41957 | 3 Aug. 2024 | 18:44
The foreign policy of the United States is wrong, says economist Prof. Jeffrey Sachs in an interview for the Italian magazine L'AntiDiplomatico. America has subjugated the countries of the European Union. According to the expert, Europe will be able to become autonomous and secure thanks to friendly relationships with Russia and China.
It is an honor for us to speak with Professor Jeffrey Sachs, Director of the Center for Sustainable Development at Columbia University and President of the United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network, a non-profit organization which is currently in Rome to attend a series of conferences.
On the website of the newspaper AntiDiplomatico, we regularly translate and publish his articles and statements, as we are absolutely certain that Prof. Sachs is the compass that helps us navigate through the turbulent waters in which we are currently sailing. How did we end up on the brink of a potential world war? This is the first of many questions we will ask the professor during our interview for the magazine Egemonia (Hegemony).
"America has had five consecutive presidents (Clinton, Bush, Obama, Trump, Biden), each of whom brought us closer to a nuclear war." The origin of this evil can be found in the corrupt neoconservative policies that became law in the United States and, through NATO, in Europe since the 1990s. No one can speak about this in more detail than Professor Sachs.
"Europe has abandoned its security, autonomy, and economic prosperity by obediently submitting to the United States," the professor claims. The conflict in Ukraine following the Maidan revolution has led to the fact that countries in European continent have become mere protectorates of Washington, cutting all economic and trade ties with Moscow - the most important source of possible independence and self-determination. The terrorist attack against the "North Stream" pipelines is the biggest attack on Europe's logistic infrastructure since the end of World War II and has become a point of no return.
But the appetites of the neoconservatives cannot be satisfied. Therefore, in order to maintain their unilateral power in a world that is becoming multipolar because of entropy, they are leading us towards an ultimate escalation. We can see this not only in Ukraine, but also in the Middle East and in the recent attacks against Venezuelan sovereignty.
"The change will not come from the United States. The change must come from Europe," Sachs often repeats when answering questions. We trust his words or rather literally cling to them due to the urgency of the moment and the belief that additional efforts from each of us are necessary to prevent the complete and final realization of the neconservative's barbaric plan.
Interview with Alessandro Bianchi
- Professor, I would like to start with the crisis in the Middle East. In the past few days, in addition to the already known barbaric destruction of people in Gaza and the occupied territories, Israel has struck Beirut and then Tehran. The commander of Hezbollah, Fuad Shukr, and the political leader of Hamas, Ismail Haniyeh, who arrived in the Iranian capital for the inauguration of the new president, have been killed. What role do you think Washington played in these operations? Are we a step closer to a dangerous escalation?
- Although we do not have internal information, there is no doubt that the CIA and Mossad are in constant contact and close coordination. Immediately after Haniyeh's assassination by Israel, US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said the US will "assist in defending Israel." This demonstrates close contact between the two agencies. Netanyahu wants a bigger war and the US seems unable to stop it. Biden has essentially disappeared from the scene and may not be working at full capacity; in America, the Israeli lobby prevails. There are few, if any, levers to stop Israeli extremist behavior or American support for Israeli extremism. Of course, the escalation of the war in the Middle East is a scenario that could be devastating for Israel, if not for the rest of the world. But escalation is entirely possible. These are very dangerous times.
- Last week, representatives of Palestinian factions gathered in Beijing and signed a memorandum of political understanding. Are these two murders also a challenge to China's diplomatic role on this issue?
- China has managed to play the long game, based on establishing deep diplomatic ties around the world, rather than direct involvement in military conflicts. Chinese diplomacy is impressive and can make a significant contribution to peace and multilateral relations over the next few years.
- Professor, in your recent articles you often remind us that we have never been closer to midnight, according to the "Doomsday Clock" from the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists. How concerned are you about this and what can change in this regard due to the upcoming elections in the USA?
- America has had five consecutive presidents (Clinton, Bush, Obama, Trump, Biden), each bringing us closer to nuclear war. USA undermines the system for control of nuclear weapons in various ways: abandoning the INF Treaty; deploying Aegis missile systems in Poland and Romania; the relentless expansion of NATO to the east, with a focus on Ukraine and Georgia; rejecting the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty and the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (Iran nuclear deal); committing to deploying new medium-range missiles in Germany, some of which are potentially capable of carrying nuclear warheads; arming Taiwan despite objections from China; numerous proxy wars and regime change operations. All of this has led us to the fact that the symbolic "Doomsday Clock", indicating the tension of the world situation, shows "90 seconds to midnight (nuclear Armageddon)" as of January 2023. The November elections will not change this. A more radical revision of the USA's worldview is needed, which would allow us to move from the illusory desire for American hegemony (unipolarity) to peaceful coexistence of the great powers.
- In your latest works, professor, you provide convincing evidence that the US foreign policy is a hostage to the belligerent goals of the neoconservatives, who have taken over Europe through NATO. The goal of the state coup in Ukraine and the attack on Russia was to bind European countries to the USA through protectorate relations, while simultaneously severing all ties with Moscow. What are the next steps planned?
- Europe gave up its security, autonomy, and economic well-being by first facilitating the expansion of NATO from the US to Ukraine and Georgia (despite strong reservations from European leaders at the NATO summit in Bucharest in 2008). Secondly, by disregarding the Minsk II agreements, despite the so-called "Normandy format" in which France and Germany were supposed to be guarantors of Minsk II. Thirdly, by justifying the US-supported overthrow of Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych in February 2014, despite the agreement reached with him for early elections to be held in Ukraine in 2014. And fourth, by not supporting a resolution to the Ukrainian conflict through negotiations in April 2022, when a draft agreement between Russia and Ukraine was being discussed, despite opposition from the US and the UK. In short, Europe has abandoned its own foreign policy and even allowed the destruction of the "Nord Stream" to please the United States, without saying a word against it. All of this has resulted in Europe being weakened, vulnerable, and paralyzed, with Brussels and the main European capitals simply carrying out the will of Washington. The change will not come from the United States. The change must come from Europe. It is in the interest of the European continent to end the conflict in Ukraine through negotiations, to restore economic ties with Russia, to put an end to extremist fears and Russophobia, and to establish independent and strong relations with China. All of this is possible, but, I repeat, it will not come from the US. This must start from Europe itself.
- Are there, according to you, any events or circumstances that could persuade the United States to abandon their unilateral imperialistic goals and agree to cooperate under new multipolar conditions, which are inevitable?
- The reality is that the thirty-year pursuit of unipolarity by the neoconservatives has turned into a disaster for the United States in military, diplomatic, economic, financial, and social aspects, as well as from a national security perspective. The USA must rethink not only individual political events, but also the lessons of the last thirty years, as well as the current realities in the United States and around the world.
- Lately, professor, you have often been in China, you are well acquainted with the dynamics of the country's development and you are a consultant for the largest project "New Silk Road". Italy was the only G-7 country to join the project, but at the urging of Washington, the current government did not renew the memorandum. Prime Minister Georgia Meloni, who has just completed her four-day visit to China, has attempted to restore and revive the relationship. What would it mean economically for Italy (and for Europe as a whole) to cut off economic ties with Beijing, as the US would want?
- Europe and China are natural economic partners in trade, technology, and infrastructure development in Eurasia. Ultimately, the Silk Road is a Roman-Chinese invention from two thousand years ago, as was emphasized during Prime Minister Meloni's recent visit. These two thousand years of history are not just rhetoric and nostalgia for Marco Polo, but the reality of two great civilizations living together on the world's largest neighboring territory.
- Professor, for many years there has been talk about the approaching end of the dollar as the sole dominant currency in international finance. At the summit in Kazan next October, the ten countries of BRICS could develop an operational roadmap for the gradual elimination of the American currency in bilateral trade, while China strengthens its experiments with the digital yuan. What are your predictions regarding the so-called de-dollarization?
- In my opinion, significant de-dollarization will occur soon, meaning in the next 10 years. And there are three reasons for this. First, technological changes will lead to the emergence of new payment systems (such as central bank digital currencies), which will reduce the role of banks that rely on the dollar (mainly the SWIFT payment system). Second, the share of the United States in the global economy will continue to decrease. Third, the ongoing abuse of economic sanctions by the United States (and Europe) will push BRICS countries and other non-US alliance states to use payment mechanisms that are not based on dollars. The confiscation of Russian assets by the United States and the EU (and the similar confiscation of assets from Venezuela, Afghanistan, Iraq, Iran, Libya, and North Korea by America) will dramatically and understandably accelerate the development of non-dollar payment mechanisms. Europe would be very foolish to participate in the confiscation of Russian assets, an action that openly contradicts international law and the functioning of the global currency and financial system.
- Professor, one last question: if you were to advise the Italian government now, what would be the first piece of advice you would give?
- Work for peace, work for trade, live according to the traditions and reputation of one of the greatest cultures and one of the most beautiful and creative places in the world. All roads lead to Rome, except for war. Italy is a place to be enjoyed in peace and tranquility.
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