Noam Chomsky On The Russia-Ukraine War.

last year we also had a conversation which was in depth regarding the ukraine-russia crisis we've been seeing the conflict escalate and escalate and escalate and continue to escalate up until today and we've seen also President Biden going to Ukraine uh in the past month to meet with president zelensky and with ongoing threats of escalation nuclear escalation with the treaty being removed the nuclear tree being removed so our listeners wanted me to ask you on your updates your current update perspective on the conflict and where do you think it's going from this point on side comment before I get into it how many presidents or high officials visited Baghdad when the United States was demolishing in zero in fact the peace activists in Iraq were ordered to leave because life was so impossible under the U.S attack does that tell you something [Music] it does something you're not allowed to talk about it's called what aboutism okay it's a way of deflecting attention from what is highly important and recognized throughout certainly throughout the global South but uh even in Europe the hypocrisy is just Beyond shocking and it's having an effect well what's happening in Ukraine uh the wars escalating the Ukraine is suffering bitterly a huge number of casualties and the Ukrainian Army has been apparently virtually destroyed no young recruits and not very well trained and huge casualties on the Russian side civilian casualties we don't know the details the United Nations estimates 7 000 which is surely a series of underestimate maybe twice three times that many pretty serious I mean it's not a wreck it's not the American kind of War but it's bad enough then it can increase uh now it's tanks beginning to be jet planes of the American Military has the actually Washington Post had an article a couple weeks ago pointing out that the U.S American forces basically are directing the uh fire of the advanced weapons by Mars and others that are being used the world most of the world sees this as a proxy war between Russia and the United States fought over Ukrainian bodies and it's being become harder and harder to avoid that conclusion if the work continues to escalate Ukraine will be I mean the economies very severely harm I mean not like Iraq or Libya or targets of American attack but then of serious and it's going to get worse um pretty soon you increase the tanks jet plans and so on Russia will probably retaliate by a harsher attack against Western Ukraine against supply lines uh run to conflicts with NATO at that point you're moving up the escalation ladder to terminal War Putin has made statements inflammatory statements about nuclear weapons in reserve suspended participation a new start reading all of this is very dangerous I should say it's equally dangerous the way it's escalating in China we don't talk about it much but should but all of this is quite serious U.S policy in Ukraine remains stable the war must continue in order to severely weaken Russia that's policy written in the united Britain which is a virtual satellite in the United States now Britain and the United States actually intervened directly list March and April to urge Ukraine not to move towards negotiations and negotiations were going on with Russia under Turkish auspices they broke down we don't know exactly why but Britain and the US were very clear that we're not ready for negotiation to them still not the official stand remains fight the war to severely weaken Russia if you think about it just from a practical point of view it's kind of sadistic that people are in fact talking about it it's a bargain for the United States that a small fraction of the huge military budget the United States is severely degrading the military forces of its main military enemy that's being openly discussed now in the United States and Britain pointing this out it's pretty obvious whether that's a factor or not you can debate but it certainly a fact the United States in fact you look around almost the entire world of suffering from this Ukraine most but um Africa Asia and curtailment of food and fertilizer shipments having a big effect Europe is declining even moving towards de-industrialization uh because of its the breaking of its natural trade commercial relations with Russia the whole german-based very successful European industrial system was based on interactions with the East and Russia doesn't have much of an economy it's about the size of Mexico but it's very rich in resources minerals oil all essential for West European industry it's collapsing all over the world decline one exception U.S is doing brilliantly it's degrading the forces of its anime at very low cost fossil fuel companies are just euphoric with the huge profits that come Germany's importing liquefied national grass from the United States and far higher costs than it could get cheaply from Russia and arms manufacturers are doing great food monopolies there's foods that Global Food system is half a dozen companies raising prices uh profits going through this roof it's a you know it's very successful in many ways you know how long will Europe agree to accept this um we don't know we do know what's happening in the global Zone the they're just refusing to participate it became very dramatic in the International Conference in Munich a couple weeks ago was an International Conference a strategic conference the United States Vice President Harris was there other Representatives desperately trying to to get the countries of the South to join the United States in the womb one after another said mothers your world we don't pay any attention to your hypocritical proclamations we know exactly what they mean we've suffered from your uh from your savagery for centuries stop lecturing to us uh just laugh at him we're not going to take part in this we're going to make our own relation on our commercial and other religion arrangements with Russia and particularly with China you don't like it too bad even you as a long time U.S allies like Colombia simply flatly refused uh Brazil no that's not how warm I don't know what Mexico said but probably something similar Asia India Indonesia I'm sorry we continue in our own way the United States is quite isolated the Anglers the English-speaking countries and for the time being Continental Europe essentially isolated probably 90 percent of the countries in the world don't even observe the sanctions uh meanwhile China is moving ahead with its loan development investment projects also moving ahead diplomatically it's just through a major wrench in long-term U.S policy in the Middle East by arranging the Saudi Iranian negotiations it's a very severe blow to the United States the control of the Middle East has been a crime crime concern of U.S foreign policy it's not the southern real government now China comes in the United States was working very hard to put together a an alliance of the most reactionary states in the region uh in a conflict with Iran it's called the Abraham Accords the United States we're supposed to applaud it was wonderful it's actually a reactionary Alliance subordinated to the United States aimed at Iran China just dismantled it took the main element Saudi Arabia was not technically a member of the Accords but basically part of it now that means the main source of oil pulled it into the Chinese system that had already happened with the internet at Arab Emirates the other major State uh China's has two major development programs for Eurasia there's What's called the new Silk Road which goes through the Eurasian countries in the but there's also a maritime Silk Road runs along the South through the Seas one of the hubs is the United Arab Emirates the man along with Saudi Arabia the main U.S Ally in the region The Hub of the maritime Silk Road of China these things are all taking place the U.S can't stop them with guns that's the U.S comparative advantage military force but it doesn't stop these things they continue and the world is moving towards complicated reconstruction Ukraine war has as part of it the Korean War has driven I mean apart from the criminality of the aggression major crime it's also criminally stupid from Putin's point of view he gave the United States its fondest wish Europe on a silver platter instead of an accommodation between Russia Germany to the benefit of both could drive Europe into the hands of Washington and Russia moves to the east oh they we don't have the details of the latest uh meeting of China and Russia a couple of days ago but what's leaking out indicates probably that uh the part of it is economic policies developing Chinese development of industrial projects in eastern Siberia and access to the rich mineral resources of Eastern Siberia that's very likely as Russia's moves to the east Europe sits in the pocket of the United States and declines Well India Indonesia South Africa Brazil then just going in the wrong direction maybe in their own Arrangements that seem that seems the way the world is moving and the US has one overwhelmingly powerful weapon violence but it doesn't work very well in this situation in fact the U.S moving to China the U.S which of course controls NATO has now expanded NATO to the indo-pacific region there is very significant the last NATO Summit meeting declared that the Pacific Ocean and the Indian Ocean are part of the North Atlantic so NATO is now on indo-pacific organization Europe is drawn into the conflict that the U.S is escalating with China uh it's both military and a commercial and the Biden Administration is quite openly openly no secret declared an economic war against China trying to prevent China's Economic Development by withholding from them advanced technology and trying to force Europe Netherlands particularly like South Korea and Japan to break off their relations with China and which is their main market for advanced technology will they accept this don't actually know it's very I'm going to take Netherlands as the main industry in the world for crucial parts of the development of semiconductors are they going to agree to lose their Major Market because the U.S told them to maybe if so they go into decline uh if not the world changes I think all of these things are right on the border and uh the one populous General and forgotten his name just a couple of weeks ago predicted that there would be a U.S China war within two years there can't be a U.S China war both countries get destroyed there's no such thing but the people generals Congress talk about it as if it's possibility uh it's very casual to talk about nuclear Wars utterly shocking you can read today in the New York Times and a long interview with Dan Ellsberg who's no suffering terminal cancer but trying still trying to alert the world to the incredible unbelievable stupidity of even thinking about nuclear wounds totally impossible but it's being banded about as if it's some kind of possibility and put and throwing his own uh oil on the fire again but that's what we're hurtling towards including environmental catastrophe it's a very the most dangerous spirit in human history well yeah it's a very like you say it's very concerning that we are just casually talking about a nuclear war and casually talking about the world transitioning from a unipolar order to a multipolar order and like you say my next question was going to be your thoughts on the China Russian development diplomatic developments would you answered very thoroughly and I appreciate that and it's it's impressive like you say that we're moving on to a world where nuclear war is being discussed just casually like even among friends which is a strange time to live in and a concerning one indeed [Music] thank you

Channel: Through Conversations Podcast

Views: 548,683

Keywords: chomsky, Noam Chomsky, russia Ukraine war, war, russia, ukraine, russia ukraine conflict, russia war, ukraine war, presidential elections, 2024, 2024 elections, china, nato

Id: tD_JdwimnjU

Length: 17min 36sec (1056 seconds)

Published: Tue May 09 2023