America’s Chaos-based Imperialism
The Global South does not need American "leadership"
In the blockbuster animation movie Ne Zha, the mythological boy has an inspirational message: We are in charge of our fate and destiny. The Washington consensus, however, is the opposite: America’s success depends on the failure of other nations. Thus, the US foreign policy establishment spends much of its time fueling perpetual wars, economic crises and color revolutions all over the world. Furthermore, while Ne Zha is a noble kid who is vilified as a demon, the US is a tyrannical imperialist parading as a benevolent leader who spreads freedom and democracy.
In a recent article from the Foreign Affairs, Professor Jorge Castaneda – and former Foreign Minister of Mexico – argues that American leadership is good for the Global South, and that the world must strengthen the US-led international world order. Interestingly, much of the article is about how the US has disregarded international treaties even when signed by the US Presidents. That is a very strange strategy to convince the readers. However, we cannot blame him, since defending the American primacy has become an impossible endeavor.
Let’s start with the American leaders’ favorite phrase, “international rules-based order.” What are they? Nobody knows! The rules have never been written down or even articulated. It is a lawless and order-free propaganda phrase that boils down to one principle: The US must always win.
For example, should countries respect and follow the ruling of the International Criminal Court (ICC) or the International Court of Justice (ICJ)? Answer: Only when the indicted are enemies of the US empire. If the ICC dares to look into the crimes of, say, the US or Israel, the prosecutors and the judges will be sanctioned or arrested by the US, which has even passed a bill giving itself the powers to invade the Hague.
Treaties, agreements and promises mean nothing to the US. After promising not to expand NATO “one inch eastward” in 1990, the US has added a staggering sixteen countries to its NATO empire. The US also unilaterally withdrew from major treaties with Russia – the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty (ABM) and the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF).
Similarly, the US promise of treating the island of Taiwan as a part of China is always fungible. If there is a political or geopolitical exigency, American politicians and think tanks will start quibbling about One China Principle versus One China Policy. Just a day or two ago, the US State Department removed from its website the statement, “We do not support Taiwan independence.”
The US claims to spread freedom and democracy, but the reality has been very different since the dawn of the American Century eight decades ago. From Latin America to Africa and Asia to the Middle East, the United States has long interfered in the name of fighting communism or spreading democracy. However, the primary goal was always to install puppet leaders, even brutal dictators – as it was done in Brazil, Argentina, Indonesia, South Korea etc. Incredibly, the US ran a military academy – the School of Americas – to train future Latin American dictators on torture, extortion, blackmail, propaganda and much more. How about that for universal values and human rights?
Sometimes, the US assassinated foreign leaders. Other times, if a country wanted to have elections, the US deep state worked hard to make sure that a pro-US leader won the election – as it was done in Japan, Italy, Greece and many other “allies.” CIA agents in the past have revealed how they would go around with suitcases full of cash to bribe the right people or plant fake stories in the media to manipulate elections. There have also been allegations about the CIA/NATO carrying out false flag terrorist attacks – Operation Gladio – in Europe to sway public opinions. These should not be surprising when one looks at declassified documents such as those related to Operation Northwoods, when US officials wanted to plant bombs in malls in Miami, blame Fidel Castro for the deaths, and then invade Cuba.
Since the 1980s, various US government-funded groups like USAID, NED, NDI and IRI have mastered the art of toppling leaders through protests and “democratic” coups.
The US empire has not delivered prosperity or stability to the Global South. The developing nations are always viewed as sources for cheap natural resources, exploitable labor, and a consumer market for American corporations. It was the US who mastered the original debt trap, as detailed by John Perkins in his remarkable expose, “Confessions of an Economic Hit Man.” The US’ economic contributions to poor countries are insignificant compared to China’s amazing Belt and Road Initiative, which builds roads, railways, airports, seaports, dams, schools, hospitals and much more. As the social media memes say, “China builds, USA bombs.”
While the US has made commendable contributions to technology, its imperialist adventures have been disastrous for the world. Neo-colonialism has also been bad for America, which is plagued with exploding debt, appalling inequality, crumbling infrastructure and crippling de-industrialization. The rapid expansion of BRICS over the last three years is a polite rejection of American hegemony as well as its economic and diplomatic models. A multipolar world is emerging and it is unstoppable.
Will the US peacefully dismantle its own empire like the Soviet Union did? While watching Ne Zha, we know there will be a happy ending. Not so in geopolitics.
S.L. Kanthan
An edited version of this article was published in China’s Global Times: