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US WAR PLAN FOR EUROPE AND RUSSIA
10.04.2014
Finian Cunningham
The US is prepared to plunge Europe into a war with Russia in order
for Washington to preserve its hegemony over the transatlantic axis.
The key issues are the prevention of Russia and Europe developing
closer trade and political ties - stemming primarily from a vast
trade in energy fuels; and, secondly, the survival of the American
dollar as the world's reserve currency.
So vital are these issues for continued American hegemony that
Washington is prepared to sacrifice millions of lives in a war between
Russia and its so-called transatlantic European "ally".
This shocking revelation comes from a former European NATO commander.
According to Christof Lehmann, editor of the news and analysis website
nsnbc international, the European military officer was given the grim
warning by American counterparts in an off-the-record briefing.
The European commander, now retired, subsequently confided the
information with Lehmann, who says that the tensions over Ukraine
between Russia and Western powers are consistent with this latent
American threat.
The original threat was disclosed during the 1980s, but there is
no reason to believe that the American policy of inciting a war in
Europe has since changed. This is because the strategic rationale
for the US bellicose logic remains the same. And recent events over
Ukraine strongly suggest that Washington's destructive designs are
still in place.
Says Lehmann: "In the early 1980s, a European top NATO admiral said
that American colleagues at the Pentagon had told him, unequivocally,
that the US and UK would not hesitate in creating a new European war
if the situation ever arose that Europe and Russia, then the USSR,
were to develop close relations."
Central to the American rationale was, and continues to be, the issue
of energy fuel. Washington does not want to see European and Russian
economies integrating on the vital issue of trade in oil and gas,
the foundation for economic and social development.
Over the past two decades since the end of the Cold War between the
US-led West and the former Soviet Union, Europe and Russia have seen
substantial alignment of their economies, primarily due to the enormous
oil and gas volumes supplied by Moscow. European-Russian bilateral
trade is well over $1 trillion annually, and is some tenfold that of
US-Russian trade.
Russia accounts for nearly one-third of Europe's total hydrocarbon
fuel consumption. In Germany, the largest European economy, that
figure rises to 40 per cent. With the new pipelines of the North
Stream and the currently constructed South Stream, the role of Russia
as the main energy supplier to Europe is set to grow even more over
the coming decades.
Lehmann adds: "The American dominance of the Atlantic axis with
Western Europe is threatened by this development of closer economic
ties between Europe and Russia. Germany and the Czech Republic have
since the end of the Cold War developed close economic and other
relations with Russia. Both are, together with Austria and Italy,
pushing a trend towards even tighter relations with Moscow."
This trend was always seen as a strategic danger by Washington. It
can be argued that the Cold War from 1945 to 1990 was deliberately
instigated by the US as a bulwark to counter the naturally inclined
trade integration between Europe and Russia, owing to the latter's
prodigious energy reserves and its continental proximity.
The strategic danger for the US is twofold. Firstly, a close
relationship between Moscow and Europe would remove the rationale for
America's military role in NATO and thereby its political influence
in Europe. The second is that the European-Russian energy trade
undermines the role of the American dollar as the world's reserve
currency. Exchange in such a key world market will inevitably move
to the use of the Euro/Ruble, which would spell the end of global
American financial hegemony, and with that, the end of the monstrously
indebted US economy.
The American economy is already teetering on bankruptcy, with a
total debt of $17 trillion, and spiraling. American bankruptcy and
social implosion is an eventuality that is so far only postponed by
the dollar's continuance as the standard currency for international
trade in fuel, and the de facto license for the US Federal Reserve to
keep printing money way beyond any sound economic basis for doing so.
Says Lehmann: "The development of Russian-European partnership
would leave the US politically, culturally and economically isolated
within no more than 25 years. It would also mean that the US would
become increasingly isolated in terms of its militarism and strategic
encirclement of Russia and China. The dollar would collapse."
An important side note is the insidious role of Britain. As the top
European NATO commander revealed, the American war plans for Europe
were supported by Britain. This is partly because of the historical
co-dependence of Anglo-American capitalism, and also, as Lehmann
points out, "a weakened Atlantic axis would mean a significant loss
of British influence over Germany and France."
This is the background to why Washington has sought to create a crisis
over recent events in Ukraine. Washington has played the key role in
fomenting regime change in that country, which has seen the rise of an
unelected fascist junta in Kiev that poses a serious threat to Russia.
The Kiev demagogues have openly talked of inciting terrorism and mass
murder against Russia and are willing to install American missiles
on their Western border with Russia.
The debacle has led to the worse diplomatic crisis between European
capitals and Moscow since the end of the Cold War. The possibility
of a war between nuclear-armed powers may have receded for now,
but the danger of such a catastrophe remains.
This weekend Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov met with his
American counterpart John Kerry for urgent talks in Paris. Reportedly,
Kerry was holding the meeting to "de-escalate tensions" between Russia
and the West. The reality is that Washington has done everything to
escalate this conflict, in particular between Russia and Europe,
for its own selfish strategic interests. That includes, if deemed
necessary by the pyromaniacs in Washington, the ignition of all-out
war in Europe.
AB/AB
Finian Cunningham (born 1963) has written extensively on international
affairs, with articles published in several languages. He is a Master's
graduate in Agricultural Chemistry and worked as a scientific editor
for the Royal Society of Chemistry, Cambridge, England, before pursuing
a career in journalism. He is also a musician and songwriter.
For nearly 20 years, he worked as an editor and writer in major
news media organisations, including The Mirror, Irish Times and
Independent. Originally from Belfast, Ireland, he is now located in
East Africa as a freelance journalist, where he is writing a book on
Bahrain and the Arab Spring, based on eyewitness experience working in
the Persian Gulf as an editor of a business magazine and subsequently
as a freelance news correspondent. The author was deported from
Bahrain in June 2011 because of his critical journalism in which he
highlighted systematic human rights violations by regime forces. He
is now a columnist on international politics for Press TV and the
Strategic Culture Foundation. More articles by Finian Cunningham
US WAR PLAN FOR EUROPE AND RUSSIA
10.04.2014
Finian Cunningham
The US is prepared to plunge Europe into a war with Russia in order
for Washington to preserve its hegemony over the transatlantic axis.
The key issues are the prevention of Russia and Europe developing
closer trade and political ties - stemming primarily from a vast
trade in energy fuels; and, secondly, the survival of the American
dollar as the world's reserve currency.
So vital are these issues for continued American hegemony that
Washington is prepared to sacrifice millions of lives in a war between
Russia and its so-called transatlantic European "ally".
This shocking revelation comes from a former European NATO commander.
According to Christof Lehmann, editor of the news and analysis website
nsnbc international, the European military officer was given the grim
warning by American counterparts in an off-the-record briefing.
The European commander, now retired, subsequently confided the
information with Lehmann, who says that the tensions over Ukraine
between Russia and Western powers are consistent with this latent
American threat.
The original threat was disclosed during the 1980s, but there is
no reason to believe that the American policy of inciting a war in
Europe has since changed. This is because the strategic rationale
for the US bellicose logic remains the same. And recent events over
Ukraine strongly suggest that Washington's destructive designs are
still in place.
Says Lehmann: "In the early 1980s, a European top NATO admiral said
that American colleagues at the Pentagon had told him, unequivocally,
that the US and UK would not hesitate in creating a new European war
if the situation ever arose that Europe and Russia, then the USSR,
were to develop close relations."
Central to the American rationale was, and continues to be, the issue
of energy fuel. Washington does not want to see European and Russian
economies integrating on the vital issue of trade in oil and gas,
the foundation for economic and social development.
Over the past two decades since the end of the Cold War between the
US-led West and the former Soviet Union, Europe and Russia have seen
substantial alignment of their economies, primarily due to the enormous
oil and gas volumes supplied by Moscow. European-Russian bilateral
trade is well over $1 trillion annually, and is some tenfold that of
US-Russian trade.
Russia accounts for nearly one-third of Europe's total hydrocarbon
fuel consumption. In Germany, the largest European economy, that
figure rises to 40 per cent. With the new pipelines of the North
Stream and the currently constructed South Stream, the role of Russia
as the main energy supplier to Europe is set to grow even more over
the coming decades.
Lehmann adds: "The American dominance of the Atlantic axis with
Western Europe is threatened by this development of closer economic
ties between Europe and Russia. Germany and the Czech Republic have
since the end of the Cold War developed close economic and other
relations with Russia. Both are, together with Austria and Italy,
pushing a trend towards even tighter relations with Moscow."
This trend was always seen as a strategic danger by Washington. It
can be argued that the Cold War from 1945 to 1990 was deliberately
instigated by the US as a bulwark to counter the naturally inclined
trade integration between Europe and Russia, owing to the latter's
prodigious energy reserves and its continental proximity.
The strategic danger for the US is twofold. Firstly, a close
relationship between Moscow and Europe would remove the rationale for
America's military role in NATO and thereby its political influence
in Europe. The second is that the European-Russian energy trade
undermines the role of the American dollar as the world's reserve
currency. Exchange in such a key world market will inevitably move
to the use of the Euro/Ruble, which would spell the end of global
American financial hegemony, and with that, the end of the monstrously
indebted US economy.
The American economy is already teetering on bankruptcy, with a
total debt of $17 trillion, and spiraling. American bankruptcy and
social implosion is an eventuality that is so far only postponed by
the dollar's continuance as the standard currency for international
trade in fuel, and the de facto license for the US Federal Reserve to
keep printing money way beyond any sound economic basis for doing so.
Says Lehmann: "The development of Russian-European partnership
would leave the US politically, culturally and economically isolated
within no more than 25 years. It would also mean that the US would
become increasingly isolated in terms of its militarism and strategic
encirclement of Russia and China. The dollar would collapse."
An important side note is the insidious role of Britain. As the top
European NATO commander revealed, the American war plans for Europe
were supported by Britain. This is partly because of the historical
co-dependence of Anglo-American capitalism, and also, as Lehmann
points out, "a weakened Atlantic axis would mean a significant loss
of British influence over Germany and France."
This is the background to why Washington has sought to create a crisis
over recent events in Ukraine. Washington has played the key role in
fomenting regime change in that country, which has seen the rise of an
unelected fascist junta in Kiev that poses a serious threat to Russia.
The Kiev demagogues have openly talked of inciting terrorism and mass
murder against Russia and are willing to install American missiles
on their Western border with Russia.
The debacle has led to the worse diplomatic crisis between European
capitals and Moscow since the end of the Cold War. The possibility
of a war between nuclear-armed powers may have receded for now,
but the danger of such a catastrophe remains.
This weekend Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov met with his
American counterpart John Kerry for urgent talks in Paris. Reportedly,
Kerry was holding the meeting to "de-escalate tensions" between Russia
and the West. The reality is that Washington has done everything to
escalate this conflict, in particular between Russia and Europe,
for its own selfish strategic interests. That includes, if deemed
necessary by the pyromaniacs in Washington, the ignition of all-out
war in Europe.
AB/AB
Finian Cunningham (born 1963) has written extensively on international
affairs, with articles published in several languages. He is a Master's
graduate in Agricultural Chemistry and worked as a scientific editor
for the Royal Society of Chemistry, Cambridge, England, before pursuing
a career in journalism. He is also a musician and songwriter.
For nearly 20 years, he worked as an editor and writer in major
news media organisations, including The Mirror, Irish Times and
Independent. Originally from Belfast, Ireland, he is now located in
East Africa as a freelance journalist, where he is writing a book on
Bahrain and the Arab Spring, based on eyewitness experience working in
the Persian Gulf as an editor of a business magazine and subsequently
as a freelance news correspondent. The author was deported from
Bahrain in June 2011 because of his critical journalism in which he
highlighted systematic human rights violations by regime forces. He
is now a columnist on international politics for Press TV and the
Strategic Culture Foundation. More articles by Finian Cunningham
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