By Dr. Mahathir Mohamad on December 17, 2010
1. There was a time when I thought that peace had come to the world. The Cold War had ended with the forces of the righteous triumphant.
2. But alas, for the small countries of the world, there is now more fear. The great democracies of the world, headed by the United States have decided on a crusade to democratise the whole world, through violence and war where necessary.
3. I am reading Robert Fisk, a British journalist, on the great war for civilisation i.e. the war in the Middle East. In all these wars the US plays a dominant role, not as a peace maker to stop the violent conflicts between the fractious Middle Eastern and Central Asian countries but to start wars against them so as to spread democracy.
2. But alas, for the small countries of the world, there is now more fear. The great democracies of the world, headed by the United States have decided on a crusade to democratise the whole world, through violence and war where necessary.
3. I am reading Robert Fisk, a British journalist, on the great war for civilisation i.e. the war in the Middle East. In all these wars the US plays a dominant role, not as a peace maker to stop the violent conflicts between the fractious Middle Eastern and Central Asian countries but to start wars against them so as to spread democracy.
4. In Palestine, United States' backing for Israel is unstinted, without regard for how many times and how blatant are Israel's disregard for the international law or morality or how violent and lethal are its methods.
5. Israel built "settlements" on Palestinian land with impunity, ravaged Palestinian villages, seize their land and expelled the inhabitants, openly shot and kill children, destroying houses with their occupants still inside, jailed and tortured more than a thousand Palestinians without charges or fair trial, illegally blockaded Gaza, attacked foreign ships on mercy mission while in international waters, killing foreign personnel on board, refuses to allow the Palestinians to call their land Palestine but instead to refer to themselves only as the Palestinian Authority.
6. Robert Fisk describes the torture methods of the Israelis and this is confirmed by Amnesty International. These include sleep deprivation, squatting for hours, violent shaking, imprisonment in a cupboard, beatings, pressure on the genitals and exposure to heat and cold.
7. Why is Israel free to do all these dastardly things? It is because the US backs it all the way.
8. Even when the Israelis ran over an American woman with a tractor, killing her, the US did not protest.
9. Netanyahu, the Israeli PM ignored President Obama when the latter demanded that no more Israeli settlements be built. The US President had to eat humble pie and did nothing.
10. That is Palestine and the Palestine/Israeli conflict. Then when the New York World Trade Centre was destroyed apparently by Saudi Arabs, the United States invaded Afghanistan and Iraq. These two countries have been bombed and rocketed over and over again, their towns and villages razed to the ground. Innocent people were killed by the thousands.
11. There is no respect for borders. Towns and villages in Pakistan also experience missile attacks, strafing by aircrafts and bombing, again killing civilians.
12. In Iraq, the excuse for invasion is that Iraq has weapons of mass destruction. A "shock and awe" blitzkrieg has killed hundreds of thousands of Iraqi civilians. Iraq was occupied by US forces but no weapons of mass destruction were found. This excuse was a blatant lie and the US has belatedly admitted it. Now Wikileaks exposed that Israelis and pro-Israelis "fixed" the intelligence that induced the US to war with Iraq.
13. In Palestine, Iraq and Afghanistan the killings and the destruction are still going on. But the US is not yet satisfied with the bloodbath it has initiated.
14. The next target is Iran. After their experience in Iraq there is seemingly less inclination by the US to invade Iran. Instead the method adopted is to starve the Iranians through a siege.
15. The United Nations Security Council has not approved the siege (sanctions) of Iran but the US has enough clout, influence over the countries of the world to get them to carry out its wishes.
16. Thus if the banks of any country has any dealings with Iran, the US will disallow the bank from doing business with the US. Many other arm twisting methods are used by the US to render its siege of Iran effective. The purpose of doing this is to impoverish and create difficulties for the people of Iran allegedly because of Iran's nuclear programme but actually to punish the Iranians for the closure of the US Embassy and the detention of its staff during the civil war. Revenge is very much a part of US foreign policy.
17. Now it is the turn of North Korea. It is the US who planned and implemented military exercises in waters close to North Korea. The idea is to threaten that already poor country to submit to the US.
18. Provoked, the North Koreans fired at the South Korean island in the narrow strait between it and South Korea where the military exercise is being conducted. And then the Western media condemns North Korea for this when it was in fact America which provoked North Korea into firing their guns.
19. Presidents of countries are not safe from arrest by the US. President Noriega of Panama is now languishing in an American jail. Now President Omar Bashir is being sought by America after the International Criminal Court found him guilty in a trial in which he was not defended.
20. President Salvador Allende of Chile was assassinated through the machinations of the CIA because he was a Marxist, even though he was elected by the Chileans.
21. Nicaragua had its harbour mined by the US in 1984. The United States was found guilty by the International Court. The other countries of South America live in fear of the US.
22. In the Far East the US ensured the enmity between Japan and China is perpetuated and heightened. Rapprochement between Germany and France was possible but not between Japan and China. The US opposed the formation of the East Asia Economic Group.
23. A policy of containment of China is urged on all the countries of South East Asia. Lately the US wants to be involved in the dispute over the islands of the South China Sea. For the US the dispute provides an opportunity to involve South East Asian countries in the encirclement of China.
24. It is clear that the US is seeking to make war against the small nations of the world. The US is willing to kill hundreds of thousands of people in order to spread its influence and domination.
25. No country in the world dares to condemn the US for its bullying of small weak countries.
26. Everywhere in the world US Embassies have to be fenced and guarded. Everywhere there would be demonstrations against the US. The country is the most hated nation in the world.
27. The US should be the leading nation in the world, abiding by the decisions of the United Nations, helping the poor and the weak, enriching the world with its technology and generally creating a better world by upholding non-violent ways of settling disputes between nations.
28. It is sad that the US has chosen the ugly way just for the sake of Israel. It is sad that a country which preaches human rights, justice and freedom is the country which is most guilty of breaching all the high values that it preaches.
29. Obama, with all his promises of change has changed nothing about US warlike ways and disregard for international norms. Clearly changes of Presidents, of parties forming Governments of the US will change nothing concerning US creed and policies.
30. The capacity of the US to learn from its experiences is almost nil.
31. The world will have to be reconciled with having the most powerful country in the world remaining addicted to the gun which won it the West in the past. This great democracy is anything but democratic in its relationship with the world community.
