Fanning up flames of trouble, US is to blame for tension in Ukraine

Ukraine crisis mirrors US' base role on international stage (I)

Source
China Military Online
Editor
Li Jiayao
Time
2022-03-17 17:27:10

By Jun Sheng

The Ukraine situation has captured close international attention lately. While the whole world is calling for settling the disputes in peaceful ways through dialogue, the US continues to muddy the waters, shift the blame, and mislead the world. A closer look at what is happening in Ukraine now and why it is happening easily reveals the following truth: the US, the habitual boat-rocker, is the culprit for the ongoing crisis.

It was the US that laid the fuse that has led to the war today. For many years, the superpower has played two dirty tricks to suppress and contain Russia and squeeze its strategic space – pushing NATO’s eastward expansion and instigating “Color Revolution” around Russia.

According to the “indivisible security principle”, a pillar of European security, one country’s security should not be guaranteed at the expense of another’s. This principle is included in the preface to the Helsinki Final Act of 1975, in the Charter of Paris for a New Europe of 1990, in the document on basic relations signed by Russia and NATO in 1997, in the Charter for European Security adopted by the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) in Istanbul 1999, in the preface to the Treaty between The United States of America and the Russian Federation on Measures for the Further Reduction and Limitation of Strategic Offensive Arms (New START) of 2011, among others.

However, after the Soviet Union disintegrated in the 1990s, the US broke its word and began to push the eastward expansion of NATO in the name of “consolidating democracy, extending stability and promoting common values”. Former US ambassador to Soviet Union George Kennan once warned that expanding NATO would be the most lethal mistake in America’s diplomatic policy in the whole post-Cold-War era, but the US government brushed him off and continued with the eastward expansion and military deployments, constantly challenging Russia’s bottom line of strategic security. One comment hit the nail on the head, saying that certain countries should ask themselves, when the US drove five waves of NATO expansion eastward all the way to Russia’s doorstep and deployed advanced offensive strategic weapons in breach of its assurances to Russia, whether they had ever thought about the consequences of pushing a big country to the wall.

In the new century, the US has kept stirring up the “Color Revolution” around Russia, fostered pro-US regimes and forces, and made Ukraine a “bridgehead” to achieve its own geopolitical goals by using it as a chess piece to isolate and suppress Moscow. After Joe Biden took office, he has been tough on Moscow and has been egging Ukraine on to confront Russia with empty promises like supporting it in joining NATO and giving it military aid. Emboldened by these gestures, Kyiv clamored about “taking back” Crimea by force” and “putting an end to Moscow’s “invasion” of east Ukraine”. At the same time, NATO reinforced its military operations in the Black Sea region and tried to deploy troops in Ukraine, not to mention the Minsk II agreements still haven’t been effectively executed. Thomas Friedman, a celebrated American expert on international issues, wrote an article saying that the American government is largely to blame for the worsening relationship with Russia because of its miscalculated decisions.

Inciting the Ukraine crisis is a carefully planned and crafted move by the US, through which it can not only besiege Russia but also take over European affairs and make a fortune selling weapons into the bargain. What a perfect deal! Member of the European Parliament Herve Juvin said that on the crisis between Russia and Ukraine, the US is a fomenter of the conflict and hopes to take advantage of it to control Europe and obstruct European independence on security affairs. Moreover, the Biden administration also has its own calculations for flaming up the Ukraine situation – the midterms are around the corner but the president hasn’t done much at home to speak for himself as the pandemic is still rampaging and inflation is hitting a record high. Hyping the Ukraine issue can present a tough Biden up against Russia, showcase America’s so-called control of the regional situation, and consequently buoy the low rating.

Rome is not built in one day. There are extremely complicated reasons why the Ukraine issue has evolved to what it is today, but the pressing task now is chilling down the tension as fast as possible. As the root cause of it all, Washington should make some serious self-reflection, live up to its responsibilities, and take concrete actions to mitigate the situation and resolve the issue instead of busying itself with blame-shifting and buck-passing.

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