March 2023

March 2023

Before European Hegemony by Abu-Lughod revisited
By Abdus Sattar Ghazali: On Chinese President Xi Jinping’s two days (March 20, 21) visit to Moscow, Pepe Escobar said: In Moscow this week the Chinese and Russian leaders revealed their joint commitment to redesign the global order, an undertaking that has 'not been seen in 100 years.' Escobar recalls: In Before European Hegemony: The World System A.D. 1250-1350, Janet Abu-Lughod built a carefully constructed narrative showing the prevailing multipolar order when the West “lagged behind the ‘Orient.’” Later, the West only “pulled ahead because the ‘Orient’ was temporarily in disarray.” We may be witnessing a similarly historic shift in the making, trespassed by a revival of Confucianism (respect for authority, emphasis on social harmony), the equilibrium inherent to the Tao, and the spiritual power of Eastern Orthodoxy. This is, indeed, a civilizational fight, Escobar concludes. Read More

India alarmed at Bhutan’s stance on border dispute with China
By Abdus Sattar Ghazali: The China-India dispute along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) took a new twist Tuesday when Bhutanese Prime Minister Lotay Tshering said it was open to a three-way resolution involving the three countries to end the stand-off at the strategically vital Doklam plateau. In an interview with the Belgian Daily ‘La Libre’, while on a state visit to Germany, Tshering said, “Doklam is a tri-junction between India, China and Bhutan. It is not up to Bhutan alone to solve the problem. We are three equal countries. There is no big or small country.” Read More

Xi’s ‘Chilling’ Remarks: A Multipolar World Offers Challenges and Opportunities to the Middle East and Africa
by Dr Ramzy Baroud: The final exchange, caught on camera between visiting Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Russian host and counterpart, Vladimir Putin, sums up the current geopolitical conflict, still in its nascent stages, between the United States and its Western allies on the one hand, and Russia, China and their allies, on the other. Xi was leaving the Kremlin following a three-day visit that can only be described as historic. “Change is coming that hasn’t happened in 100 years and we are driving this change together,” Xi said while clasping Putin’s hand. “I agree,” Putin replied while holding Xi’s arm. ‘Please take care, dear friend,” he added. In no time, social media exploded by sharing that scene repeatedly. Corporate western media analysts went into overdrive, trying to understand what these few words meant. “Is that part of the change that is coming, that they will drive together?” Ian Williamson raised the question in the Spector. Though he did not offer a straight answer, he alluded to one: “It is a chilling prospect, for which the west needs to be prepared.” Read More

Xi and Putin commit to redesign the Global Order
By Pepe Escobar: In Moscow this week, the Chinese and Russian leaders revealed their joint commitment to redesign the global order, an undertaking that has 'not been seen in 100 years. During their first “informal” meeting, Xi and Putin talked for no less than four and a half hours. At the end, Putin personally escorted Xi to his limo. This conversation was the real deal: mapping out the lineaments of multipolarity – which starts with a solution for Ukraine. Read More

Putin and Xi Standing Firm on the Right Side of History
By Finian Cunningham: The world is changing before our eyes. Western imperialist regimes are being exposed for the warmongers they are, and a new multipolar order of partnership and peace is emerging. The historic summit this week between the Russian and Chinese leaders provoked paroxysms of angst in the Western media. President Vladimir Putin’s hosting of China’s Xi Jinping in Moscow was presented as the “world’s two most prominent autocrats” purportedly establishing a hostile “anti-West axis”.The American and European media – slavishly echoing the talking points of their imperialist regimes – were in hyper-bogeyman mode. The meeting of Putin and Xi was distorted in every way to appear as something illegitimately threatening and sinister to the Western “rules-based global order” (euphemism for Western capitalist privileges and predation.) Read More

Saudi nod to China opens post-American Gulf era
By Kristian Coates Ulrichsen: As long-term partnership with US fades, Riyadh is diversifying its diplomacy in a decidedly non-aligned direction. The fact that Saudi Arabia entered a rapprochement deal with Iran and chose China to broker it came as a surprise to many international observers. The agreement, officially called the Joint Trilateral Statement, was signed in Beijing on March 11 and begins the process of restoring diplomatic ties between Riyadh and Tehran. Those ties were severed in January 2016 after protesters stormed the Saudi Embassy in Iran in the aftermath of the execution of Nimr al-Nimr, a prominent Saudi Shiite cleric who had criticized Saudi treatment of its Shiite minority. Read More

G7 vs BRICS — Off to the Races
By Scott Ritter: Last summer, the Group of 7 (G7), a self-anointed forum of nations that view themselves as the most influential economies in the world, gathered at Schloss Elmau, near Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany, to hold their annual meeting. Their focus was punishing Russia through additional sanctions, further arming of Ukraine and the containment of China. At the same time, China hosted, through video conference, a gathering of the BRICS economic forum. Comprised of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, this collection of nations relegated to the status of so-called developing economies focused on strengthening economic bonds, international economic development and how to address what they collectively deemed the counter-productive policies of the G7. Read More

Ihan Omar Introduces Resolution to Combat Islamophobia
BRETT WILKINS: Joined by Democratic House colleagues and activists outside the U.S. Capitol on Thursday—the first full day of Ramadan—Minnesota Congresswoman Ilhan Omar announced a new resolution condemning Islamophobia and commemorating the recent anniversary of the 2019 Christchurch, New Zealand mosque massacre. Omar's office said the resolution—which is co-sponsored by more than 20 House Democrats—"comes after continued violence and threats made against religious minorities, particularly Muslims," while adding that the March 15, 2019 murder of 51 Muslim worshippers at the Al Noor Mosque in Christchurch by an Australian white supremacist Read More

Siddique Jan's arrest exposes Pakistan government's repression against journalists
By Abdus-Sattar Ghazali: Amid the ongoing crackdown on the media in Pakistan, Pakistani state authorities have arrested another journalist, Siddique Jan, in the federal capital Islamabad, media reported Monday. According to media reports, Siddique Jan, who is currently working as Bureau Chief of Bol News TV in Islamabad, was present outside his office when some men in plainclothes whisked him away. Read More

Why Muslims under the British Raj chose Pakistan and not ‘Akhand’ Bharat?
By Habib Siddiqui: The idea of ‘Akhand’ (Undivided) Bharat (India) originated with Chanakya who is credited for writing the masterpiece Arthashastra, an ancient IndianSanskrit treatise on statecraft, economic policy and military strategy. At the time, the 3rd century BCE, the Indian subcontinent, which covered what are now the modern-day nations of Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Nepal, (parts of) Burma (Myanmar), Tibet (now part of China), Bhutan and Bangladesh, was divided into many independent kingdoms. Chanakya articulated the idea of an Akhand Bharat or an undivided India under one authority, rule and administration. To a great extent, he was successful. He discovered Chandragupta Maurya, powered him to throne and then through war, wit and alliances was able to integrate large portions of India under a single rule. Although the southern India and many inner localities could not all be brought under a single suzerain, what he was able to is close to giving the shape to that idea of an Akhand Bharat in the ancient world. Fractures, however, appeared after the fall of Chandragupta Maurya. These were temporarily plastered over by Ashoka as king, and much later by the Mughals (1526-1757) and the Brits (1857-1947). Read More

All-time high white supremacist propaganda incidents reported in United States in 2022
By Jacob Crosse: A new report published last week by the Anti-Defamation League Center on Extremism found that an “all-time high” number of “white supremacist propaganda” incidents occurred in the United States in 2022, eclipsing the previous year’s record total of 4,876 by nearly 2,000. “Our data shows,” the ADL wrote, “a 38 percent increase in incidents from the previous year, with a total of 6,751 … the highest number of white supremacist propaganda incidents ADL has ever recorded.” Read More

New Zealand government barely acknowledges anniversary of Christchurch far-right terror attack
By Tom Peters: Yesterday marked four years since the devastating mass shootings at two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand, in which 51 people were killed and 40 injured. The victims included men, women and children; the youngest killed was a three-year-old boy. The fascist gunman, Brenton Tarrant, made clear in his manifesto that the atrocity was motivated by white supremacist, anti-immigrant and anti-Muslim beliefs. The events of March 15, 2019, shocked the world. In the days following the attack tens of thousands attended vigils in solidarity with the victims and against racist violence and terror in New Zealand, Australia and many other countries. Read More

The United Nation commemorates the first-ever International Day to Combat Islamophobia
By Abdus Sattar Ghazali: The United Nations on March 10 commemorated the first-ever International Day to Combat Islamophobia with a special event in the General Assembly Hall, where speakers upheld the need for concrete action in the face of rising hatred, discrimination and violence against Muslims, the United Nations website reported. The observation follows the unanimous adoption of an Assembly resolution last year that proclaimed March 15 as the International Day, calling for global dialogue that promotes tolerance, peace and respect for human rights and religious diversity.The UN Secretary-General General António Guterres stated that the nearly two billion Muslims worldwide – who come from all corners of the planet – “reflect humanity in all its magnificent diversity”. Yet, they often face bigotry and prejudice simply because of their faith. Read More

USCMO Joins Several Western Muslim Organizations in Recognizing the United Nation's First International Day to Combat Islamophobia
USCMO: On behalf of the communities we serve in our respective countries around the world, the undersigned Muslim organizations thank the United Nations for marking March 15th as the International Day to Combat Islamophobia. We also thank the Organization of Islamic Cooperation for initiating and advancing this historic and important proposal. We know that Islamophobia has gone global. The Christchurch shooter who murdered 51 Muslim men, women and children in New Zealand on March 15th four years ago was just one horrific example of how dangerous anti-Muslim extremism can become. Read More

Will the Taliban Regime Dislodge TTP From Afghan-Pakistan Border Areas?
By Abdul Basit: The Taliban may not be willing to crack down beyond a point, as that could provide the group’s arch-foe, the ISKP, with a propaganda boost. The Taliban cannot afford to alienate the TTP. Any Taliban action against the TTP will dent their standing in the jihadist fraternity, giving their ideological arch-foe, the Islamic State of Khorasan Province (ISKP), a great propaganda opening to go on the offensive. Furthermore, if the Taliban dislodge the TTP from its current locations, the pro-TTP factions within the movement might resist such a decision. Likewise, the Taliban know if they push the TTP beyond a certain point, its factions can gravitate toward ISKP, something the Taliban cannot afford. Read More

Saudi-Iran deal won’t bring Peace to the Middle East but will enhance China’s role as Power Broker
By Simon Mabon: A reconciliation between the Saudis and the Iranians is certainly good for regional order. But it will not address the causes of conflict in Yemen or elsewhere across the region. It also raises several serious issues around regional security and global order, the salience of democracy and human rights, and the future of US engagement with the Middle East. While the initiative is a positive step, it is not a solution for the region’s conflicts. This Beijing-mediated agreement may in fact lead to further significant challenges for the people of the region. Read More

The Geopolitics of the Iran-Saudi Arabia “Rapprochement”: What Are the Implications for Pakistan?
By Andrew Korybko: The Iranian-Saudi rapprochement presents Pakistan with some unexpected challenges that it arguably would have been in a much better position to deal with had last year’s post-modern coup not taken place. The past 11 months have crippled its capability to respond to game-changers such as this one, which means that it’ll probably miss out on the opportunities connected with this black swan event while remaining at risk of sliding further into regional isolation. Read More

China’s Initiative: Iran and Saudi Arabia Are Back on the Diplomatic Track. Ending the Atrocious War in Yemen?
By Peter Koenig: The Sunni Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Shia Republic of Iran have agreed – in a China brokered deal – to re-establish diplomatic relations within the coming two months. Question is, will this new Riyadh-Tehran diplomacy bring an end to the horrendously atrocious war in Yemen? The worst killing and maiming of a most impoverished people in the last hundred years. Maybe this was a key objective of China’s in bringing these two countries back together. Read More

In SVB collapse, Asia sees 1997 all over again
By WILLIAM PESEK: Over the weekend, US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, the Powell-led Fed and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation unveiled steps to contain the fallout from Silicon Valley Bank’s collapse. With all SVB depositors being paid back in full, averting a potential collapse of the US financial system, it now falls to Powell’s team to devise a way forward. And preferably one that won’t send markets from Indonesia to Japan reeling. For now, few think the SVB debacle will trigger a 2008-like global financial meltdown. But the speed with which Asian officials have swung from guarded optimism over the US financial system to worrying about another 1997 is its own economic indicator for the year ahead. And not a good one. Silicon Valley Bank panic now sweeping global markets suggests more destabilizing financial events are likely around the corner Read More

The bailout of Silicon Valley Bank and the historic crisis of capitalism
By Nick Beams: The collapse of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB)—the second largest bank failure in nominal terms in US history—and the ongoing turbulence in the banking system, raising the prospect of more failures, is another expression of the historic crisis of US and global capitalism. This deepening rot and decay constitute the underlying driving force of two interconnected developments in US and world politics: the rapid escalation towards a third world war and the ongoing and intensifying assault on the working class in the US and internationally as the ruling classes seek to make it pay for the existential crisis of their outmoded and reactionary private profit system. Read More

Workers’ Party of Turkey backs Kılıçdaroğlu in presidential election
By Hakan Ozal: The Workers’ Party of Turkey (TİP) will support Kılıçdaroğlu in the presidential election against Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and advise its own alliance members, led by the Kurdish-nationalist Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP), to do the same. The HDP’s over 6 million voters could well swing in the election results. The TİP’s assembly, which convened in the earthquake-hit Hatay province over the weekend, decided that “the Central Executive Committee is authorized to make a decision on supporting Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu’s candidacy in consultation with the democratic public opinion, especially with the allied organizations in the Labor and Freedom Alliance.” Read More

The Quagmire of Doctored Pitches
Syed Rifaquat Ali: The four-match Test series between host India and Australia, played in February-March this year, which India won 2-1, and marred by controversial pitches, doctored favorably for the home team, prompted the International Cricket Council (ICC) to punish India after receiving the report from the match referee Chris Broad who said after the third Test in Indore which Australia won by nine wickets: "The pitch which was very dry, did not provide a balance between bat and ball, favoring spinners." Read More

Xi Jinping wins third term as President of China
By Yang Sheng: Xi Jinping was unanimously elected president of the People's Republic of China (PRC) and chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC) of the PRC on Friday at the ongoing session of the 14th National People's Congress (NPC). The election result reflects the common will and unity of the whole country and also reinforces China's key advantage of political certainty and consistency that ensures the country is able to overcome challenges and realize Chinese modernization as the world is undergoing profound changes unseen in a century, Chinese analysts said. On Xi Jinping’s re-election, Verna Yu wrote on Voice of America (VOA): Xi faces a plethora of domestic, diplomatic and economic challenges as China emerges from economic stagnation from three years of stringent zero-Covid policy and widespread discontent that culminated in mass protests late last year. Read More

China mediates to restore ties between Iran and Saudi
by Countercurrents Collective: In a significant development, Iran and Saudi Arabia have agreed to restore ties. China has mediated in the deal. The two countries will also resume the security cooperation agreement signed in 2001. China’s role in mediating the agreement is a major diplomatic win for the rising power. The news came Friday night attracting worldwide attention, and is seen as a breakthrough in bilateral relations for longtime regional foes Iran and Saudi Arabia. Read More

Russia sends samples of US weapons seized in Ukrain to Iran
Evropeyska Pravda: Russia is seizing some weapons and equipment provided by the United States and NATO to Ukraine on the battlefield and sending it to Iran, where, according to the United States, Tehran will try to remake these systems. According to Evropeyska Pravda, four sources familiar with this issue told CNN. Over the past year, officials from the United States, NATO and other Western countries have witnessed several cases of Russian troops seizing smaller, backpacked weapons, including Javelin anti-tank systems and Stinger anti-aircraft missile systems, which Ukrainian troops were sometimes forced to leave on the battlefield, sources told the TV channel. Read More

Iran announced conclusion of a deal to buy Russian of Su-35
Evropeyska Pravda: Iran's permanent mission to the United Nations on Saturday announced the completion of a contract with Russia to purchase fourth-generation Su-35 fighter jets. This, as writes "European Pravda", was announced by the Iranian publication IRIB. Iran's post-mission announced that Su-35 fighter jets were technically acceptable to the country, and after October 2020 and the expiration of Iran's restrictions on the purchase of conventional weapons based on UN Resolution 2231, the contract for their purchase was finalized. Read More

World Leaders Who could not Make Peace but Wars and Disdained Future
Dr Mahboob A Khawaja: After one year of perpetuated insanity between Russia, Ukraine, NATO and the EU, there are no military successes achieved except by ruthlessness and viciousness leading to degeneration of human cultures and civilizations. The perpetuated chaos and nationalistic ideals of the few are leading to collapsed civilizations and resumption of dark ages. Could wars be ever the source of conflict resolution or peacemaking? Read More

Why America Needs War, The Project for The New American Century (PNAC)
By Dr. Jacques R. Pauwels and Prof Michel Chossudovsky: This incisive and carefully documented article by renowned historian and political scientist Dr. Jacques Pauwels was published by Global Research almost 20 years ago on April 30, 2003 in the immediate wake of the war on Iraq. Dr. Jacques Pauwels is a Research Associate of the Centre for Research on Globalization (CRG). Flash Forward to 2023: A Timely Question: Why Does the Biden administration need war, including a $1.3 trillion nuclear weapons program? War against Russia and China is currently on the drawing board of the Pentagon. The US has conducted numerous wars since the end of what is euphemistically called the post war era: Korea, Vietnam, Cambodia, Iraq, Libya, Syria, Yemen… It’s what the Project for the New American Century (PNAC) describes as “A Long War”, a sequence of wars: “fight and decisively win multiple, simultaneous major theater wars.” The PNAC was published at the height of the presidential election campaign in September 2000, barely 2 months prior to the November elections. Read More

Libya’s population is 7 million, but there are 21 million guns in the country
Yenisafak: Abdul Haddi Elhwegi, President of the Afro-Arab Youth Council, who hails from Libya, told Anadolu that the amount of guns in the country far exceeds its population. “The problem in Libya is the big number of weapons in the country which are in the hands of groups and individuals .Our population is 7 million, but there are 21 million guns in the country. On average, every Libyan has three guns. They do not give us computers and books but only give us weapons,” he said Wednesday. Read More

Maryland's Lt. Governor has ties to India’s far-right RSS movement?
By Abdus Sattar Ghazali: Aruna Miller, the new Democratic lieutenant governor of Maryland, is stirring concern in the state due to her decade-long ties to advocates for far-right Hindu nationalist groups in India, according to a report in the Huffington Post. Miller, a former state legislator, assumed office in January 2023 alongside Gov. Wes Moore (D). Since then, activists and voters have sounded the alarm over Miller’s history of brushing shoulders with nationalist groups and dodging questions about her ties to a violent ideology that has long cracked down on minorities. She and Moore have also faced questions about collecting thousands of dollars in political donations from people sympathetic to Hindutva, a far-right nationalist ideology that mirrors white supremacy, Rowaida Abdelaziz wrote. Read More

Türkiye readies to kick off official process for May 14 vote
Daily Sabah: President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Monday revealed the official process for Türkiye’s long-awaited elections would launch on March 10, effectively confirming the May 14 poll date, which was announced before two earthquakes devastated Türkiye’s southeast and claimed over 46,000 lives. “Türkiye needs a robust government and a strong political will to recover from the recent disasters and their direct and indirect impacts,” Erdoğan said following a Cabinet meeting in the capital. Emphasizing that Türkiye "cannot afford to waste time, and energy or be distracted at this critical moment," the president said the priority is now to “focus on the recovery process without getting bogged down in political discussions." Meanwhile, the opposition Nation Alliance ended months of fractious debate and agreed to nominate the chairperson of the Republican People's Party (CHP), Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, as their joint candidate against Erdoğan in the fast-approaching May polls. Read More

Damage caused by Türkiye quakes set to exceed $100B
Daily Sabah: Damage from the massive earthquakes that jolted southeastern Türkiye last month is estimated to be over $100 billion, the United Nations said Tuesday. "Already it is clear that just the damages alone will amount to more than $100 billion," Louisa Vinton of the U.N. Development Programme (UNDP) told reporters via video link from Gaziantep province, adding that the recovery costs "will be on top of that." The magnitude 7.7 and 7.6 quakes on Feb. 6 caused widespread destruction in the southeast of Türkiye, killing over 45,000 people and leading to the collapse or severe damage of over 230,000 buildings. Read More

Western media keeps lying about Türkiye
BY HAKKI OCAL: The Western press has been consistently and persistently biased in reporting about President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s administration, its achievements and the reformation movements it started – more so than any other topics. Whatever they say so ardently has been poorly researched, based on innuendoes and the product of community coercion. But, as has been shown for decades, the close community of Western journalists living in small clusters in the country they serve is under constant peer pressure, and they provide “sources” to each other. Read More

Fire at Cox's Bazar leaves 12,000 Rohingya refugees homeless
Anadolu Agency/Yenisafak: A large fire that swept through a camp in Bangladesh's Cox's Bazar has impacted around 12,000 Rohingya refugees, causing considerable damage at the world's largest refugee camp, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said Monday. Around 2,000 shelters were destroyed in Sunday's fire while many affected refugees lost all their belongings leaving many experiencing fear, despair, and hopelessness, the IOM said. Read More

‘Feeling like prisoners’: The plight of Rohingya refugees today

The Rohingya Crisis by Council on Foreign Relations (CFR)

At the Brink of War in the Pacific? The Nightmare of Great Power Rivalry Over Taiwan
By Alfred W. McCoy: While the world has been distracted, even amused, by the diplomatic tussle around China’s recent high-altitude balloon flights across North America, there are signs that Beijing and Washington are preparing for something so much more serious: armed conflict over Taiwan. Reviewing recent developments in the Asia-Pacific region raises a tried-and-true historical lesson that bears repeating at this dangerous moment in history: when nations prepare for war, they are far more likely to go to war. Read More

Washington Is Out to Topple India’s Modi
By F. William Engdahl: In the past several years Modi, playing a delicate balancing act between alliances with Russia and also with the West, has emerged as a vital trade partner of Russia amid the sanctions. Despite repeated efforts by Biden Administration and UK officials, Modi has refused to join sanctions against Russian trade, above all oil trade. Now a series of suspiciously-timed and targeted events suggest that there is an Anglo-American destabilization being launched to topple Modi in the coming months. Read More

Celebrating Muslim Leadership in Elected Offices
By Abdus Sattar Ghazali: Northern California Islamic Council (NCIC) held an event to honor the Muslims in Elected Offices. The event, held on February 25, 2023 at the Chandni Restaurant, Newark CA, was addressed by a number of elected officials including Aisha Wahab, California State Senator. Hosham Haqqag, Clerk of City of Santa Clara was MC of the event. Read More

Why Muslims under the British Raj chose Pakistan and not ‘Akhand’ Bharat?
By Dr. Habib Siddiqui: The idea of Akhand Bharat is an absurd idea in our time. Nonetheless, this silly idea has had some proponents since the third quarter of the 19^th century who injected that the basis of Indian nationalism should be the Hindu religion. It was an alien idea to the minority Muslims of the British Raj. The Aligarh Movement played a great role in the growth of Muslim national consciousness, which witnessed and understood the utter falsity and absurdity of the Hindu nationalistic claim of Akhand Bharat or one Indian nation. Read More

An organ of the American Institute of International Studies (AIIS), Fremont, CA Since July 2008

HEADLINES

The Journal of America Team:

Editor in chief:
Abdus Sattar Ghazali

Senior Editor:
Prof. Arthur Scott

Special Correspondent
Maryam Turab