CGTN
If there were any doubts about the West’s meddling in other countries’ affairs and its hegemonic aims, the Russia-Ukraine war has cleared them – not that it is a secret any more, but the Ukrainian conflict has fully exposed the West’s long term intentions in both Ukraine and the region.
Last weekend witnessed a flurry of activities by Western countries in Ukraine, with high-level visits to capital Kyiv aimed at delivering a message of support. Of note was the meeting between British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv on Saturday.
On Saturday, the European Union announced that it will reopen its office in Kyiv after a temporary relocation in Poland when the war started. The reopening followed European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell’s visit to Ukraine on Friday, where they promised expediting the country’s admission to the Union.
In an interview with The Telegraph, a leading British online daily, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said NATO is now working toward establishing a permanent military presence on its eastern borders to guard against “future Russian aggression.”
Well, this is not surprising to the initiated. NATO is searching for pretexts to admit Ukraine through the backdoor. Significantly, this renewed confidence by the West in a war zone betrays increasing desperation of losing its planned defence bulwark against Russia’s perceived aggression. While Ukraine’s allies have warned all and sundry against offering any support to Russia, Johnson did not see the irony of promising weaponry to the UK’s ally. There are hardly any attempts for engaging Russia, for reasons that are now evident from the West’s current diplomatic visits to Ukraine, and the one-sided narratives of events. But any genuine support to Ukraine must mention a halt to the war and peaceful negotiations as the first priority.
Zelenskyy cannot disengage himself from the tacit pact with the West, even amid the near total devastation of his country. He has incessantly complained on international media about being betrayed by his allies who he recently said were more concerned about their economies than Ukraine’s security. But he forgets that the West does not owe him.
Sadly, for Ukraine, Zelenskyy overrated his strategic value as a person. If the West cannot have Ukraine, it does not mind the country going to the dogs and end up as a wasteland. This is a strategy the U.S. and allies have used in many countries like Libya, Somalia, Syria and Afghanistan. The West seeks to decimate any physical or ideological threat to its hegemony, whether real or imagined.
Lately, there is a sense of bravado by Ukraine’s allies, a feeling of victory. Some major Western international broadcasting channels like CNN, which converted into Ukraine’s mouthpieces and channels of anti-Russia propaganda, have suddenly relaxed and are gradually reverting to their normal programming. According to CNN’s “Inside Politics Sunday” aired on April 10, Joe Biden has also shifted his focus from Ukraine to domestic issues which include spiraling inflation and the immigration crisis.
The West’s actions in Ukraine are fomenting another cold war through the mantra “you are either with us or against us.” There seems to be no room for negotiations, with Russia’s case portrayed as inconsequential, particularly in multilateral forums.
The West’s chest thumping of Ukraine’s “victory” against Russia is interesting. The bragging of the U.S. and the UK about how their millions of dollars’ worth of weaponry has vanquished the adversary is daring, leaving little to the imagination of their covert support. What is more annoying, however, are warnings to Russia’s allies against offering their friend any kind of support or tactic in this war.
Still, the countries like-minded to Ukraine do not seem to learn, and are destined to repeat history. Maybe the deal is too good for the “victims” to see through the duplicity.
