Beijing is “picking a side” and can’t claim to be neutral any more, the US ambassador to NATO tells POLITICO.
China is helping Russia meet its war goals in Ukraine by continuing to sell supplies such as drone technology and gunpowder ingredients to Moscow, the U.S. Ambassador to NATO said in an interview.
“The PRC [People’s Republic of China] cannot claim to be entirely neutral in this case, [and] they are in fact picking a side,” Julianne Smith told POLITICO on Tuesday. “I think when the PRC tries to portray itself as neutral, when it comes to this war, we don’t buy it.”
Smith said the United States was “increasingly seeing materiel support” from China to Russia, adding that this equipment — which can have both civilian and military uses — had played a critical role in helping Moscow achieve some of its aims against Ukraine.
It would be so amazingly fantastic if the West had any moral credibility left, because it is true that in the case of Ukraine, the West is actually preaching the right thing: a rules based international order, where nations have the right to self determination and other countries don’t get to arbitrarily decide whether you have the right to exist. Like, exactly what Palestinians need.
If there is one thing the unwavering support for the Israeli Genocide in Gaza from the likes of the US, UK and Germany has done was completelly burn their moral credibility.
Nobody outside a very small political circle jerk of hard neolibs and fascists (applauded by their mindless tribalist useful idiots) around the US pays any attention to any criticism of other nations by this US Administration.
Further, I suspect this doesn’t just apply in the “Global South” but also in most of Europe (as both the Brits and the Germans are atypical, though for different reasons, and there are a lot of europeans who, for some “strange reason” have an instinctive hate of larger more powerfull nations murdering people in weaker nations).
Way to blow up your soft power to help out a bunch of murderous radical Fascists in a Middle Eastern Theocracy commiting Genocide along etnic lines.
I think many of us paying attention over the long term have realized that the US pretty much never had the right to even claim moral credibility. Whether evidenced by our treatment of our own citizens or our constant involvement in other countries we have corporate business “interests” with. We constantly destabilize and overthrow other countries for our corporate “masters.”
I think honest people want to believe the best of others, and the US under Biden got a lot of “he’s not the same as the others” goodwill up until the point he gave unwavering support to people that were mass murdering their neighbours in the most violent racist way possible, comparable only with the Nazis.
It’s pretty hard to come across as a Humanitarian or ever just “not a Racist” when you’re excusing a Genocide because the nation comitting it has a certain majority etnic makeup and that’s exactly were not just the US but the UK, Germany and to a lesser externt some European countries went.
Personally I wasn’t at all surprised by the US or the UK’s position but was about Germany. Clearly Germany’s “never again” wasn’t the Humanitarian version - “never again shall people be killed for their etnicity” - but the racist version - “never again shall our nation do this to Jews (not people in general but a very specific etnicity)” - which not only explains their “unwavering support for the Jewish Nation” but also the “strange” detail that the etnicity that was even more victimized by the Nazis - the Roma, aka Gypsies - post-War never received Germany’s unwavering support: guess some “etnics” never stopped being untermenschen.
Being from a Southern European country - Portugal - and having lived in The Netherlands, before all this I assumed that the Dutch tendency to “try and be fair to other people” was also shared by their “High German” speaking neighbours. I was wrong, so very incredibly wrong!
Yeah Ukraine was a bit of a departure from the norm. It was a “wait, are we the good guys for once?” moment.
deleted by creator
The difference is that Ukraine didn’t attack russia… Palestine would wipe Israel and every jew off the planet if they had the ability to. Not saying what Israel is doing is right, but acting like the other side is without fault is disingenuous.
Yea, that’s a super racist statement right there.
There’s a conflating the goals of Hamas with the goal of Palestinian people here. Just because the majority of Palestinians support Hamas doesn’t mean they all do.
Also Hamas is not a monolith, same as the IRA wasn’t. So even if now a majority of Palestinians say the “support Hamas” that doesn’t mean they are supporting indiscriminate killing of Israeli civilians or even the destruction of Israel. A senior guy of theirs just came out suggesting they would be willing to disarm if a two state solution on the '67 borders was enacted. Things are always complicated. Same as not all Israelis, or even not all Israeli right wingers, are not genocidal maniacs like Ben Gvir, Palestinian hardliners are also complex. Peace is made with enemies.
Removed by mod
There is no such thing as a “religion of peace”. There are buddhist violent extremists. There were even anabaptist violent extremists.
There are people who use religion to bring peace and healing, and there are people who use religion to bring discord and hatred. You are doing the latter.
Removed by mod
This has almost nothing to do with Islam. They were ejected from their lands and then shoved into tightly controlled areas while being denied the right to exist as their own country. They are terrorists fighting for their independence.
“One man’s terrorist is another man’s freedom fighter.” Has never rung more true than for the Palestinians. I won’t argue that they aren’t committing acts of terror, they absolutely are, but it’s not purely bloodlust for the sake of their religion. It’s the only thing they have left as the entire world failed them.
They’re now stuck (HAMAS) with an asshat of a leader though that also seems to be refusing compromise. It’s all the land they want and for Israel to go away or fuck off completely.
I never once said I agree with Israel. Western nations should have never done what they did creating the state, but to act like Hamas wouldn’t wipe Israel off the face of the earth in the name of religion is naive.
Removed, Islamophobia.
Removed by mod
I believe you and I have had this discussion before, and no, you cannot paint 1.9 billion people with the “they’re all violent” brush.
I’m not though, I’m stating the religion is violent. I don’t understand this disillusioned thought that many of you have that the religion isn’t a violent and oppressive one. The same people defending it right now, are the same ones that attack and paint other religions with a brush.
There are 1.9 BILLION adherents to that religion. If the religion itself were the problem, the world would be awash in blood. It’s NOT.
Yea everyone you disagree with is hitler. Got it…way to move a conversation along.
Removed by mod
If Ukraine has a right to defend itself against foreign aggression, so does Palestine, especially after decades of genocide. Israel is the aggressor, just like Russia.
deleted by creator
Hamas is the gov in Palestine. This is like saying the usa didn’t attack Afghanistan or Iraq…just our gov did.
And no where have I said that what Israel is doing is right, but I’m not under some delusional ignorance that hamas wouldn’t happily wipe Israel off the map if it had the means.
That’s the difference between understanding what Islamic regimes create and thinking if no one touched them they magically would be peaceful.
Ignoring the level of violence that is brought on by Islamic regimes is naive. You’re so afraid of calling out their bigotry and violence that you’re willing to give them a pass. You seem to just want to ignore the level of bigotry that is done in the name of that religion.
deleted by creator
That’s some great whataboutism. Yea other people are also violent, that doesn’t subtract from the fact that islam as a religion is one of violence.
Removed by mod
I would say it is a BIG difference in comparing wars