World Economy: The Heads of State or government of the “Normandy- Format” agreed on a joint declaration, which declared a truce in the east of Ukraine at the beginning of the new school year. On the other hand, US Secretary of Defense James Mattis will visit Ukraine and talk about possible deliveries of lethal weapons. And as it appears, the US is also thinking of setting up a military base in the Ukraine at the Black Sea. Where will all this lead to?
Willy Wimmer: Unfortunately, we have to realize that the hopes connected with the election of the new American president, Trump, which were aimed at improving relations in Europe, have scattered in all directions. It must be assumed that President Trump is practically walled in, in Washington. One has to ask whether, in terms of his political ideas, he still has any room to maneuver, or whether he is currently in a situation that has been clearly foreseeable. In the US, we are dealing more and more with a special form of military rule. In view of the internal political problems of the US, we will see a phenomenon that is not unknown to the world. Namely, that the means of the American military commanders in the large commands are similar to those of Great Britain’s vice kings at the time in India. I believe that this is a development that will create more than just a headache, because we do not know what the American policy is really going to be, as Washington is getting more and more non-transparent and therefore we do not have any clarity. The visit of Mattis in the Ukraine is just another step in this development. What the US is doing in the Ukraine, irrespective of the question whether Nato is possibly illegitimate in Eastern Europe anyway, is contrary to the spirit and wording of the Nato Treaty. In the Nato Treaty, it is expressly stated that the Member States should keep their hands off bordering countries, which already have problems with a neighboring country. Moreover there should under no circumstances be any military engagement. In the Ukraine, the West and Nato are doing exactly the opposite, and this is clearly increasing tensions, which might lead to a war in Europe.
But what does this have to do with Nato? Or are the US acting this way on behalf of Nato in this region?
No, the situation is such that the co-operation of the Western European countries with the United States is bound to the Nato Treaty in military terms. This Nato Treaty is written in its historical definition in such a way that, according to its rules, there can be no military cooperation with states that have themselves problems with their neighbors. This is one of the numerous reasons why Nato membership wasn’t permitted for Ukraine or Georgia in the recent past. This principle has gradually weakened, in favor of close military cooperation between Washington and Kiev, or between Berlin and Kiev, as far as participation in maneuvers is concerned. What I would like to draw attention to, is the core idea of the formerly functioning Nato: to concentrate on the defense – one has to ask whether there is any threat to Nato at all – and that we should in any case omit everything other states could perceive as a threat of any military engagement. Today one must even say that Nato is the main reason that states like Ukraine have faced military relevant problems with their neighbors after an overthrow of government. Nato is warmongering, not just in the Ukraine. Poland plays a certain role in this conflict between the two sides.
On the one hand, Poland also presents itself as a victim of the conflict. On the other hand, it is constantly trying to encourage Ukraine to provoke Russia, and repeatedly asks for support from the USA. Can this be regarded as a new direction of policy from Warsaw, with the aim of driving a wedge between East and West, or are we simply dealing with an American vassal in Europe?
We must regretfully and sadly assume that, as long as this new government is led by the chairman of the PiS party, Polish policy is not predictable any more. The current Polish policy represents a form of revisionism that covers well over a hundred years. This is, of course, a reason for Europe to worry a great deal more, because it will jeopardise European stability and European security in a way that is unbearable for us. This is a form of political Irredenta [annexation policy], which Europe will pay for dearly. •
Source: <link http: www.world-economy.eu details article ukraine-als-spielball-der-usa>www.world-economy.eu/details/article/ukraine-als-spielball-der-usa/ from 24.8.2017
(Translation Current Concerns)
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