[Marxism] Russia, China finally oppose use of UNSC as US goon squad

["Fred Feldman" <ffeldman@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

This is good news no matter what selfish reasons these regimes have for
their actions. And it is also a good thing that a sector of liberals is not
falling for the more-and-more-sanctions-against-more-and-more-bad-people
line.

The crises in Sudan, Zimbabwe, South Africa, Democratic Republic of Congo,
Somalia, and elsewhere in Africa have their roots not primarily in bad local
governments but in US imperialism and in its crisis, which is rooted
fundamentally in the imperialist powers themselves, not in their colonies
and semicolonies.

An end to demonization, economic sanctions (including demands that South
Africa cut off Zimbabwe's supply of electricity and so forth), which end up
being part of the buildup for more direct forms of imperialist military
intervention.

Imperialist (including UN) Hands Off!
Fred Feldman


http://www.thenation.com/blogs/dreyfuss/336695

The Ugliness in Sudan and Zimbabwe posted by Robert Dreyfuss on 07/14/2008 @
10:59am
There's no defense for the ugliness in Sudan and Zimbabwe. But US policy in
connection with those two problematic nations is running into a buzzsaw. In
both cases, the United States is acting clumsily, and it is facing stiff
opposition from Russia, China, and many African nations. 

Two obvious conclusions: the Bush Administration's muddled pursuit of
democracy-by-force has made the entire world suspicious of America's motives
in world crises, especially when they're tied to possible armed
intervention. And confronting nations' real-world strategic interests, such
as China's interest in Sudan, under the guise of humanitarian concerns won't
fly, after Iraq. 

First, there's the indictment today of Sudan's President Bashir by the
International Criminal Court (ICC), the Hague-based body that was rejected
by the Bush Administration but is now embraced by Washington over Sudan. The
indictment, not a surprise, was widely feared by world diplomats, who
concluded that the consequences of indicting the Sudanese president were
unpredictable and probably both dangerous and counterproductive. 

It's the first indictment of a sitting head of state since the ICC was
founded in 2002. But Bashir will resist the charges, and no one is going to
charge into Sudan to arrest him. Meanwhile, UN diplomats and peacekeepers
worry that Sudan will react forcefully, making the situation in Darfur in
southwestern Sudan worse. The African Union issued a statement over the
weekend warning against "the misuse of indictments against African leaders"
-- perhaps thinking, too, of Zimbabwe. Both Russia and China (which has
close economic ties to Sudan and its oil) were against the indictments, too.


Australia is already reconsidering its planned deployment of peacekeepers to
Sudan, fearing greater violence. The Arab League is having an emergency
meeting over the crisis. 

Then, Zimbabwe. Over the weekend, Russia and China cast a double veto
against proposed economic sanctions against Robert Mugabe's government.
Ambassador Zalmay Khalilizad, the one-man wrecking ball and neocon
strategist who represents the United States at the UN, blasted Russia for
its veto. "The U-turn in the Russian position is particularly surprising and
disturbing," said Zal-Khal. "They decided to make a point on this issue, to
say nyet. Something happened in Moscow." Zal-Khal also accused South
Africa's President Mbeki of trying to start fake negotiations to bring about
a coalition government in Zimbabwe. Fake or not, the talks are stalemated,
but continuing. 

Russia has flatly denied making any "U-turn." And Russia's top diplomats are
blistering Khalilzad. Not a good omen.



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