George Bushes "Axis of Evil" blunder
By
Salihu Mahmud
[LONDON]
Currently, there is much unease in Europe about Bush's "axis of evil". European politicians have been lining up to criticise it. Chris Patten, the European commissioner in charge of external relations and former governor of British Hong Kong called it "absolutist and simplistic". The British Foreign Sec. Jack Straw dismissed Bush's speech. He said it is "best understood by the fact that there are midterm congressional elections in November." The usual outspoken opponents of the Americans in the West, the French, retained the most scathing attack on the speech. Their Foreign Minister, Hubert Vedrine said
"Today we are threatened by a simplistic quality in US policy that reduces all the problems of the world to the struggle against terrorism. It is not properly thought out."
What happened to the "trench warfare" cameraderie of post 9/11? There are certainly many answers to this question. It would be safe to suggest interests have diverged once more. The unity initiated by the attack on the US has served its purpose. This was to give the US carte-blanche to annihilate anyone it presumed guilty (with or without evidence mind you).
But it couldn't last for ever, not in the greedy capitalist world we live in. You see, since capitalist nations are motivated by selfish interests and cannot resist the urge to colonise and commandeer the resources of weaker nations, it is inevitable they will squabble amongst themselves over these resources.
One of the reasons for US belligerency towards Iran, besides the smokescreen of weapons proliferation and supporting terrorism is also because the Europeans have been ignoring America's Helms-Burton Act to deal with Iran. This law forbids any company to deal with Cuba and Iran, countries which America considers as misfits namely. America has
As such the fat oil and gas
contracts have been going to EU
countries rather than American ones. For example, in March 1999 the
French oil company, Elf Aquitaine and Agip of Italy, sealed a deal
with Tehran to exploit the Darood oil and gas field in the northern Gulf.
Even if American companies wanted a piece of the action they weren't
allowed to benefit because of their own country's law hindering them.
Now the EU has used the cover
story of "constructive engagement" with
Iran, rather than US style threats to moderate Iran's "hardliners",
to acquire all the lucrative deals. Washington must have thought
"well if we can't have it, neither will you". So, by declaring Iran
a rogue state it seeks to isolate it once more from the international
community and make it difficult for any country to do business with Iran.
No wonder the Europeans are cheesed off (France in particular).
One may ask the question why
now? Well, even in America there has been
criticism of the Helms-Burton law and the harmful effects it is having
on American business interests. With open season declared on Islam and
Muslims there is no better time than now to consolidate many foreign
policy objectives, this being one of them. Implicating Iran in the arms
shipment to Palestine serves as an added reason to isolate them now.
The Bush administration must have reasoned it is better to take on the
"hardliners" than to play ball with the "moderates".
This is the nature of nations built upon secular capitalist creeds. It is the same capitalist greed that motivates Russia, China and France to speak against the 10 year sanctions on Iraq. Since, if and when the sanctions are eventually lifted these countries are counting on Iraq to remember her good friends in good times as they remembered her in bad times. An axis of interests, how convenient. The US on the other hand backs the Iraqi National Congress (INC) which it is currently nurturing to help overthrow Saddam. No prizes there for guessing who will get the reconstruction and oil contracts if they manage to overthrow him.