This piece was reprinted by OpEd News with permission or license. It may not be reproduced in any form without permission or license from the source.
America may retain global giant status, says Wallerstein, but it's "a lumbering giant, uncertain of where it is going or how to get there."
For years, he's said America is in long-term decline. Its "measure," he now believes, "is the degree to which its erstwhile closest allies are ready both to defy its wishes and to say so publicly." It's also "the degree to which it does not feel able to state publicly what it is doing, and to insist that all is really under control." The consequence, Wallerstein thinks, is "more global anarchy," but who'll gain or lose most going forward "is a very open question."
Perhaps with less belligerence, America would retain better relations with allies, especially non-belligerent ones, using their resources productively for commerce and development, not conflict.
However, the more Washington spends on militarism, the faster it frays ties with allies and trading partners, accelerating its decline as other noted analysts besides Wallerstein believe. Eventually, perhaps all its influence will erode, especially for attacking non-belligerents for entirely unwarranted reasons.
A previous article explained that, in 2003, Gaddafi came in from the cold, became a valued Western ally, had meetings and discussions with top officials like UK Prime Ministers Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, France's Nicolas Sarkozy, Italy's Silvio Berlusconi, US Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice, and others. He also participated in the 2009 G-8 Summit in L-Aquila, Italy as Chairman of the African Union. At the time, he met and shook hands with Obama.
On May 16, 2006, Washington restored full diplomatic ties, removing Libya from its state sponsors of terrorism list. At the time, Rice called the move:
"tangible results that flow from the historic decisions taken by Libya's leadership in 2003 to renounce terrorism and to abandon its weapons of mass destruction programs....Libya is an important model as nations around the world press for changes in behavior by the Iranian and North Korean regimes."
She also praised Gaddafi's "excellent cooperation" in fighting terrorism. Moreover, he opened Libya's markets to Western interests, arranged deals with Big Oil, notably BP, ExxonMobil, Royal Dutch Shell, Occidental, France's Total, Italy's Eni Gas, among others. By all appearances, he joined the club, so why turn on him now?
Next Page 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7
(Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher).
1
1
1
