US is the greatest threat to world peace and stability

The United States continues to push the world peace and stability against the wall with all those trade conflicts and sanctions against friends and foes.

US is the greatest threat to world peace and stability is the title of an article published by Fars news agency.

Fighting back with facts, the World Bank is warning that as a consequence of the US trade wars, oil bans and sanctions, global business confidence has gone down the drain, slowdown in global trade has deepened, and investment in emerging and developing economies has dropped. Because of this worrisome and devastating trend, the International Monetary Fund is also warning that the trade wars and escalating conflicts in West Asia and Persian Gulf will decelerate global growth. 

This terrible global outlook is only bolstered by the fact that much of the global economic and security problems today can be traced back to Trump’s military adventures and protectionist policies. The fall in stock markets is traced to his trade tussle with Beijing. The recent loss in the manufacturing confidence in the U.S. has come as a direct consequence of the threat to slap tariffs on allies. The new reports and warnings issued by the World Bank and the IMF, or those by the United Nations, are also tied to the US role in destabilizing the global economy and oil trade with its extended preoccupation with trade wars and military deployments.
This serves as further proof that the Trump administration officials are indeed lying about their true intentions. The vast majority of their geopolitical intentions remains completely in the shadows and is never subjected to meaningful examination - which only increases the chances of market uncertainties and catastrophic security consequences.

What’s more, the trade wars and conflicts are set to continue. The amoral program remains shrouded in secrecy, which includes a near certainty that levies on European goods are also up for grabs, or that the political debates in the US Congress and global concerns won’t terminate the security concerns in the Persian Gulf.

These are only some of the overwhelming facts that have managed to make it into the news and onto the record. After considering the trail of global economic and security consequences that follow the American flag wherever it goes, it is safe to say the US is exceptional in many things; responsibility and fairness in global trade and security is not among them. The threat is also being consistently propped up by the concept of American exceptionalism. So, it’s also safe to conclude that this makes the US the biggest threat to global security and stability.

However, behind the clouds, Washington’s geopolitical goals are wishes, being fought for the worst possible reasons. The tussle is just a wish, a pie-in-the-sky ideal, without a definite and practical outcome. It comes from the egos of a decaying hegemonic power and a narcissistic president that don’t live in a reality-based universe.

History shows us nevertheless that those who launch wars are always defeated. History also tells us that independent nations like Iran can protect themselves in any escalating conflict.
President Trump and his White Supremacist faction should therefore stop highlighting the positive aspects of their trade wars and military escalations. It is overblown. The pointless tussle, backed by no American ally in Europe, is far less about trade balance and regional security, and more about power and political hegemony: The US hegemony of the world and the trade and technological dictatorships of its corporations and Pentagon.

The futile efforts made by the Trumpsters, who advocate a doctrine of permanent war, as well as their technological dictatorships, who try to push their opponents under the bus by supporting the post-colonial status quo, will go nowhere. Their dream of sanctioning Iran into submission, dominating the world in financial and economic terms, and ensuring that no nation, or a bloc of nations would ever challenge their unholy agenda, will never come true. What they fail to see is the catastrophe that their fantasies have caused for the US and its handful of partners.

If history is a witness, all nations who have accomplished great things have had great aims, too. They fixed their gaze on goals that were positive and high. The US-imposed wars and conflicts are not a great thing at all. Behind the clouds, they are just a silly wish with no great goal and honor. It’s not as though they were not warned of the inevitable blowback.
President Donald Trump’s veto of a congressional resolution to end US military assistance for Saudi Arabia’s war in Yemen has only meant more suffering and death for millions of people in the war-torn country.

If Trump was truly concerned about civilian lives, he would ensure that the US-supported Saudi-led coalition stop breaking the laws of war and depriving millions of Yemenis of life-saving assistance. The US is deepening and prolonging the crisis and civilians are paying the price.

The Saudi-led coalition has been at war with Yemen’s Army and Ansarullah Movement since 2015. The conflict has claimed the lives of tens of thousands of people, fueled a major cholera outbreak and driven the Arab world’s poorest country to the brink of famine.

Increased fighting and blockade in Northern Yemen in recent months is also causing new waves of displacement. The intensification of the fighting near the border with Saudi Arabia has caused a massive new wave of displacement.

Since last year, many people have relocated to other parts of the region, joining many others who have fled earlier fighting. It is difficult to trace them because there are no formal camps for internally displaced people. They are scattered across a very large area. Sometimes there are groups of refugees living under basic plastic sheets that they buy or that are donated to them. Other times they are mixed with local communities. In any case, they all live in very precarious conditions.

The majority do not have access to health services because, after several years of conflict, there are few health centers open in the country. Many health centers are no longer functional or are open for only a few hours a day with just a nurse or a small staff. Those working in the health centers have not received salaries for more than two years and work without adequate medical supplies. The health system can’t respond to the needs of displaced people.

At the same time, international aid groups are severely restricted in the assistance and can offer in the places that are absorbing newly displaced communities. In addition to this, in recent months the Yemeni currency has lost a lot of value as inflation has risen, causing fuel and transportation costs to increase. This has made it unaffordable for many people to reach hospitals.

It is important that the few medical organizations that are supporting the Ministry of Health on the ground gain more access to address the needs of vulnerable displaced communities. But they can’t because the Saudis and their proxy forces do not allow them to commute.

In areas where the security situation and the Saudi-led coalition forces allow, there is a network of community health workers who manage a referral system for the most severe cases. Currently they focus on areas with new settlements where the most basic services are missing.

The worsening blockade and fighting are undermining the capacity of NGOs on the ground to provide relief, water and sanitation services, food, and more. High inflation, linked to the rapid devaluation of the rial, import restrictions, blockade, can have an impact on the nutritional status of the population. Aid workers continue to receive many cases of easily preventable diseases, such as diphtheria. This shows that the impact of the war on the deteriorating health system is increasingly affecting vaccination coverage.

The Saudis have not suddenly woken up and realized that the illegal war is causing too much suffering without adequate prospect of strategic gain. However, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman sees Yemen as a defining battleground for regional hegemony.

And if you want to understand how a US withdrawal of military support would affect the Saudi war effort, look no further than President Bashar Assad's Syria. The Saudi coalition has far more advanced weapons platforms than the Syrians, but it lacks the integrated command and control, intelligence, targeting, communications, and logistical skill to employ its military effectively. The US has been absolutely critical in filling in the gaps in these areas in Yemen.

And although the Saudis are still too capricious with their use of force, American guidance has helped them target civilians. Again, motivated by their historic, cultural, and theological blood feud with Yemen, the Saudis would care little about killing thousands more civilians if they believed it might win the war. America claims it is the only check on them at this moment. However, as demonstrated by the rising number of civilian casualties in Hodeida and elsewhere, that check hasn’t held.

The simple reality of the Saudi-led war on Yemen is that it has become worse due to the US engagement and Trump’s veto. Trump exaggerates the degree to which Saudi Arabia is a constructive, stable partner for the US in the broader West Asia. Still, he is right on the fundamental issue: that the US needs a Saudi Arabia that can be “milked” indefinitely. His veto has only decorated Yemen with more civilian blood. He must be laughing all the way to the bank!

EA/SS