Letter of the Day | Speaking out on Venezuela

THE EDITOR, Madam:

Following the recent (and ongoing) US attack on Venezuela’s national sovereignty, in blatant disregard for the rules-based order developed after WW2, we now have President Trump openly threatening Cuba, Greenland, Iran, and more, with similar treatment. In the days after the Venezuela attack, the global response at governmental level has been very muted, most countries hoping thereby to avoid Trump’s unpredictable ire. Even Russia and China were quiet, though in each case, both were putting in place more substantive, concrete responses.

The similar acquiescence of global leadership to the US-Israeli genocide in Gaza these last two years has been unprecedented, not to mention the conflicts in Darfur and the DRC. It seems like the world has lost its moral bearing entirely in its rapid move to the right, focusing on narrow, short-term interests, exclusion, and repression. But perhaps Trump has only revealed the iron fist behind a capitalist world order, hegemonic after 1979-80 and ruthlessly so since 2008 such that division has grown both within and between countries, spawning billionaires and debilitating poverty, not to mention environmental destruction. Some would argue that the war in Ukraine makes Putin just as guilty, but given NATO’s determined efforts to expand towards Russia’s borders, it can be seen as defensive as would be a Chinese or Russian military presence in Mexico for the US.

PROTECTION ABOVE PRINCIPLE

Opposed to this acquiescence has been, perhaps, a majority of the world’s population even though expressed through the dissent of an active, vocal minority. Given Trump’s now-bolstered vengeful vindictiveness, leaders such as PM Holness in Jamaica indeed have reason to put protection above principle.

But how long will such a strategy succeed? Being meek, or even an ally, or more so a NATO ally like Greenland, is no guarantee that Trump will not turn on you. The US is losing its hegemonic power. Many more countries are engaging with China and Russia as trading partners and sources of finance without strings attached (at this stage of the game). Even more pressing for the US economy is the rapidly disintegrating dominance of the US dollar, without which (like other countries with their neo-colonies) it cannot retain its ill-gotten prosperity. Yes, the death throes of a dying empire, as so many have pointed out. So Trump’s cruel desperation may only get worse.

CONSTRUCTIVE ADVICE

But all is not lost. There are, finally, voices within the Republican party that are willing to challenge Trump. His open talk about taking over Greenland, a NATO ally, by force has crossed a line into a recklessness that would do irreparable damage. Perhaps it is indeed the US populace who have to reign in Trump whether it be driven by principle or a realisation that their conditions could deteriorate further.

Would a more overt condemnation of this renewed, overt militaristic imperialism by world leaders help in this regard? Does world opinion matter to Trump or to those pulling his strings in this current might-is-right dispensation?

What could be possible if PM Holness, as a firm friend of the US, would be to tender his advice to President Trump such as friends should be obliged to do, rather than remain virtually silent. He could point out that there is no reason for the US to bring down a large part of the global economy, harming US residents as much as anyone else. Countries engaging with China and Russia are not necessarily trying to cut ties with the US or even with the US$ but to diversify their options and opportunities.

PAUL WARD

Oracabessa

pgward72@gmail.com