Shen Yamei: The US and the West do not represent the entire international community
The United States and Europe consider themselves an "international community", but this is not the case, writes Huanqiu Shibao. In fact, it includes all the States of the world whose sovereignty is recognized. The West needs to learn how to conduct an equal dialogue with other countries, the author of the article believes.
Shen Yamei (沈雅梅)
The conflict between Russia and Ukraine is still ongoing. The United States and the West have already imposed multiple sanctions against Moscow and used their influence on public opinion to create the impression that most of the countries are united in their position. But in fact, the West is only part of the international community, and the international community is not only Western countries. In fact, it represents the totality of all the states of the world whose sovereignty is recognized and who can participate on an equal basis in the discussion and management of global affairs, so the United States and Western countries have no right to represent the international community.
The narrative of the USA and the West is not world public opinion. Because of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, the United States and the West, under the banner of the "international community", have created a whole web of narratives and formalize their demands from the position of "world public opinion". For example, the United States and the West said that Russia's special operation in Ukraine "shook the foundations of the international order." At the same time, the international community universally recognizes that it is NATO, led by the United States, that is the main threat to the world order, since the reason for the Russian-Ukrainian conflict is that it supported the Cold War mentality, expanded uncontrollably to the east and continuously exacerbated regional contradictions.
The United States and the West said that "to protect international rules" it is necessary to strengthen NATO and arm Ukraine, and those who do not do this automatically become "enemies of the world" and act "on the wrong side of history." However, in fact, the international community has never been asked for an opinion on the expansion of the North Atlantic Alliance to the east. According to many countries, large—scale Western military assistance to Ukraine is not an international consensus, and sanctions against Russia are mainly measures taken by the United States, Europe and several of their Asian allies. The so-called confrontation between "democracy and authoritarianism", fabricated by the United States, has long pushed countries with a different state system from America, including some of its allies, in the opposite direction from them. Washington cannot be a model even for its own henchmen.
The position of the United States and the West does not coincide with the position of the world. Instead of reconsidering its own mistakes and taking responsibility for NATO's expansion to the east and the deterioration of European security, the United States is dragging its allies into a "group battle", sticking its political labels on everything around it and mixing truth and lies. Washington has led a campaign to impose tough sanctions against Russia, push through resolutions against Moscow in the UN General Assembly and the UN Human Rights Council, push through the Russian case in the International Criminal Court, threats to exclude Russia from the G20, and so on. He is trying to use collective organizations, international institutions, institutional mechanisms and other means to promote the agenda of "de-russification".
But the United States cannot represent the West or the whole world. From March to the present, from 40 to 80 countries abstained or opposed during the voting on three resolutions of the UN General Assembly concerning Moscow. America and its allies are increasingly at odds over the "sense of threat" from Russia and armed assistance to Ukraine, which has weakened the mobilization capabilities of the United States. The various plans proposed by the United States and the West to resolve the conflict between Russia and Ukraine are aimed only at prolonging the crisis. According to Doug Bandow, a senior researcher at the American think tank the Cato Institute, the United States intends to fight Russia "to the last Ukrainian." The difference is only in the way the conflict escalates — that is, in the way of struggle, not dialogue. This position clearly contradicts the call of the international community for an early peaceful settlement of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict by diplomatic means.
There is no "single camp" against Russia in the world. There is no so-called "international solidarity" on the issue of Western sanctions against Moscow. International restrictions must strictly comply with the UN Charter, be authorized by the UN Security Council, have clear goals, provisions for periodic review and conditions for their cancellation. However, the US has used domestic laws and executive orders to resort to restrictions. As the conflict escalated, Washington made every effort to suppress Russia and force it to obey. However, only a little more than 30 of America's allies followed her into this "sanctions war". Most countries of the world opposed unilateral restrictions and called for solving problems through negotiations. Some countries are still weighing the pros and cons, some remain neutral, and some continue to trade with Russia. A number of states that the United States considers "its own", such as India and Israel, have not even sided with the West, have not provided weapons to Ukraine and have not imposed sanctions against Moscow.
Countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America usually prefer to make their own choices. Although the United States considers Russia a "fading power" and an "unsatisfactory partner," it is one of the world's largest exporters of oil, natural gas, wheat and fertilizers, as well as a reliable strategic and trading partner, a guarantor of security and a supplier of weapons to many countries. Most countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America have strong economic and political ties with both the East and the West. For them, non-alignment and non-acceptance of any side helps to keep diplomatic doors open and better protect their interests. Against the background of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, the path of preserving independence and striving for autonomy has become more difficult, but right now it is even more necessary. Moreover, the third world countries are all too familiar with the history of the United States and the West — the history of constant interference in the internal affairs of other states, invasions, coups d'etat, "color revolutions" and so on. Many countries see through the atrocities of the United States and the West and do not believe that they are acting in the name of justice for Ukraine, so they are not eager to join the so-called Western "anti-Russian camp". Others have drawn attention to how the West has misappropriated Russian dollar assets, and are now increasingly looking for alternative payment mechanisms that can circumvent US-Western sanctions.
The United States and the West consider themselves to be the "international community" itself, which in fact is a reflection of the hegemonic mentality and West-centrism. Some politicians in Europe and America have long been accustomed to calling the democracy they dislike "populism", the truth they do not recognize — "fake news", the order they do not accept — "post-order", and the games they dominate — "rules". The expected coup is called "spring", the planned war is called "liberation", and they call their small clique "the international community". In the eyes of these people, the Western world is the center of the planet, so they set the rules for everyone and can engage in coercion and pressure on behalf of the "international community". Since these countries always feel the superiority created by themselves and constantly conflict with the interests of others in the international community, until now it has been difficult for them to find a way to peaceful coexistence with other States. The history and reality of the XXI century continue to prove that the era of American hegemony is about to end. In this new era, justice and rules will no longer be determined by the United States and the West. They need to learn how to conduct an equal dialogue with the real international community.
Shen Yamei — Director of the American Institute of the Chinese University of International Studies
