Elon Musk Seen as Working Counter to US Interests in Dealings with Russia, China

Sep 12, 2023 | Elon Musk's financial interests put him in a position of having his own personal foreign policy, but new reporting shows that whether it's manufacturing in China or the Starlink network being used by Ukraine, Musk's decisions can run counter to stated U.S. policy.

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« Elon Musk », la biographie qui décrit un multimilliardaire en visionnaire brutal, rongé par la colère et le doute : CRITIQUE Le livre de Walter Isaacson, sorti mercredi en France, est une lecture passionnante, moins pour ses « grandes révélations » – il y en a finalement assez peu – que pour la couleur résolument sombre qu’il donne à son personnage. »

Putin Accuses West of ‘Coming with Its Missiles to Our Doorstep’

THE GUARDIAN: Russian president again voices anger at Nato expansion and says he would be prepared to intervene in Ukraine

‘They keep telling us: war, war, war’: Vladimir Putin during the press conference on Thursday.Photograph: Natalia Kolesnikova/AFP/Getty Images
Vladimir Putin has accused the west of “coming with its missiles to our doorstep” as he reiterated demands for no further Nato expansion in Europe.

The Russian president did little to reduce tensions over Ukraine as he spoke at a televised press conference, saying he would be prepared to launch an intervention if he felt Ukraine or its western allies were preparing an attack on Russia’s proxies in the country.

“They keep telling us: war, war, war,” Putin said on Thursday. “There is an impression that, maybe, they are preparing for the third military operation [in Ukraine] and give us a fair warning: do not intervene, do not protect these people but if you do intervene and protect them, there will be new sanctions. Perhaps, we should prepare for that.” » | Andrew Roth in Moscow | Thursday, December 23, 2021

With the US Becoming a Less Reliable Ally, Britain Needs to Make Friends in Europe

THE GUARDIAN: Britain urgently needs to repair its relations with its neighbours but Boris Johnson’s government is singularly ill-equipped to do so

Boris Johnson with Joe Biden at the G7 summit in June. ‘The display of beach bonhomie looks all the more phoney after the US president’s brutal refusal to consult Britain over Afghanistan.’ Photograph: Leon Neal/PA
After the rout, the recriminations. British fingers furiously jab at the Americans for a shaming scuttle from Kabul that will embolden the west’s adversaries. Sir John Major yesterday called the withdrawal of western forces a “strategically very stupid” decision. Tony Blair, the prime minister who sent British forces into Afghanistan 20 years ago, goes so far as to call the precipitous exit “imbecilic”. Number 10 has been forced to deny that Boris Johnson refers to the US president as “Sleepy Joe”, the insult minted by Donald Trump. Supporters of Joe Biden counter-accuse the British and other European countries of expecting the US to continue to expend its blood and treasure in Afghanistan when most Nato members had wound down their commitments long ago.

In Whitehall, an ugly three-way blame game rages between the Foreign Office, the Ministry of Defence and the Home Office about why the government didn’t anticipate the swiftness of the fall of Kabul or make timely preparations to help vulnerable people to whom Britain owes obligations. We’d be in a better place if they’d devoted as much energy to planning for the evacuation as they are expending on excoriating each other. There will be more finger pointing when the Commons returns tomorrow. Yet it is not buck-passing between politicians desperate to save their careers that this country needs if anything useful is to be learned from this debacle. What is required is a cool reassessment of where this leaves Britain in a perilous and unpredictable world.

This humiliating episode has shattered assumptions that have been central to elite thinking about foreign policy. That was very evident when the Policy Exchange thinktank convened a panel of speakers who were notable for their credentials and their anxieties about the future. Sir Mark Sedwill, the former cabinet secretary who also served as national security adviser, was certain that the return of Taliban rule would have an “inspirational” effect on jihadists that will fuel terrorism worldwide. Tom Tugendhat, the Conservative MP who served in Afghanistan and chairs the foreign affairs select committee, worried that we have moved closer to a hot conflict between America and China because Beijing will read the west’s defeat as an encouragement to flex its muscles more aggressively. I was also struck by a contribution from George Robertson, who was defence secretary during New Labour’s first term and Nato general secretary at the time of 9/11. He has always been staunchly in the Labour Atlanticist tradition established by Clement Attlee and Ernest Bevin after the Second World War. It was arresting to hear such a vigorous champion of the alliance with America as Lord Robertson suggest that Britain and other Europeans would have to do more for themselves “to keep our people safe” because “we cannot any longer rely on the American umbrella being there in all situations at all times”. » | Andrew Rawnsley | Sunday, September 5, 2021

This is what I wrote on the matter yesterday. Read my thoughts here. We are being led by clowns and fools! – Mark

‘Trapped in Hell’: Kabul Airport Chaos Casts Doubt on US Promise of Safe Evacuation

THE OBSERVER: There is no coherent system, and those who do make it to the airport face days stuck waiting to board flights

People wait at the airport in Kabul. The US has no figure for the exact number of people who need evacuating.Photograph: Anadolu Agency/Getty Images
In a voice quivering with fear and exhaustion, Sara pleaded down the phone: “Please, get us out of here. The situation is very bad, we are trapped in a hell.”

For the past four days, Sara, who asked for her real name not to be used, has waited with her family among the thousands of people outside the gates of Kabul airport, desperately trying to board a US evacuation flight.

In the past few days, she said she had seen more than 15 people, including children, shot before her eyes, witnessed her uncle beaten brutally by Taliban fighters and had her nights on the hard street outside the airport gates interrupted by crowd surges and the panic-inducing crack of gunfire.

The crowds were packed in so tightly it was hard to breathe, and people had been trampled to death, she said, adding that the putrid stench of rubbish was getting worse by the day. They had run out of food and water. “My mental state is completely broken,” said Sara.

Sara and her four family members have all been issued US visas for evacuation from Afghanistan and received instructions in a letter from the US consul to go directly to Camp Sullivan, the US military base at Kabul airport, on 18 August. They were told to be prepared to wait hours, and bring bedding with them. But when they arrived on Wednesday, they found thousands blocking the entrance, and all the gates closed. They have not opened for them, and there has been no further information.

“No one is allowed through, even with visas,” she said. “No one from the US is helping us. No one is telling us which gate to go to – we don’t even know when the US flights are leaving. There is violence everywhere but every gate we go to is closed and no one gives us any information or shows any mercy.” » | Hannah Ellis-Petersen, South Asia correspondent | Saturday, August 21, 2021

Biden Seeks to Sideline Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman

THE GUARDIAN: The new US administration has signalled it expects the desert kingdom to ‘change its approach’ in a break with Trump policy

The Biden administration has said it expects Saudi Arabia to “change its approach” to the US and signalled that it wants to minimise any direct contact between the president and the country’s de facto ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

The stance marks an abrupt change compared with the Trump administration, which showered the young heir with attention and praise. It comes as intelligence officials are preparing to release – possibly as early as next week – a declassified report to Congress that will describe its assessment of the crown prince’s alleged culpability in the murder of Jamal Khashoggi, the US-based Washington Post journalist who was killed by Saudi officials in 2018.

The White House press secretary, Jen Psaki, this week said Joe Biden intended to “recalibrate” the US relationship with Saudi Arabia, and considered King Salman – not Prince Mohammed – to be his counterpart. While the designation might technically be true, the 35-year-old prince is widely seen as running Saudi Arabia and has direct relations with other foreign leaders. » | Stephanie Kirchgaessner in Washington | Wednesday, February 17, 2021

Mike Pompeo Claims without Evidence That Iran Is Al-Qaida's New 'Home Base'

THE GUARDIAN: Move seems designed to restrict Biden administration’s options as secretary of state confirms killing of al-Qaida leader in August

The US secretary of state, Mike Pompeo, has claimed, without providing evidence, that al-Qaida leaders have established a new “home base” in the Iran, in what appeared to be his latest effort to raise the political cost of the next administration reviving the 2015 nuclear deal with Tehran.

Speaking with just eight days left in office, Pompeo alleged that Iran was “the new Afghanistan”, telling a news conference in Washington: “Unlike in Afghanistan, when al-Qaida was hiding in the mountains, al-Qaida today is operating under the hard shell of the Iranian regime’s protection.” » | Julian Borger in Washington | Tuesday, January 12, 2021

This assertion appears to be manifestly absurd! Al-Qaeda is a Sunni terrorist group. Iran is Shia. Sunnis and Shiites hate each other with a vengeance. This alone makes Pompeo’s assertion highly unlikely to be true. Pompeo is playing to people’s ignorance. He, in his position, should know better than this. The man needs to go back to school! – ©Mark Alexander

Will President-elect Joe Biden Change US Foreign Policy? | Inside Story

After days of uncertainty and a hard fought, bitter campaign, Joe Biden has been declared the winner of the US Presidential election. He says he wants to restore the soul of America and unite a deeply divided nation.

Biden received more votes than any other presidential candidate in history. But he's appealed to the tens of millions of Americans who did not vote for him - to give him a chance.

After his victory in Pennsylvania, Biden is projected to have a majority of the Electoral College votes needed to win the White House.<

How Will the Biden Presidency Impact US Foreign Relations? | US election 2020

Many European leaders are hoping Joe Biden will help repair the transatlantic ties that have been strained under the Trump presidency. So what is a Biden administration likely to do for relations with Europe and the rest of the world?

Fareed Zakaria: Here's the Problem with Trump's Foreign Policy

CNN's Fareed Zakaria explains the impact of President Donald Trump's actions in the Middle East.

Fareed Zakaria: Trump's Foreign Policy Is In Shambles

President Donald Trump claimed he was a great dealmaker, but after the collapse of deals with Iran, North Korea and the Taliban, has that claim been proven otherwise?

Donald Trump’s Reckless Iran Policy Casts Doubt on the US as Global Leader

THE GUARDIAN: Washington’s European allies need to ask themselves whether the US government has become a dangerous liability

Irrespective of whether Iran is responsible for the recent attacks on Gulf shipping, the crisis now unfolding is fundamentally one manufactured out of thin air by the Trump administration. The implications go beyond the threat of a major war and consequent worldwide economic crash. Donald Trump’s reckless, incoherent Iran policy also throws into question the viability of the role of the United States as the global leader.

The US achieved its hegemonic status in the world system not simply through raw strength, but also by convincing the second-tier capitalist powers that it could manage that system in their interests as well as its own. Washington could be relied on to confront and put down challenges to the capitalist order, expand and deepen its reach, and handle crises as they arose. It was through responsible management of the system in the interests of western capital and state power more broadly (if not of humanity as a whole) that the US secured consent from its allies to lead this new form of empire. » | David Wearing | Wednesday, June 19, 2019

Old Grudges, New Weapons… Is the US on the Brink of War with Iran?

THE OBSERVER: While American hawks talk up an ‘imminent’ threat from Tehran with no hard evidence, echoing the start of the Iraq conflict, hardliners are in the ascendant in Iran

For better or worse, America remains the world’s leading military superpower. In Washington last week, a familiar row erupted over how best that power should be used. Past targets have included Soviet Russia, al-Qaida in Afghanistan and Saddam Hussein in Iraq. Today the international bogeyman topping the White House’s to-do list is Iran.

Once again the US is in the process of deciding whether to go to war. As always, it is a tangled, messy and dishonest business. On one side, favouring punitive action, stand the Iran hawks. They include neoconservative retreads such as John Bolton, Donald Trump’s national security adviser, who championed the 2003 Iraq invasion; Mike Pompeo, a former CIA director and Christian evangelical who heads the state department; and Mike Pence, the ascetic US vice-president.

On the other side, opposing escalation, stand Democratic party leaders in Congress and a clutch of presidential hopefuls; sceptical Pentagon generals and security agency officials who trust Bolton as far as they can toss an IED; a majority of Washington’s more important allies in the EU and Nato; and China and Russia, which oppose American global power-plays on principle. » | Simon Tisdall | Saturday, May 18, 2019

CrossTalk: Bolton War Machine

Is Donald Trump’s National Security Advisor John Bolton a clear and present danger to America and the world? His saber-rattling in the Middle East, particularly against Iran, should concern us all. We are forced to ask a fundamental question – is Bolton the primary architect of Trump’s foreign policy? CrossTalking with Brian Becker, Gareth Porter, and Max Abrahms.

Trump’s Foolish Iran Policy Only Makes War More Likely

THE GUARDIAN: Iran’s rulers face impossible choices as a result of unrelenting US hostility, which has one aim – regime change

It is unclear what, if anything, Iran can do to induce the United States and its regional allies to halt their escalating war of attrition before it provokes all-out conflict. When Donald Trump reneged on the UN-ratified nuclear agreement with Tehran last year, he said he wanted a better deal. Iran must change its behaviour, he said, and act like a “normal country”.

This was always disingenuous. Iran’s authoritarian and abusive rulers certainly need to mend their ways. But what Trump and his imperious advisers really meant was that they must do what America says, in conformity with American interests. What they want is an end to 40 years of post-revolution defiance. What they want is regime change in Iran. » | Simon Tisdall | Thursday, May 9, 2019

THE GUARDIAN: Trump’s antics over Iran have endangered us all. The stakes are now lethally high » | Jonathan Friedland | Wednesday, May 8, 2019

Mike Pompeo: A Bully Boy Calls at No 10

THE GUARDIAN: The visit of the hawkish US secretary of state poses problems for Theresa May and Jeremy Hunt

American secretaries of state can be earnestly dull, like John Kerry, or plain brilliant, like George Marshall; Machiavellian, like Henry Kissinger, or intensely political, like Hillary Clinton. Mike Pompeo, the bluntly spoken, present-day incumbent who will discuss “shared global priorities” with Theresa May in London, is simply a problem.

As last week’s failed US pressure tactics in Venezuela showed, the former army officer, Christian evangelical and ex-CIA director favours a muscular approach to diplomacy. His messianic drive to force regime change in Iran is another example. He recently suggested Donald Trump had been sent by God to save Israel from Tehran’s mullahs.

Speaking in Cairo in January, Pompeo celebrated US support for dictators such as Egypt’s Abdel Fatah al-Sisi and the Saudis’ war in Yemen. Next month, he will help unveil a peace plan that could destroy any lingering Palestinian hopes of an independent state. But he makes no apologies. “I’ll put it bluntly. America is a force for good in the Middle East,” he declared. » | Simon Tisdall | Saturday, May 4, 2019

Trump's Foreign Policy | Full Debate | George Galloway, Mark Leonard

Many think Trump a buffoon and a threat to world peace. But with ISIS weakened, and signs of progress in North Korea, perhaps his supporters can point to some initial successes. Could a belligerent approach to foreign policy make for a safer world? Is the beat way of pursuing peace to prepare for war? Or has Trump in fact made the world more precarious than ever?

What Shapes US Foreign Policy in the Middle East? | Inside Story

Qatar hosts a two-day conference on US policy and the Gulf crisis. From the crisis in the Gulf to the war in Syria, the decisions made in Washington have long-lasting consequences.

US president Donald Trump has taken a 'hands-off' approach to foreign policy while pushing his 'America First' strategy. He has long promised to find a solution to the conflict in Palestine with what he calls the 'deal of the century'. But there hasn't been much detail on what that deal contains.

Now, with an election year coming up in the US, and an ever-changing political dynamic in the Middle East, what will be America's policy in the region? And are we heading towards more uncertainty?

Presenter: Peter Dobbie | Guests: Mahmoud Jabara - Visiting Lecturer, University of Erlangen-Nuremberg; Seyed Mohammad Marandi - Dean at the Faculty of World Studies, University of Tehran; Omar Ayasra - Researcher in Religious Sociology and Political Transformation; Mohammed Cherkaoui - Senior Fellow, Al Jazeera Centre For Studies

Trump's Latest Iran Sanctions Show an Unraveling of US Foreign Policy

Col. Lawrence Wilkerson says unilateral sanctions against Iran are illegal, and show the ascendancy of John Bolton; they intensify tension with China and threaten our international position

Trump Administration Downgrades EU's Status in US, without Informing Brussels

THE GUARDIAN: Downgrade of diplomatic role seen as a snub reflecting a general antipathy to the EU in the Trump administration

The Trump administration has downgraded the diplomatic status of the EU mission in Washington, without informing the mission or Brussels, officials confirmed on Tuesday.

The downgrade from nation state to international organisation status reverses an Obama administration decision in 2016 to grant the EU an enhanced diplomatic role in Washington, and is being seen in Brussels as a snub reflecting a general antipathy to the EU in the Trump administration. The president has supported Brexit and has described the EU as a “foe”.

The change, first reported by the German news agency, Deutsche Welle, potentially means that the EU mission would have less clout and access to US officials. » | Julian Borger in Washington | Tuesday, January 8, 2019

Trump | A Year of Unclear Middle East Policy

Saturday will mark one year since Donald Trump took the oath of office, becoming the 45th president of the United States.

Under Trump, the US' Middle East policy has witnessed some highly controversial decisions. One year in, what this administration thinks its policies in the region will ultimately achieve remains unclear.

Al Jazeera's Zeina Khodr looks at how his presidency has impacted the Middle East.