Tag: neocon

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Was Obama ‘for or against’ the Invasion of Iraq?

Mohammed Abbasi

Obama moral compass changes on IraqBy Adil E Shamoo  In a speech in Brussels on March 26, President Barack Obama rejected Vladimir Putin’s assertions regarding the wrongs of the United States invasion of Iraq. Rhetoric aside, the Russian president has no moral standing for the invasion and annexation of Crimea. Nevertheless it is important to look at Obama’s own moral arguments in justifying an invasion that a majority of US citizens regard as a major US foreign policy disaster.  Putin called into question the legitimacy of the coalition behind the Iraq invasion by pointing out that president George W Bush … Continue reading Was Obama ‘for or against’ the Invasion of Iraq?

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New US reality: An empire beyond salvation

Mohammed Abbasi

US Secretary of State John Kerry couldn’t hide his frustration anymore as the US-sponsored Palestinian peace process continued to falter. After eight months of wrangling to push talks between Israel and the Palestinian Authority forward, he admitted while on a visit to Morocco on April 4 that the latest setback had served as a “reality check” for the peace process. But confining that reality check to the peace process is hardly representative of the painful reality through which the United States has been forced to subsist in during the last few years.  The state of US foreign policy in the … Continue reading New US reality: An empire beyond salvation

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The return of Al-Qaeda

Mohammed Abbasi

Back in 2011 many thought Al-Qaeda was finished. Battered by America’s ferocious response to 9/11 and relentlessly targeted by drones, the organisation was gasping for breath. The death of Bin Laden, it seemed, delivered the final blow.And yet today Al-Qaeda is resurgent.The relative weakness of the Al-Qaeda leadership in Afghanistan and Pakistan is deceptive. The organisation’s strength now lies at the periphery. Today the Al-Nusra front controls huge tracts of Syrian territory. And there are signs that the jihadis there have learnt an important lesson: if they want the consent of the people, it’s best not to murder too many … Continue reading The return of Al-Qaeda

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Palestinian leaders’ showdown turns ugly

Mohammed Abbasi

When late Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat was confined by Israeli soldiers to his headquarters in the West Bank city of Ramallah, Mohammed Dahlan reigned supreme. As perhaps the most powerful and effective member of the “Gang of Five”, he managed the affairs of the ruling Fatah movement, coordinated with Israel regarding matters of security, and even wheeled and dealed in regional and international affairs.  That was the period between March and April 2002, and it was a different time. Back then, Dahlan – a former Palestinian Authority (PA) minister, National Security advisor and head of Gaza’s Preventative Security Service (PSS)- was … Continue reading Palestinian leaders’ showdown turns ugly

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Al-Qai’da aid project shows the way in Afghanistan

Mohammed Abbasi

World View: Corruption has blighted the torrent of dollars poured into the country by America since 2001 An Afghan acquaintance who had worked for the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) told me several years ago how an Afghan subcontractor had made a large profit from a contract to build and get running a tractor repair shop in Uruzgan province in southern Afghanistan. Uruzgan, the home province of Mullah Omar, the leader of the Taliban, was then a particularly dangerous place, but the subcontractor cunningly turned this to his advantage. The strong Taliban presence in the area meant that … Continue reading Al-Qai’da aid project shows the way in Afghanistan

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U.S. National War Academy: A Project for The Muslim nations – Whats the Muslim Response?

Mohammed Abbasi

  Plans for Redrawing the Middle East: The Project for a “New Middle East” By Mahdi Darius Nazemroaya Global Research, November 18, 2006 Region: Middle East & North Africa Theme: US NATO War Agenda In-depth Report: AFGHANISTAN, IRAN: THE NEXT WAR?,IRAQ REPORT, THE WAR ON LEBANON     “Hegemony is as old as Mankind…” -Zbigniew Brzezinski, former U.S. National Security Advisor The term “New Middle East” was introduced to the world in June 2006 in Tel Aviv by U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice (who was credited by the Western media for coining the term) in replacement of the older and more imposing term, the “Greater Middle East.” … Continue reading U.S. National War Academy: A Project for The Muslim nations – Whats the Muslim Response?

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Ukraine: The clash of partnerships

Mohammed Abbasi

John Feffer  The Cold War is history. For those growing up today, the Cold War is as distant in time as World War II was for those came of age in the 1970s. In both cases, empires collapsed and maps were redrawn. Repugnant ideologies were laid bare and then laid to rest, though patches of nostalgia persist.  Surely the Cold War has been consigned to the textbooks as irrevocably as the Battle of the Bulge. The Berlin Wall is in pieces. The US president speaks of the abolition of nuclear weapons. The “common European home” from the Atlantic to the … Continue reading Ukraine: The clash of partnerships

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US hawks take flight over Ukraine

Mohammed Abbasi

By Jim Lobe  WASHINGTON – A familiar clutch of hawks have taken wing over the rapidly developing crisis in Ukraine, as neo-conservatives and other interventionists claim that President Barack Obama’s preference for diplomacy over military action invited Russian aggression. At stake in the current crisis, according to these right-wing critics, are not only Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, but also Washington’s “credibility” as a global superpower and the perpetuation by the US and its Western allies of the post-Cold War international order.  Some right-wing commentators, such as Michael Auslin of the neo-conservative American Enterprise Institute, which played a major role in drumming … Continue reading US hawks take flight over Ukraine

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US – China War ?

Mohammed Abbasi

Maybe that war with China isn’t so far off By Peter Lee The year 2011 has been a tough one for Sino-United States ties. And 2012 does not look like it’s going to be a good year either, with a presidential election year in the United States. For both the Democratic and Republican parties, bashing the Chinese economic, military and freedom-averse menace will probably be a campaign-trail staple. Lunch-pail issues – protectionism and the undervalued yuan – will focus disapproving US eyes. Tensions will also be exacerbated by the Barack Obama administration’s “return to Asia” – a return to proactive … Continue reading US – China War ?

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US and Iran: From enemies to partners

Mohammed Abbasi

By Kaveh L Afrasiabi At the closure of 2011, with the US Congress declaring economic warfare against Iran through tough new sanctions targeting the country’s central bank, 2012 could easily be predicted as a decisive year for Washington and Tehran locking horns in escalating tensions. But an important question is: can policymakers in Iran and the US chart a different path, whereby they could become partners for peace in the Middle East, instead of warring parties? As much as this question appears cut off from reality by the sheer weight of animosities piling up at the gate of US-Iran (non) … Continue reading US and Iran: From enemies to partners