FLASH
Shkruar nga Lucio Caracciolo
Maduro was on the menu in January, will Khamenei be served in February?
A magnificent star-spangled army is hovering off the Iranian coast. Trump threatens fire and brimstone. Everyone expects an attack on the Islamic Republic, a founding member of the “Axis of Evil,” a slogan coined by George Bush Jr. to brand rogue regimes to be overthrown in the name of democracy and freedom. Has Trump converted to the revolutionary faith of neoconservatives? Or was Bush Jr. a Trumpist ahead of his time? It’s worth delving into this apparent paradox. In short, what does America want, from itself and from us?
Trump has built his double ascension to the White House, with a counter-coup intervention, on America First. Offered as a choice, practically mandatory. The crisis of the Stars and Stripes nation is too deep to embark on adventures aimed at redeeming suffering humanity. A nation so divided cannot afford real wars, let alone in remote regions that do not excite the deep America, for which Trump stands as the standard-bearer. It is true that war is in the blood of Americans. Almost neurotic: approximately 400 military interventions in 250 years (1776-2026).
Half since World War II, a quarter since the declared end of the Cold War, despite the peace dividends sung by Clinton. Yet the administration at the top, certainly not a gang of suicide bombers, seems aware of the emergency that advises against war commitments, especially in such close proximity. Maduro was on the menu in January, will Khamenei be served in February? There is complete confusion about the purpose of the undertaking. Self-legitimized as punishment for the massacre of anti-regime protesters, then turned to attack the Pasdaran's nuclear and missile program (but weren't we told it was destroyed?).
As we wait to find out whether the attack will happen, for what purposes, and with what results, we seek a justification for an operation that is throwing the oil ruling classes of the Persian Gulf into turmoil and shaking the entire Middle East. Starting with Israel, threatened by a powerful Persian retaliation. Former European allies are also alarmed, especially China and Russia. Everyone fears a domino effect if the Strait of Hormuz, through which a quarter of the world's oil flows, were to be blocked. The commander-in-chief seems undecided about what to do. Unless he mobilized the Armada out of military lust, reminiscent of toy soldiers. Psychology matters, especially in those dominated by an ego so vast as to arouse compassion. The only logic that resists these premises is economic warfare.
To steal energy and mineral resources from rival China and quasi-friendly Russia. To divide them and thus weaken them within the framework of a permanent negotiation in the shadow of ultra-technological American aircraft carriers. The militarization of the Art of the Deal, the business technique of which Trump is so passionate, is the title of his 1987 autobiography. Military pressure is used not to change the opposing regime, but to change its mind and to adapt to Trump's interests, that is, to American ones. A strategic poker game with extremely high stakes.
What if something went wrong and America had to go to war to save face, or what would be left of it? If so, which ruler could Washington impose on Tehran, and what guarantees could he offer about nuclear weapons? And what if the flames touched Israel, a nuclear power in the midst of war hysteria, with a crippled leader, a willing hostage of settlers and religious ultra-Zionists?
If we were in the Cold War era, when the Soviets and the United States had forged a strong pact that ruled out direct conflict while allowing proxy wars in the Third World, we would be less concerned. But first, the world of former colonies now has more than one coin to play at the Great Power table. Second, the United States, China and Russia do not want to go to war. But with current technology, war can start itself. All it takes is a spark. Waving lit fireworks near World War II monuments is a dangerous sport, even for Trump. Unless his love of the game leads him to rely on throwing the medal given to him by Ms. Machado, which crowns him the first winner of a second-hand Nobel Prize. / Adapted from “Pamphlet” from “La Repubblica”
Lini një Përgjigje