The Worker, Vol. 34, Number 19
U.S. Imperialism's Phony "War on Drugs" Is an Excuse for Stepping up Its Intervention in Mexico
The immediate results of the U.S. decision to take former Mexican military commander Salvador Cienfuegos into custody in Los Angeles on October 15 are in. The capitalist class and the mass media are celebrating the arrest as a legitimate "victory" and assertion of U.S. "leadership" in the "war on drugs," while for the working masses, the clandestine operations of the U.S. government and its violation of the sovereignty of Mexico are being quite clearly distinguished and denounced.
The U.S. Justice Department has accused retired Mexican Defense Minister Cienfuegos of corruption and acting to help drug traffickers avoid interdiction while he was serving as the head of the Mexican Army and Air Force. By relying on the claim that honoring the terms of the U.S.-Mexico extradition treaty would be inconvenient for the United States, U.S. magistrate judge Alexander MacKinnon tried to justify the U.S. decision to rigidly exclude the Mexican government from negotiations and to trample on the right of the Mexican people to carry into effect their own sovereign authorities. U.S. imperialism is acting as if it has appointed itself the judge, jury and executioner of every department of Mexican government.
According to the U.S. government's logic of Might Makes Right, its superior military power entitles it to dismiss its international agreements with Mexico on the chauvinist and aggressive grounds of labeling it "weak" and unable to meet the needs of its own population. Thus, the Drug Enforcement Agency is prepared to carry on secret investigations, issue its own arrest warrants for high ranking Mexican officers, and create every possible opportunity to guarantee their placement under confinement and trial in the U.S. instead of being condemned or released by process of Mexican law.
The U.S. government's indifference to the established norms of relations between states and its agreements with the Mexican government exposes the U.S. as an international outlaw.
Moreover, U.S. imperialism's talk about fighting against the "international drug trade" is a sham. Behind this rhetoric are the real expansionist, capitalist motives of U.S. imperialism – the drive to control the markets and economies of the countries of Latin America, which the U.S. capitalist class has always considered as its "backyard." The U.S. capitalist class and government, which are up to their own necks in every type of criminal activity imaginable, are certainly not interested in stopping the drug trade in Mexico.
The refusal of the U.S. government to honor its agreements with Mexico also shows that U.S. imperialism does not consider or treat Mexico as an independent country, but rather looks upon it as nothing but a strategic colony which must follow to the letter the dictates of U.S. policy.
We must fight against U.S. imperialism's economic strangulation of Mexico and denounce U.S. interference there. This is an important part of the working class program for a democratic foreign policy which demands an end to Big Power interference and intervention against sovereign nations and the democratization of international relations on the basis of recognizing the inviolable right of every nation to determine its own affairs. Every nation must be recognized as equal.
The U.S. Justice Department has accused retired Mexican Defense Minister Cienfuegos of corruption and acting to help drug traffickers avoid interdiction while he was serving as the head of the Mexican Army and Air Force. By relying on the claim that honoring the terms of the U.S.-Mexico extradition treaty would be inconvenient for the United States, U.S. magistrate judge Alexander MacKinnon tried to justify the U.S. decision to rigidly exclude the Mexican government from negotiations and to trample on the right of the Mexican people to carry into effect their own sovereign authorities. U.S. imperialism is acting as if it has appointed itself the judge, jury and executioner of every department of Mexican government.
According to the U.S. government's logic of Might Makes Right, its superior military power entitles it to dismiss its international agreements with Mexico on the chauvinist and aggressive grounds of labeling it "weak" and unable to meet the needs of its own population. Thus, the Drug Enforcement Agency is prepared to carry on secret investigations, issue its own arrest warrants for high ranking Mexican officers, and create every possible opportunity to guarantee their placement under confinement and trial in the U.S. instead of being condemned or released by process of Mexican law.
The U.S. government's indifference to the established norms of relations between states and its agreements with the Mexican government exposes the U.S. as an international outlaw.
Moreover, U.S. imperialism's talk about fighting against the "international drug trade" is a sham. Behind this rhetoric are the real expansionist, capitalist motives of U.S. imperialism – the drive to control the markets and economies of the countries of Latin America, which the U.S. capitalist class has always considered as its "backyard." The U.S. capitalist class and government, which are up to their own necks in every type of criminal activity imaginable, are certainly not interested in stopping the drug trade in Mexico.
The refusal of the U.S. government to honor its agreements with Mexico also shows that U.S. imperialism does not consider or treat Mexico as an independent country, but rather looks upon it as nothing but a strategic colony which must follow to the letter the dictates of U.S. policy.
We must fight against U.S. imperialism's economic strangulation of Mexico and denounce U.S. interference there. This is an important part of the working class program for a democratic foreign policy which demands an end to Big Power interference and intervention against sovereign nations and the democratization of international relations on the basis of recognizing the inviolable right of every nation to determine its own affairs. Every nation must be recognized as equal.
Threats of civil war..!?
This article had been transferred from the English-language media of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, October 25
An official of the Kabul regime named Hamdullah Mohib has said that if foreign troops withdrew from Afghanistan, the country would be faced with the threat of a civil war.
He is implying that perhaps there is no war at the moment and that their foreign donor masters should not leave else a war would break out.
This is exactly what Babrak Karmal, a puppet of the former Soviet occupation, conveyed to his superiors when they were fleeing due to the holy Jihad of the Afghan people.
Babrak told the Russians, "If the Soviet troops are withdrawn from Afghanistan now, then the Soviet leadership would be forced to send another million troops to Afghanistan the next time around".
There is no doubt that the 40-year-old crisis was caused by foreign occupation and which continues to this very day.
But unfortunately, the biggest role in inviting the invaders, in their survival and in sustaining the occupation is always played by the internal puppets.
However, the fact remains that once the foreign intervention is over, their interference stopped permanently and their puppets removed from power, then the fire of war would automatically be extinguished because the root cause is eliminated, and this has been a recurring theme in Afghan history.
Now as the irresponsible officials in Kabul call the departure of these invaders a disaster for Afghanistan and proclaim that a civil war would break out if their masters withdraw, this is in fact another unique ruthless campaign of the puppets aimed at continuing the occupation, perpetuating the ongoing atrocities in the country and preventing peace.
They wish for their foreign masters to continue bombing their fellow Afghans, to carry out night raids and brutalities and to continue filling prisons and cemeteries, but the flow of foreign money and their partial rule should not be lost.
Instead of the authorities giving hope to the Afghan citizens at this juncture and opportunity of peace and showing goodwill, they have deemed war, efforts of prolonging the occupation and preventing peace work.
On the other end of spectrum, the Islamic Emirate has repeatedly reassured the people that once the occupation ends, the country would be blessed with peace and rescued from war, Allah willing. And the elements advocating war, occupation and foreign dollars will be removed from the scene akin to their masters finally acknowledging and accepting realities and ending their fight against the Afghan nation.
An official of the Kabul regime named Hamdullah Mohib has said that if foreign troops withdrew from Afghanistan, the country would be faced with the threat of a civil war.
He is implying that perhaps there is no war at the moment and that their foreign donor masters should not leave else a war would break out.
This is exactly what Babrak Karmal, a puppet of the former Soviet occupation, conveyed to his superiors when they were fleeing due to the holy Jihad of the Afghan people.
Babrak told the Russians, "If the Soviet troops are withdrawn from Afghanistan now, then the Soviet leadership would be forced to send another million troops to Afghanistan the next time around".
There is no doubt that the 40-year-old crisis was caused by foreign occupation and which continues to this very day.
But unfortunately, the biggest role in inviting the invaders, in their survival and in sustaining the occupation is always played by the internal puppets.
However, the fact remains that once the foreign intervention is over, their interference stopped permanently and their puppets removed from power, then the fire of war would automatically be extinguished because the root cause is eliminated, and this has been a recurring theme in Afghan history.
Now as the irresponsible officials in Kabul call the departure of these invaders a disaster for Afghanistan and proclaim that a civil war would break out if their masters withdraw, this is in fact another unique ruthless campaign of the puppets aimed at continuing the occupation, perpetuating the ongoing atrocities in the country and preventing peace.
They wish for their foreign masters to continue bombing their fellow Afghans, to carry out night raids and brutalities and to continue filling prisons and cemeteries, but the flow of foreign money and their partial rule should not be lost.
Instead of the authorities giving hope to the Afghan citizens at this juncture and opportunity of peace and showing goodwill, they have deemed war, efforts of prolonging the occupation and preventing peace work.
On the other end of spectrum, the Islamic Emirate has repeatedly reassured the people that once the occupation ends, the country would be blessed with peace and rescued from war, Allah willing. And the elements advocating war, occupation and foreign dollars will be removed from the scene akin to their masters finally acknowledging and accepting realities and ending their fight against the Afghan nation.