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Unmasking vicious cycle of wicked U.S. behavior on world stage

By Jiang Ning (People's Daily Online) 16:43, April 18, 2022

Years later, when people look back at history to try to figure out the rights and wrongs in the Russia-Ukraine crisis, they will see through the nature of Western narratives.

Ironically, as the ones who instigated the conflict, the U.S. and its Western allies have brazenly held high the banner of “morality,” while taking fault with China, a country that has always upheld justice and supports peaceful talks between Russia and Ukraine.

The conduct of the U.S. is one of the most ridiculous and shameless incidents that has taken place in the international arena in the 21st century.

In order to put more pressure on Russia, the U.S.-led NATO alliance engaged in five rounds of eastward expansion and instigated “color revolutions” in countries near Russia, continuously creating tension in the region. One American strategist warned that the continuous eastward expansion of NATO would be the most deadly mistake the U.S. has made, and it would lead to a series of consequences.

Former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger said that Ukraine should function as a bridge between the East and the West, rather than becoming “either side’s outpost against the other.”

That insight was ignored by American politicians, who kept moving in the opposite direction by pushing for the further eastward expansion of NATO until finally it prompted the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

When both Russia and Ukraine expressed their willingness to bring peace to the region and were back at the negotiating table, the U.S. and its Western allies inflicted more than 5,000 sanctions against Russia, while providing large quantities of weapons to Ukraine.

Instead of putting out the fire at this critical moment, the U.S. chose to pour fuel onto the fire, further pressuring Russia while supporting Ukraine in its conflict against Russia. This shows the sinister intentions of Washington.

What’s worse, the U.S. and its Western allies, who have been acting like warmongers, have tried to claim the moral high ground and bash China for not condemning Russia’s military action in Ukraine, portraying China as an onlooker in the war in Ukraine, and falsely claiming that China will “become a winner in the Russia-Ukraine crisis.”

Driven by its Cold War mentality and geopolitical thinking, Washington has led its Western allies to make further inroads into the Russia-Ukraine crisis. The underlying reason behind this is that Washington has been “manipulated” by the U.S. military-industrial complex in the latter’s attempt to seek profits from war.

The U.S. military-industrial complex is a huge industrial chain consisting of the military, arms dealers, congresspeople, defense research and development institutes, think tanks and the media. All parties in the industrial chain have their respective roles to play while working closely with each other.

Military companies in the U.S. make political donations to support politicians on their quest to become actors in the political arena in what can be described as a “revolving door.” These lawmakers then push for policies that will stir up conflicts overseas, playing their part as the middlemen for arms dealers. After these high-ranking politicians then retire, many will turn into the executives of arms manufacturing companies, or become lobbyists who go on to encourage their former colleagues to enter into military confrontations so that they themselves might benefit from such wars.

As a result of all these actions, U.S. defense spending has continued increasing, with arms contractors in the country therefore receiving a continuous number of orders. In the meantime, political contributions flow nonstop from arms giants to hawkish war-like politicians, who themselves constantly push for further increases in defense spending.

Constantly expanding sales channels have driven the U.S. military-industrial complex to look for more opportunities to make a fortune from all over the world. The U.S. military-industrial complex has to therefore grow, develop and build connections in every corner of the world.

This vicious cycle is like an unstoppable machine. If there is a fault found at any one of its links, the machine will stop working as a result of a capital breakdown. Wars and armed confrontation are hence the only source of forward momentum to keep the vicious cycle going.

Manipulated by the military-industrial complex, the U.S. has let other countries, including its allies, purchase inventories of arms by directly manufacturing troubles or fighting proxy wars for selfish gains at the cost of world peace and stability. While the U.S. military and political dignitaries speak out loudly, they are actually speaking on behalf of the military-industrial complex. There were only 16 years when the U.S. was not at war during its over 200 years of history. That explains and represents the fundamental reason behind the vicious cycle that has driven U.S. behavior.

In fact, after the Russia-Ukraine conflict broke out, U.S. military enterprises, including Lockheed Martin and Raytheon, saw their stock prices surge. An official in the U.S. military community said that many people in the community have been uncorking champagne bottles in celebration.

The vicious U.S. military-industrial complex talks hypocritically about “justice” in the international community, which is just an excuse for it to rake in huge profits. By shifting the responsibility for instigating the conflict between Russia and Ukraine onto China, the U.S. military-industrial complex aims to divert people’s attention from its shameful actions in profiteering from war and whitewashing its behavior.

China has always respected the principles of good neighborliness and harmony in relations with all other countries. It is not in the genes of the Chinese nation to invade other countries or seek world hegemony. The Chinese people do not subscribe to the logic that “a strong country is bound to seek hegemony.” The Chinese people want to live in peace and harmony with the people of other countries, and work with them to promote, defend and share peace together.

After the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, China, as a major and responsible country, provided timely humanitarian assistance to Ukraine, called for respecting the legitimate security concerns of all countries, including Russia, put forward initiatives such as effectively protecting the safety of civilians, and worked actively to promote peace through talks.

Any objective person can conclude that China’s position on the Ukraine issue is fair and objective, and China supports all efforts conducive to a peaceful settlement of the Ukraine conflict. This demonstrates that China truly upholds justice and cherishes peace.

Admittedly, the Russia-Ukraine conflict has stirred a heated debate in the international community and online in cyberspace after it broke out. This is not surprising given that the international system, taking the United Nations (UN) at its core, the international order underpinned by international law, and the basic norms governing international relations based on the purposes and principles of the UN Charter are facing severe challenges.

However, when the U.S. and Western politicians confound black and white to stigmatize China, we must keep a clear mind and understand the nature of the issue. The vicious cycle of U.S. behavior provides a way for us in this regard.

While following the U.S., Western allies of the country have to sort out the mess created by it and buy weapons from U.S. arms dealers. But the international community should not let the U.S. and its Western allies set the tone and lead the world astray.

Proceeding from the merits of the matter itself, upholding international law and universally recognized norms governing international relations, acting in accordance with the purposes and principles of the UN Charter, and advocating the vision of common, comprehensive, cooperative and sustainable security are the only correct ways of judging the Russia-Ukraine conflict. Practice will prove that this is the only effective way to break the vicious cycle of U.S. behavior. 

(Web editor: Hongyu, Liang Jun)

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