Will the US ever regain its credibility on the world stage? At the moment, it is barely recognizable.
The United States of America has historically been the big brother virtually everyone looked up to: the nation that fed people when they were hungry and protected the vulnerable.
Analysts now marvel at how a 50-state country can starve a population of a vulnerable island.
- The US has blocked oil and other supplies to Cuba, just because the island does not bow to it. It is hoping to extend similar suffering to Venezuela.
- The US abruptly cut long-established aid to Africa, USAID, without giving time for the countries to seek alternative means of support.
- The US threatened to invade Greenland, the world’s biggest island, which is legally under Denmark.
- The US threatened to annex Canada, which, in the President’s thinking, should have been the 51st state of America in the first place.
- The US ignored the genocide in Gaza and instead joined Israel, the perpetrator, to attack Iran.
- The US has left its Arab allies devastated and vulnerable, with no word of remorse. There is no promise to help rebuild their infrastructure.
On a larger scale, the world economy is suffering from high oil prices and inconvenienced travel. However, the attack on Iran is no longer the main culprit. The US, under the leadership of Donald Trump, is.
The question is: Who has granted the US authority to write the world constitution? The Trump administration is acting like the bully that says: If I’m not allowed into the party, no one else goes. It has imposed a blockade in the high seas to ensure that no oil ship delivers supplies to or from Iran.
It has even stopped ships that collected supplies from elsewhere in the region but passed through the Strait of Hormuz. To the US, if Iran does not allow US ships to pass through, no other ships will go through. To the US, bilateral relationships mean something only when the US is the beneficiary.
Analysts cannot understand why a country like China, which has no quarrel with Iran, should not continue passing through the Hormuz. They find it unconventional that a country can force others to join its war.
In this case, the US has tried to coerce the UK and EU countries into joining efforts to block ships from transporting oil and other goods across the Pacific and surrounding waters.
Numerous Ships Intercepted
Last week, the US Navy intercepted three Iranian vessels. The forces re-routed them, whereas it was clear they were destined for some Asian destination, probably Malaysia, Sri Lanka, or India. The tanker was already in Asian territory.
China has also fallen victim to the US blockade. It has had its ships redirected from their planned routes while at sea. In some incidents, the ships were from Venezuela; in others, they were from Iran. The US has imposed economic sanctions on both of those countries.
By last week, the US was bragging about having turned back 29 ships coming from the direction of Iran.
What is Normal
Normally, economic sanctions are acceptable when they are approved by the United Nations Security Council (UNSC). The council’s Chapter VII, Articles 39 & 41, seek to maintain or restore international peace and security.
Whatever the US is doing has not been authorized or ratified by the UNSC. Donald Trump apparently has no regard for the UN or any other international body.
If a country decides to impose sanctions against another for any justifiable reason, its unilateral decision should not be imposed on others.
In the current situation, the US is interfering with the trade between other countries and its personal nemesis. By blocking the free movement of merchant ships through the Pacific, the Indian Ocean, and elsewhere, it is violating international conventions.
At this juncture, not everyone is prepared to accept bullying passively.
China will not accept Bullying.
China is fed up with the US interfering with its vessels or vessels transporting contents to or from China. If China wanted to invade a country, it would, and it would be fighting its own battles. But currently, it is not engaged in any fights.
China has been incurring economic losses deliberately caused by the US. Donald Trump has ordered his military to obstruct and redirect any ships benefitting from trade in the Gulf region and other parts he does not like.
Some ships interfered with by the US were carrying oil from Venezuela to Chinese oil refineries. Others were carrying oil from the Gulf region. “Centuries” and “Rich Starry” are among the ships whose blockade has adversely affected China’s economy.
Enough is Enough!
China is nobody’s subject. It is a sovereign state, just as the US is. It has therefore decided to forge ahead with its normal business.
Xi Jinping’s government has categorically declared that it will protect its assets wherever they are. This means anyone preparing to interfere with any of China’s ships or merchandise in the high seas should be ready for confrontation.
Instead of engaging in a war of words with the US, China decided to find alternative routes, other than the Strait of Hormuz, through which to transport its goods. China is demonstrating in action that no country has the right to interfere with its bilateral trade with Iran, Venezuela, or any other country.
Warning from Iran
The Speaker of the Majlis, the Iranian Parliament, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, announced yesterday a new directive from China. This came after the recent seizure of oil being delivered by Iranian vessels to China.
The Chinese government has directed that any foreign country interfering with the delivery of Chinese goods have its assets seized and confiscated.
What is the import of this? Clearly, Iranian and Chinese forces will not hesitate to use military force against any vessels trying to block such deliveries. What remains to be seen is whether Trump, fearing a showdown, will relax the blockade.
Weeks ago, he ignored Russia’s oil vessel, the Anatoly, which was delivering oil to Cuba despite US sanctions. Russia had given the oil tanker a military ship to escort it all the way from Russia, through the English Channel, and into Cuba. By so doing, Russia must have been ready for war.
If China gets its way, will the Europeans remain cowed? Will they continue accepting their role as given by the US: that of side-kicks?