LUC MICHEL (ЛЮК МИШЕЛЬ) & EODE/
Luc MICHEL pour EODE/
Quotidien géopolitique – Geopolitical Daily/
2018 01 24/
“While the United States and the rest of the so-called historical West are losing the dominant positions they have held for at least five centuries, and while new centers of economic growth, financial power and political influence are emerging in the course of objective historical development (…) the international system should be adjusted to involve these new centers of power in an equal dialogue and to develop constructive and widely acceptable solutions”
– Serguei Lavrov.
* Résumé français :
Les américains croient fermement à l’exceptionnalisme de leur pays (la « Manifest destiny »). Le président Barack Obama en a parlé ouvertement à plusieurs reprises. Le président Donald Trump n’a pas utilisé ce terme, mais toutes les actions de l’élite américaine et les activités du pays sur la scène internationale montrent qu’elles continuent à être guidées par cette perception. « Cela aurait été une autre affaire s’ils avaient promu leur exceptionnalisme en fournissant des exemples positifs de fair-play et de compétition. Malheureusement, ce n’est pas le cas », dit Lavrov. Alors que les États-Unis et le reste de l’Occident dit « historique » perdent les positions dominantes qu’ils occupent depuis au moins cinq siècles et que de nouveaux centres de croissance économique, de pouvoir financier et d’influence politique émergent au cours du développement historique objectif , quand le système international devrait être ajusté pour impliquer ces nouveaux centres de pouvoir dans un dialogue égal et pour développer des solutions constructives et largement acceptables, les « Etats-Unis ont malheureusement recouru à des méthodes illégitimes pour tenter de stopper la réduction de leur rôle relatif dans la politique mondiale » …
Part II-
“THE U.S. HAS RESORTED TO ILLEGITIMATE METHODS IN AN ATTEMPT TO STOP THE CURTAILMENT OF ITS RELATIVE ROLE IN GLOBAL POLITICS” (LAVROV)
On January 15, 2018, Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov responded to questions from the media at a news conference on RUSSIAN DIPLOMACY IN 2017. During the meeting, Lavrov tackled all the main issues of Russian foreign policy ans the view of Russian Geopolitics.
EXCERPT 8 OF LAVROV’S SPEECH:
THE UNITED STATES AS HOSTILE COUNTRY TO RUSSIA/
IN THE JANUARY POLL BY THE LEVADA CENTRE 68 PER CENT OF RUSSIANS VIEW THE UNITED STATES AS HOSTILE COUNTRY
Question: Last year’s sentiments are reflected in the January poll by the Levada Centre, which shows that 68 per cent of Russians view the United States as hostile country. The figures in the United States are similar: between 64 and 70 per cent of Americans say that Russia is an adversary. Will you comment on these shocking figures? Can you also tell us who, or what, is to blame for this situation?
Lavrov: « The President of Russia Vladimir Putin has spoken on this issue more than once. It is not a matter of which came first, the chicken or the egg, but rather an issue of mentality. The people in the United States firmly believe in their country’s exceptionalism. President Barack Obama spoke about this openly on many occasions. President Donald Trump has not used this term, but all actions by the U.S. elite and the country’s activities on the international stage show that they continue to be guided by this perception. It would have been a different matter had they promoted their exceptionalism by providing positive examples of fair game and competition. Unfortunately, this is not the case. While the United States and the rest of the so-called historical West are losing the dominant positions they have held for at least five centuries, and while new centers of economic growth, financial power and political influence are emerging in the course of objective historical development, when the international system should be adjusted to involve these new centers of power in an equal dialogue and to develop constructive and widely acceptable solutions, the United States has resorted, regrettably, to illegitimate methods in an attempt to stop the curtailment of its relative role in global politics.
« The UN Charter is a very important document. It stipulates a set of standards that must be respected. I do not think that this document should be modified, although we do support the ongoing reform of the UN Security Council. The key element of the UN Charter is the provision on the sovereign equality of states, mutual respect and the coordination of positions. This provision is not respected in the United States, especially under the current US administration. Whenever U.S. initiatives produce a countermotion, if not resistance, the United States immediately and impatiently threatens the ‘offender’ with sanctions. There are many examples of this kind.
EXCERPT 9 OF LAVROV’S SPEECH:
TOWARDS MULTIPOLAR WORLD/
“THE DEVELOPMENT OF A POLYCENTRIC WORLD ORDER TAKES A LONG TIME. THE PROCESS IS ONGOING, AND IT WILL BE PAINFUL FOR THOSE WHO ARE LOSING THEIR POSITIONS”
« Getting back to your question, the development of a polycentric world order takes a long time. The process is ongoing, and it will be painful for those who are losing their positions for the simple reason that the global economy develops in cycles. At present, it is not the United States or the West that are leading global growth. Of course, this takes some adjustment, and the process is rather painful, as I have said, but there is no other option. On the other hand, there is a different course of action, which the United States and some of its allies are trying to apply. It involves threats, ultimatums and punishment, including the punishment of companies and European businesses, for example, Volkswagen, which allegedly failed to comply with some standards, or other companies for failing to allocate funds to someone. This is being done through the exterritorial application of U.S. laws. To cut a long story short, I believe that this heritage is visible in the actions of both the current U.S. administration and the previous administration of President Obama. Regrettably, this legacy has been preserved despite President Trump’s election promises and has even become more intensive and aggressive in some cases. The actions of the U.S. administration are evidence of the United States’ fear of honest competition in many areas, such as energy and gas supplies to Europe. I am sure you know about the attempts to replace Russian gas with US LNG, which is much more expensive. The examples in energy include resistance to the Nord Stream 2 project, which has been denounced as a politically motivated project that will split Europe and strangle Ukraine. This has been said openly in the United States. It is forcing Europe to abandon the project, although the Nord Stream 2 pipeline to Germany will be 2,000 kilometers shorter and 30 to 50 per cent cheaper that transportation via Ukraine.
EXCERPT 10 OF LAVROV’S SPEECH:
U.S. ANTI-RUSSIAN SANCTIONS/
THE CURRENT RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN RUSSIA AND THE U.S. SEEMS POSSIBLY WORSE THAN UNDER PRESIDENT OBAMA
Lavrov: « I think that sanctions in the defense sector, which have been adopted against Russian military exports and the companies that produce these goods, are clearly designed to prevent the strengthening of our positions to the detriment of American positions on this market. It is an understandable striving, but one should compete fairly rather than threaten developing countries with sanctions if they buy Russian weapons, something that happens more and more often.”
Questions: Do You Personally Ever Regret That Donald Trump Became President?
In light of the events that you’ve mentioned, with sanctions being tightened, with the loss of your diplomatic compounds, and investigations underway into alleged Russian meddling in the United States, the current relationship between Russia and the U.S. seems possibly worse than under President Obama. After one year of President Trump and considering the possibility of additional sanctions in the coming weeks and months, do you personally ever regret that Donald Trump became president, and do you ever wish that Hillary Clinton were sitting in the White House instead?
Lavrov: « You know, this is not what diplomats do – regret something that has happened. We work with facts, and facts are what we have today, so we just do what needs to be done to advance Russia’s interests under the current conditions. »
(Source: Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov – Mid.ru)
LUC MICHEL (ЛЮК МИШЕЛЬ) & EODE
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