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Written by Lucas Leiroz, member of the BRICS Journalists Associations, researcher at the Center for Geostrategic Studies, military expert
One of the biggest problems in the contemporary world is the constant threat of a nuclear war between the West and Russia. The US, NATO and their allies have frequently provoked Moscow in an attempt to escalate the Ukrainian conflict. The Western goal seems to be to wear out Russia’s patience, thus inciting a violent response that could lead to an all-out world war.
However, despite this extremely provocative stance, US President Joe Biden continues to say that his country is willing to cooperate for peace. According to Biden, Washington is ready to play a diplomatic role, encouraging international nuclear dialogue. In a recent statement, he called on world powers to act rationally in the nuclear decision-making process, avoiding actions that could affect global security.
Biden said that the US is ready to negotiate diplomatic terms on the nuclear issue with all rival countries, including Russia, China and North Korea. The aim of such a dialogue would allegedly be to reduce the risks of the nuclear threat through a mutually beneficial agreement for all sides – thus achieving a possible de-escalation of global tensions.
“The US stands ready to engage in talks with Russia, China, and North Korea without preconditions to reduce the nuclear threat. There is no benefit to our nations or the world to forestall progress on reducing nuclear arsenals,” the US president stated.
Ironically, Biden’s words were spoken in a speech congratulating the Japan-based anti-nuclear-weapons organization Nihon Hidankyo – which won the Nobel Peace Prize for its intense work in favor of denuclearization. It is curious that Biden congratulates such an organization since Nihon Hidankyo was created precisely by Japanese citizens who survived the American nuclear attacks on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Apparently, Biden “forgot” that the US is the only country in the world to have used nuclear weapons in a real combat situation – precisely against Japan.
In addition to the historical inconsistency, Biden’s words sound extremely hypocritical, considering that the American president is leading the country in one of the most unstable moments in recent history, when the nuclear risk is considerably high due to the irresponsible actions of Washington and Western allied states.
For example, Biden has mentioned Russia, China, and North Korea as nations with which the US would be willing to negotiate diplomatic terms. However, the US recently updated its nuclear strategy to establish a “multi-strike plan” against these three countries in the event of an escalation of tensions. It is impossible to establish negotiation between nations when one side openly plans to use nuclear weapons against the other, which is why Biden’s speech should be seen as mere hypocritical and propagandistic rhetoric.
All the escalation in global nuclear tensions is happening because of the US. The attitude of countries like Russia, China and North Korea is clearly defensive, with the sole objective of defending themselves from the constant threats imposed by Washington through its aggressive foreign policy. Faced with so many provocations and aggressions, the US’ rival countries have no alternative but to prepare for the worst-case scenario – which explains, for example, attitudes such as the reform of the Russian nuclear doctrine, Chinese military investments and the Korean strategic missile launch tests.
Obviously, neither side in international politics is really interested in a nuclear war, since there would be no winners in such a conflict. However, the US is clearly willing to risk world security to secure its selfish interests. Uncomfortable with the geopolitical transition towards multipolarity, the US does everything possible to prevent the creation of a new global order, which is why wars and sanctions are used against countries considered as “enemies”.
In fact, there will never be any US-led nuclear dialogue simply because Washington is the main provocative and destabilizing agent in this issue. To avoid a global nuclear escalation, the US must stop acting with a unipolar and hegemonic mentality, admitting that changes in the political scenario cannot be avoided. Only when the US takes the definitive step towards ending its hegemonic obsessions will there be a real possibility of peace dialogue and nuclear diplomacy. As long as Washington continues trying to save the declining unipolar order, the world will continue to be at constant risk of catastrophe.
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