal: to unseat the USA from its role as a world hegemon. And that goal implies a much longer, bigger and more sustained effort than just to force the freaks in Kiev to the negotiating table. Among other things, this goal implies that Russia must:
(1) Force the Europeans to fully realize the outrageous price they are paying for being the obedient and silent vassals of the USA, and slowly drive a wedge between the USA and Europe.
(2) Force the USA to admit that it does not have the military might to punish or, even less so, "regime change", anyone they don't like.
(3) Encourage China and other Asian powers to openly stand with Russia in demanding that international law be adhered to by the West.
(4) Gradually replace the dollar with other currencies in international trade and thereby slow down the financing of the US debt by the rest of the planet.
(5) Create the conditions for Latin America and Africa to be able to make choices about their future, and replace the current monopoly enjoyed by the West in setting the terms of North-South relations.
(6) Present another civilizational model which openly rejects the current Western paradigm of a society run by small and arrogant minorities.
(7) Challenge the current liberal and capitalist economic order embodied in the Washington Consensus and replace it by a model of social and international solidarity (call it "21 century socialism" if you want).
All of the above can be summed up in one word: re-sovereignization.
Since he got elected, Putin mentioned many times the need for a re-sovereignization of Russia. The Ukrainian crisis has forced him reveal the real end goal of his agenda: to re-sovereignize the entire planet.
This is a tall order and it will take many years, possibly decades, to achieve this goal, though my personal feeling is that the total incompetence and infinite arrogance of the 1%er plutocrats who rule over the Western world will continue to accelerate that process.
The big question now is this: can the Anglo-Zionist Empire follow the example of the Soviet Empire and collapse without triggering a massive bloodbath on its way down?
There will be violence, for sure, as there was with the former Soviet Union. But if we can avoid a global conflagration or, even a large scale massive war, then that would have to be considered as success, because it is when they are collapsing that empires become the most dangerous and unpredictable.
The Saker
Republished with permission on Serendipity on April 18, 2014.
Petition: Godspeed President Putin and Foreign Minister Lavrov Many citizens of western countries greatly respect your measured responses to the recent and ongoing threats to Syria, Iran, and Ukraine.
You and your government have several times averted dangerous conflicts. Irresponsible nations heavily armed with biological, chemical, and nuclear weapons ache for a war whose outcome they cannot comprehend.
International diplomacy requires a grasp of history, as well as strength, courage, rectitude, grace, and common sense. Most western leaders today lack these essential qualities. We appreciate how challenging it must be to negotiate with such people.
The above views are neither represented by our leaders nor explored by our corporate media commentators. Reaching over them to extend a hand of friendship and gratitude, we offer you our support and best wishes.
You can sign this petition here.
|
Selected articles about the Ukraine by The Saker:
|
| Full-Spectrum Dominance and the Regime-Change Project | |
| Live Not by Lies | Serendipity Home Page |