The West’s ‘rules-based order’ invokes rulers’ authority; Russia-China say it’s time to return to law-based order
By Pepe Escobar with permission and first posted at Asia Times
We do live in extraordinary times.
On the day of the 100th anniversary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), President Xi Jinping, in Tiananmen square, amid all the pomp and circumstance, delivered a stark geopolitical message:
The Chinese people will never allow foreign forces to intimidate, oppress or subjugate them. Anyone who tries to do this will find themselves on a collision course with a large steel wall forged by more than 1.4 billion Chinese.
I have offered a concise version of the modern Chinese miracle – which has nothing to do with divine intervention, but “searching truth from facts” (copyright Deng Xiaoping), inspired by a solid cultural and historical tradition.
The “large steel wall” evoked by Xi now permeates a dynamic “moderately prosperous society” – a goal achieved by the CCP on the eve of the centennial. Lifting over 800 million people out of poverty is a historical first – in every aspect.
As in all things China, the past informs the future. This is all about xiaokang – which may be loosely translated as “moderately prosperous society”.
The concept first appeared no less than 2,500 years ago, in the classic Shijing (“The Book of Poetry”). The Little Helmsman Deng, with his historical eagle eye, revived it in 1979, right at the start of the “opening up” economic reforms.
Now compare the breakthrough celebrated in Tiananmen – which will be interpreted all across the Global South as evidence of the success of a Chinese model for economic development – with footage being circulated of the Taliban riding captured T-55 tanks across impoverished villages in northern Afghanistan.
History Repeating: this is something I saw with my own eyes over twenty years ago.
The Taliban now control nearly the same amount of Afghan territory they did immediately before 9/11. They control the border with Tajikistan and are closing in on the border with Uzbekistan.
Exactly twenty years ago I was deep into yet another epic journey across Karachi, Peshawar, the Pakistan tribal areas, Tajikistan and finally the Panjshir valley, where I interviewed Commander Masoud – who told me the Taliban at the time were controlling 85% of Afghanistan.
Three weeks later Masoud was assassinated by an al-Qaeda-linked commando disguised as “journalists” – two days before 9/11. The empire – at the height of the unipolar moment – went into Forever Wars on overdrive, while China – and Russia – went deep into consolidating their emergence, geopolitically and geoeconomically.
We are now living the consequences of these opposed strategies.
That strategic partnership
President Putin has just spent three hours and fifty minutes answering non-pre-screened questions, live, from Russian citizens during his annual ‘Direct Line’ session. The notion that Western “leaders” of the Biden, BoJo, Merkel and Macron kind would be able to handle something even remotely similar, non-scripted, is laughable.
The key takeaway: Putin stressed US elites understand that the world is changing but still want to preserve their dominant position. He illustrated it with the recent British caper in Crimea straight out of a Monty Python fail, a “complex provocation” that was in fact Anglo-American: a NATO aircraft had previously conducted a reconnaissance flight. Putin: “It was obvious that the destroyer entered [Crimean waters] pursuing military goals.”
Earlier this week Putin and Xi held a videoconference. One of the key items was quite significant: the extension of the China-Russia Treaty of Good Neighborliness and Friendly Cooperation, originally signed 20 years ago.
A key provision: “When a situation arises in which one of the contracting parties deems that…it is confronted with the threat of aggression, the contracting parties shall immediately hold contacts and consultations in order to eliminate such threats.”
This treaty is at the heart of what is now officially described – by Moscow and Beijing – as a “comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination for a new era”. Such a broad definition is warranted because this is a complex multi-level partnership, not an “alliance”, designed as a counterbalance and viable alternative to hegemony and unilateralism.
A graphic example is provided by the progressive interpolation of two trade/development strategies, the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and the Eurasia Economic Union (EAEU), which Putin and Xi again discussed, in connection with the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), which was founded only three months before 9/11.
It’s no wonder that one of the highlights in Beijing this week were trade talks between the Chinese and four Central Asia “stans” – all of them SCO members.
“Law” and “rule”
The defining multipolarity road map has been sketched in an essay by Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov that deserves careful examination.
Lavrov surveys the results of the recent G7, NATO and US-EU summits prior to Putin-Biden in Geneva:
These meetings were carefully prepared in a way that leaves no doubt that the West wanted to send a clear message: it stands united like never before and will do what it believes to be right in international affairs, while forcing others, primarily Russia and China, to follow its lead. The documents adopted at the Cornwall and Brussels summits cemented the rules-based world order concept as a counterweight to the universal principles of international law with the UN Charter as its primary source. In doing so, the West deliberately shies away from spelling out the rules it purports to follow, just as it refrains from explaining why they are needed.
As he dismisses how Russia and China have been labeled as “authoritarian powers” (or “illiberal”, according to the favorite New York-Paris-London mantra), Lavrov smashes Western hypocrisy:
While proclaiming the ‘right’ to interfere in the domestic affairs of other countries for the sake of promoting democracy as it understands it, the West instantly loses all interest when we raise the prospect of making international relations more democratic, including renouncing arrogant behavior and committing to abide by the universally recognized tenets of international law instead of ‘rules’.
That provides Lavrov with an opening for a linguistic analysis of “law” and “rule”:
In Russian, the words “law” and “rule” share a single root. To us, a rule that is genuine and just is inseparable from the law. This is not the case for Western languages. For instance, in English, the words “law” and “rule” do not share any resemblance. See the difference? “Rule” is not so much about the law, in the sense of generally accepted laws, as it is about the decisions taken by the one who rules or governs. It is also worth noting that “rule” shares a single root with “ruler,” with the latter’s meanings including the commonplace device for measuring and drawing straight lines. It can be inferred that through its concept of “rules” the West seeks to align everyone around its vision or apply the same yardstick to everybody, so that everyone falls into a single file.
In a nutshell: the road to multipolarity will not follow “ultimatums”. The G20, where the BRICS are represented, is a “natural platform” for “mutually accepted agreements”. Russia for its part is driving a Greater Eurasia Partnership. And a “polycentric world order” implies the necessary reform of the UN Security Council, “strengthening it with Asian, African and Latin American countries”.
Will the Unilateral Masters ply this road? Over their dead bodies: after all, Russia and China are “existential threats”. Hence our collective angst, spectators under the volcano.
Regarding Lavrov’s excellent essay, it is supremely ironic that the West, driven and dominated for thousands of years by Bibles and other Platonic Ideals, is totally unable to articulate their “international rules” into simple written language. Anything to avoid accountability!
In the end, the laws of nature, makes the rules.
And they use the golden rule to accomplish this.
Which is he who has the most gold, makes the most rules.
Nice turn of phrase. Unfortunately for western interests, the gold – like any other commodity – eventually changes hands. Especially when the western “rules-based order” is plagued with so much short term and contradictory thinking. Not sure China won’t be facing the same conundrums we are in a hundred years or so, as they face the same exponentially increasing resource and population problems the west does. But in the near term, the western way of doing business is for better or worse rapidly becoming obsolete, so western whining about Chinese and Russian “authoritarian tendencies,” in addition to being totally ironic (pot, kettle, black), are also totally irrelevant. The so-called Project for the New American Century needs to be relabeled in light of the fact that the balance of power has already shifted irrevocably to the East. The 21st century is already and will continue to be an Asian century, and there’s not one damn thing American financiers or “military might” can do about it. The only question in my mind is were western globalist leaders in on this plot all along and plan to jump ship to the east after they get through demolishing the west. We shall see.
My guess is that the rest of humanity has been onto us for hundreds of years, Jürgen. Far from being a beacon of light, the USA has always been about Manifest Destiny, the racist notion that Europeans were chosen by God to range around the planet displacing the indigenous, stealing their land and resources, ultimately bringing human history to an end in an apocalyptic conflict described in their Bible.
However, the USA is not only about domination and exploitation. It’s also about the near pathological rejection of all human values for the sake of monetary profit and material gain. If you don’t understand this simple reality about the USA, just ask any Native American to explain it to you.
Yes, it’s still amazing to me how easy it was to sell all this exceptionalist hogwash to us Americans. Yeah, I understand it was all very flattering and exceedingly profitable for all the post-WW II generations to go along with, but surely Vietnam and the 70’s were catastrophic enough to make us come to our senses? But of course along came Reagan/Bush and then that great used car salesman “Slick Willy” Clinton, and all was once again forgiven and forgotten in the massive wave of greed, gluttony, and complete and utter depravity and corruption that have marked our history in the 40+ years since. Read historically, it makes for one of the greatest Shakespearean tragedies to ever be written, and the best part is it’s all absolutely true. Who said the supreme being didn’t have a grand sense for theatrical tragicomedy?
It’s important to remember what Jürgen said, that it’s “supremely ironic that the West, driven and dominated for thousands of years by Bibles and other Platonic Ideals is totally unable to articulate their ‘international rules’ into simple written language.” That’s because the Bible and all of its platitudes has always been our justification for Manifest Destiny, the notion that we are the “chosen” ones.
The bible that drives 20th Century US Christian Zionism is the Scofield Reference Bible, financed by Samuel Untermayer, a Wall Street lawyer and fervent Zionist. It’s impossible to overstate the influence of Scofield and his bible on 20th century Christian evangelicals. If Scofield hadn’t been seduced by Zionism, the USA wouldn’t be fighting all these f-ing wars in the Middle East, and we wouldn’t be aiding and abetting the European Ashkenazim as they continue the occupation of Palestine.
A more truthful concept here would be fools-based disorder. Imbeciles and scum high on self-worship; what total rot. But still, their enemy consciousness is very much alive and kicking.
”President Putin has just spent three hours and fifty minutes answering non-pre-screened questions, live, from Russian citizens during his annual ‘Direct Line’ session. The notion that Western ’leaders’ of the Biden, BoJo, Merkel and Macron kind would be able to handle something even remotely similar, non-scripted, is laughable.”
As is the notion that a Western audience wouldn’t faithfully swallow the hogwash from the above luminaries. Spouting tripe about Putin, Xi, and international terrorism seems to be a very credible approach.
Yes, indeed.
Here is a subaltern headline in a very provincial Oz news paper this morning:
“Xi’s hollow 100th birthday celebration for the Chinese Communist Party
At the 90-year celebrations, the world was cheering China on. Not now. Global public opinion has deserted Xi Jinping’s China.”
Go figure. I guess if one equates “global” with Washington DC then this might be the worldview to look through.
Meanwhile, the hardware stores have near empty shelves as Chinese supply lines are disrupted. Most agricultural export industries are traumatised with reprisal trade barriers. The iron ore export industry (to China) is, so far, untouchable — but is very much in a precarious position if the next step is taken. And I hear from academic sources concerned with critical wokeism that the military are now rejecting the various gender BS discourses and re-writing the books and manuals to get back to men’s business. Preparig for war, I suspect.
sigh mate – bhp and rio are now on the list from what I heard
bwbs
IMO, there are four recently generated documents that must be examined carefully. The first is the Joint Statement signed and sealed by Putin and Xi’s video conference. The second is Xi’s 100th CPC Anniversary Speech. The third is Lavrov’s essay mentioned above by Pepe. And fourth is Putin’s Davos 2021 Speech. Much more could be added–the many interviews and pressers given by both Putin and Lavrov; Xi’s Davos Speech, the last several UNGA speeches given by all three. Of course, it’s much easier to keep pace and read them when delivered and save them for future reference.
One important facet of the Russia/China relationship is they are now striving to implement what essentially is the same people-centered policy goals–Many forget Russia ought to also be considered a developing nation. The evidence for that is within the links I provided.
Please come back more, you will add so much more to the community.
“Existential threats” is base and rotten vocabulary from those some mockingly call ‘partners’. Continent-size countries like Russia and China are the natural Partners of Africa, the Islamic World, Asia and Europe. Countries in the western peninsula of Eurasia ought to stick their courage back where it belongs for their own good.
all RC did was to encourage each country leaders to work for the benefit for their ppl while also being a productive and safe partners in international affairs
– not follows orders from ‘whom that is filled w so many unanswered war crimes’, and kill their own ppl for … well… in the end… nothing. good.
bwbs
Existential threats is, in fact, not base and rotten vocabulary although the people using it are incorrigible swine and scum proud of their own ugliness. It highlights precisely the mortal danger to continued parasitic financial rape and plunder posed by the growing power of Russia, China, and Iran. This very accurate perception is what’s ultimately killing the bogus political concepts of ”Left” and ”Right” — just about as meaningful as ”Democrats” and ”Republicans” in the US.
The Taliban now control nearly the same amount of Afghan territory they did immediately before 9/11.
A messy lesson in unintended consequences:~
The Taliban were originally the creation of the CIA.
“Taliban” means student. Madrassa schools were established in Pakistan and Afghanistan in the very late 1970s early 1980s with CIA/Saudi money.
The textbooks for this extreme “variant” of Islam were printed in the US.
All to “stir up some Moselems” and “give the Soviets their Vietnam”. (Brzezinski).
“Oh what a tangled web we weave/When first we practice to deceive”……
2008: Sibel Edmonds case: Documents Shed Light on CIA Illegal Ops in Central Asia Using Islam & Madrassas
https://dailykos.com/stories/2008/7/11/550023/-
……Saudi wealth and charities contributed to an explosive growth of madrassas during the Afghan jihad against the Soviets.
During that war (1979-1989), a new kind of madrassa emerged in the Pakistan-Afghanistan region — not so much concerned about scholarship as making war on infidels. The enemy then was the Soviet Union,………
https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/saudi/analyses/madrassas.html
Good round up/rollcall of the Taliban, mudjadeen, al quada, Pakistan ISI:
http://themillenniumreport.com/2015/12/an-abridged-history-of-the-united-states-psychopathocracy/
2014: How the US Helped Create Al Qaeda and ISIS
https://www.counterpunch.org/2014/09/19/how-the-us-helped-create-al-qaeda-and-isis/
And finally some Russian “propaganda”:
https://sputniknews.com/politics/201603191036592003-cia-islamism-afghanistan-taliban/
……Commenting on the results of Operation Cyclone back in 1998, Brzezinski noted, that he did not regret that the US Afghani covert war resulted in the emergence of terrorist Taliban organization.
“Regret what? That secret operation was an excellent idea.
It had the effect of drawing the Russians into the Afghan trap and you want me to regret it?..
“What is more important in world history? The Taliban or the collapse of the Soviet empire?
“Some agitated Moslems or the liberation of Central Europe and the end of the cold war?” Brzezinski claimed back in 1998.……
So 2021 and the Taliban control Afghanistan.
“Operation Cyclone” indeed.
they that sow the wind shall reap the whirlwind…
WW
You failed to include any thoughts on the huge lie that was 9/11 and the horrendous killing machine that descended on those souls for 2 decades.
The satanic Intelligence apparatus of AZE have worked to infiltrate, influence and control world govts as well as numerous dissident and rebel groups, including Islamic movements. There greatest success has been and is the control of western nations almost totally under their unrighteousness guidance. NATO and allied dictators (and groups) as their military, economic and political tentacles. They have spread their misery globally. This certainly includes islamist groups too under their sway, particularly, the hijacking of Islamic ideology through the support and massive funding of the GCC and their proxy armies. However, a well preserved tradition of faith and heritage isn’t going to dissipate that easily. The Taliban have roots in this phenomena. They are ultimately a Post soviet emergence, a brand who rose from the ashes of a debilitating civil war. A civil war it’s leaders were determined not to allow destruction of their history any further and not to let the sacrifices of their fathers to become unfruitful. There were attempts to co-opt them by the US initially and particularly through much needed support from foreign groups too. The Taliban leadership had a frosty relationship with individuals like OSL who they perceived as troublesome and quite disrespectful in terms of loyalty to their cause and more so after nineleven when OSL was under international spotlight. In this respect OSL was to some degree insignificant but the Taliban were a major impediment to the great game the AZE was dastardly embarking on. It was quite principled of the Taliban to refuse the ultimatum of the US to hand over OSL or face dire consequences. Even though they preferred him elsewhere they refused to hand over anyone without evidence. A combination of the great game and failing to co-opt the Taliban unleashed a frenzy of unilateral wars and destruction they thought would be over rather quickly. Twenty years later the great game is on the brink of collapse and countrywide support remains for the sprited warriors. They would never have lasted such vilification, destruction and occupation if the moral and local support wasn’t there. That defies a degree of logic. Although, they perhaps need to evolve their approach and ability to govern on a more sound pluralistic model, they earned the right to do so.
If a Taliban resurgence results in significant power across the country. That’s bad news for the overlords of the global herion trafficking syndicate. Just as before nineleven it will proceed along the same lines. That’s a significant blow to the black ops and mercenaries. That cash cow will eventually dwindle.
I sense the propaganda will intensify and upheavals will ensue. The US loss is a significant strategic loss here and a major gain for China, Pakistan and by extension Russia as Afghanistan is a key corridor to central Asia also. Afghanistan can certainly be incorporated into the great Eurasian project, the BRI and development. It itself sits on vast natural resources enhancing further regional and mutual benefits. The quad indo Pacific containment strategy has hit a setback. India now already more anxious of its regional disparity and isolation. The BJP’s Pro US stance in Afghanistan and its significant support to the proxy regime is coming back to haunt them. There are anxious moves to circumvent any major impact. The failed policy of grand ambitions and empires pawns ignoring regional cooperation and mutual respect is staring down at the current right wing mindset. A lesson time teaches over and over in so many places.
It’s intriguing to note that, as well as the favourable tide turning against the AZE described above, the collapse of the Soviet Union, in small part due to their Afghanistan campaign, was perhaps a blessing in some way. A sovereign Russia that stands today resolute and constructive towards a consensual set of international norms, advocating multipolarity and mutual cooperation and respect for soverienty. Revitalising its heritage and spiritual values. There’s no doubt that today’s Russia is a leading nation that gives hope and inspiration. Nations are attracted and optimistic in developing relations. The Russian Chinese strategic partnership is the symbol of this new paradigm shift. A partnership that would not have been anticipated in recent history
Can the Talibans defeat of the US have a similar tryst with destiny and provide an introspective struggle to salvation and redemption.
‘You failed to include any thoughts on the huge lie that was 9/11’
Having read numerous articles on 9/11 and the aftermath, it wasn’t the money that the Saudis laundered through Prince Bandar into Israeli & US coffers, neither was it the numerous statements from eminent building engineers on ‘The Laws of Physics’, nor the 5 Dancing Mossad Brothers detained on the bridge by the police with a plethora of evidence, maps, explosive detonators, other bomb making paraphernalia and later released, no, it was the fact that David Copperfield cancelled his 2 slots at the Caesars Palace Las Vegas Hotel at short notice to perform those Hologram Images of planes flying into the Twin Towers among other illusions such as Building 7 that nailed it for me.
It is Full Spectrum Dominance or bust.
Zone 2 will settle for nothing less.
Only thing that is required now is a casus belli that will provide the political support needed to attack Russia/China.
Get ready for interesting times.
Being natively optimistic is unhealthy as it invites despair in place of mental and spiritual resilience when the proverbial dede hits the fan.
The complex realism of cooperation between Russia and China as a result of AngloZionist bullying rather than neighbourly love is solid as long as no root level hack by CIA colour revolution happens. They are trying. Heard the noise about Pfizer/Moderna deprivation angst from Moscow’s & St Petersburg’s liberals?
BRICS is pretty much dead as a consequence of its noncommittal egalitarianism of sovereign equals yada yada. AngloZionist divide and rule shafted it via Brazilian regime change and empire fifth columnists in Pretoria and Delhi.
The same fate awaits the EAEU if RF’s noncommittal egalitarian sovereignty yada yada BS takes the lead over pen-on-paper trade commitment with the realism of painful penalties for breaking the deal.
From Tass:
https://tass.com/world/1309675
West seeks to get Central Asian states out of the sphere of Russian influence – Nazarbayev
“These are third forces seeking to put us at loggerheads with China, at loggerheads with Russia.”
Ok, but why has Nazarbayev changed the Kazakh language to latin script? Why is Kazakhstan a member of NATO’s “partnership for peace”? Why does Nazarbayev support the so called “territorial integrity” of Ukraine, instead of recognizing the referendums in Crimea and Donbass? Kazakhstan does not seem particulary pro-Russian to me.
India and South Africa however are very friendly towards Russia. South Africa even welcomed some Russian military jets on its territory, in their Waterkloof military airport.
@Lenard
US froze $15 billion of Kazakh’s money “to make them behave”, and they have US Special Forces and Training in the country.
I dont quite understand how this could happen, or why China and Russia couldnt avoid this interference in the middle of the Heartland, but the situation is so.
Some rumours says Kazakhstan’s Capitol is appointed NWO headquarter. They have some weird constructions in the city pointing to the same.
Hi Tomsen. Yes, money rules the world. Most leaders in the so called free west are bought by some big companies. Both for bribery or to blackmail them by freezing their money, as you wrote. It seems like Kazakhstan is drifting away from Russia unfortunately. The Deep State has taken on and focussed on central Asia’s biggest country which is of course Kazakhstan.
One can be a bit optimistic though about the Heartland on the other hand. Tajikistan has formed a military cooperation with Russia, and Uzbekistan is becoming more and more pro-Russian again. In recent years there were a lot of talks about making Russian co-offical with Uzbek and even about switching back to cyrillic script – so the exact opposite development to Kazakhstan. The language is of course not an arbitrarity at all as we can see in the Ukraine. It is a clear statement wether an ex-soviet country is friends with Russia or not. Well and Kyrgyzstan had always good connections to Russia and survived two colour revolutions withouth becoming an American puppet.
There’s no real signs of any revolutions of colour taking hold of Russia or China. As for those weak-kneed big city Russian “liberals” running scared of Covid, they simply haven’t the remotest idea of just how very lucky they are.
The future is defenitley Asian – the bureaucracy in Brussels does not want to acknowledge this fact and clinges to the crumbling empire of Washington. The EU is the neoliberal result of the Marshall Plan after World War II and still works primaraly as a market for the American industry. That is why it is failing.
I wish we would focus on a good partnership with Russia and China and participate in the idea of Eurasia. This is beneficiary for everybody.
Mr Lavrov is, as ever, alert and sound.
Russia and Eurasian partners gear up for Shanghai Cooperation Organisation’s 20th anniversary summit
https://www.rt.com/russia/528123-sco-20-anniversary-summit/
I am not so much a pessimist but a realist. Let’s face it: any noncommittal non-binding la la land cooperation format of sovereignties with any of its members already suckling on the empire’s teats – over a border dispute, vaccine psyops & military industrial big bucks as is the case of India – is a waste of time.
The money! Where is the money? Who finance these changes controls the global development.
To answer whether China (and them Russia) will be able to stand behind fancy words of independence we have to look at how much Blackrock have China by the balls.
Goldman Sachs invented the BRICS concept for China. China is working close with JP Morgan in Ukraine investment projects.
NYC Lawyer firms have been working close to President Xi. Mr. Prince Blackwater is engaged as security firm in OBOR.
But the real heavyweight Blackrock is the one who could break any independence ideas of China.
Does anyone know how close Blackrock are to CCP?
https://journal-neo.org/2021/06/18/there-is-more-to-blackrock-than-you-might-imagine/
Goldman certainly did not “invent” the idea of Global South solidarity in China.
This issue of transnational finance in China can be looked at two ways: a) Western finance infiltrating sovereign PRC or b) Chinese win-win “entrapment” of transnational corporations.
a) is often assumed without considering the possibility of b). China lets these corporations do (very lucrative) business on special terms, which significantly reduces the chance that they can be weaponized by Washington. Look at the troubles long-brewing in the tech sector due to that necessary GFW-induced decoupling. Likely, the calculus suggests that trying to compete via a “Chinese BlackRock” would not play out well. This could be due to the power of BlackRock, described in your linked article, but could also be that 20th-century finance is not a sector that the PRC sees as being an important part of the future (anticipating a collapse of USD).
Thanks. Yes I understand the “playing along” principle and “keep your enemy close”.
But as this globalist project is a hybrid war, the latest rumours says the globalists will try Blackrock as a trojan horse inside China.
We should remember China is a member of the Cabal Club, just China’s own concept is different and more sound than the childish violence paradigm of West.
Pepe is able to grasp so many different complex streams of thought, mix them all together, and still make it all sound humorous.
“President Putin has just spent three hours and fifty minutes answering non-pre-screened questions, live, from Russian citizens during his annual ‘Direct Line’ session. The notion that Western “leaders” of the Biden, BoJo, Merkel and Macron kind would be able to handle something even remotely similar, non-scripted, is laughable”
That is so true, and he dedication of Putin, his stamina and intelligence are stunning, and what the world are also jealous of, and how about President Xi Jinping, would he undertake the challenge of answering non-pre-screened questions, live, from Chinese citizens, for nearly four hours ?
What everybody forget is all the errors China have. China lifted 800 million out of poverty, but what about the 600 million still living in sewage pipes under the streets? Whattabout them?
As I am living in the free and civilised world, I do think about the human rights for the 600 million poor and innocent Chinese who never got a chance.
Who never did anything wrong, but only wanted a few dollares and a little freedom to smoke the pipe, but because of the Chinese regime’s unnecessary attack on the International free market and amateurish brutality, today are banned from British supplies from Hong Kong.
The other 600 million weren’t living in poverty in the first place. If you want to see rapidly growing homelessness and poverty, visit the West Coast of the USA.
Funny jokes. That situation is reversed today. Not by China but by their own ruling class. They treat their own peasants the worst of all, these western oligarchs.
Where I live there are still 10s of 1000s of people living in cardboard boxes by the river who used to own their homes until Obama sold them out. Their encampments are often bulldozed and possessions carted away. Everyone looks down on them. The sheikh of Dubai now owns their homes. Where are there human rights? Now thousands more go homeless, are laughed, their tarp homes burned by church groups and other nut jobs. Where are their human rights? I think of the 400 million of my people composting in the gardens of the colonizers who did one thing wrong and that was trust the christian colonists. Now across the North American continent the remains of children abused by priest and then consigned to mass graves are coming to light. Who cries for their rights? Red lives don’t matter? Barbarism begins at home.
Yes, the Chinese like a bargain, they also prefer to use 98% of their own on foreign mining/infrastructure projects, but they wont stamp on your face and take it for free.
Their partnership with Russia would have developed much sooner, especially on Energy, if they didn’t insist on huge discounts.
Still you learn from your mistakes and begin to realise that money isn’t everything, especially if it weakens an ally’s economy.
Pepe
I’ve been watching all the live posts where you, Paulo Gala and others have talked, discussed and gave spetacular informations on geopolitics, history, journalist investigation and living reports on the events we are taking knowledge.
I would like to have a channel trhough which I could do questions and at the end interact with you, if possible.
Each live chat between you are very precious and enlightning.
In April, Russian growth of average incomes and wages went to 56614 Rubles from 55208 Rubles in March this year.
Not much but better than nothing.
Actually not bad.
But what is really good is that REAL incomes went 8.7% UP compared to April last year and 2.5% UP compared to March this year.
April last year was badly affected by Covid pandemic so this year Russia is on good path to overcome consequences of Covid
Growth of life standard and elimination of powerty is the most important task for Russian government and Putin himself.
We must not forget that low life standard destroyed USSR. Looks like Putin and government understand that lesson very well.
Lavrov’s point on “Western languages” is completely wrong: he is attributing a peculiarity of the English language to all the “Western languages”, but etymology tells us a quite different story.
“Western languages” is a non-sense: Lavrov should at least learn the difference between Latin-derived languages and all the others. He then could try to understand the real origin of the words he cited: all of them are Latin words as for their etymology.
“Rule” comes from “Regula”, which means more or less “the right, straight principle”.
“Law” comes from “Legem”, which means “something that bounds, something that obliges you”
BUT the usual English meanings of “to rule” and “ruler” have almost nothing to do with the Latin word which originated them. In fact, Italian language sticks with the Latin meanings and the anglo-saxon re-interpretation DO NOT EXIST within it.
So mr.Lavrov should at least study something, before using non-sensical expressions like “Western languages”.