The real ‘no limits’ ties versus a really limited ‘no limits’ pact
- Russia and China are driven together by the US, which is breaking laws, undermining its national interests and foreign policy – all for Israel
Imagine if American university students rose up across the country to protest against repression and human rights abuses in Kashmir by the Indian government and its military.
And, in response, Washington immediately passed a law banning hate speech and equating criticism of the Indian government with anti-Indian racism.
Of course, the US political class won’t do that for India or any country, except for Israel. The US House of Representatives has just passed the Antisemitism Awareness Act, with most Democrats joining the Republicans. It has very little to do with racism or antisemitism and everything to do with censorship. The First Amendment? What’s that? Indeed, the act itself is arguably anti-Palestinian and anti-Arab.
The United States, of course, does much, much more for Israel. It has been arming it to the teeth to carry out a war that has put Israel in front of the International Court of Justice on genocide charges. It is reportedly putting intense pressure on the International Criminal Court (ICC) not to issue arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, his top general and security chief for war crimes. Neither country recognises ICC jurisdiction, for good reason.
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Washington is likely breaching its own law, the Foreign Assistance Act, by continuing military assistance after the State Department, the US Agency for International Development, and the Independent Task Force on the Application of National Security Memorandum-20 to Israel determined Israel has been impeding or blocking humanitarian aid to Gaza that has been facing famine conditions.
CNN reported that some State Department officials don’t believe Israel has been using US weapons “in a manner consistent with all applicable international and domestic law and policy, including international humanitarian law and international human rights law”, as required under the national security memorandum issued by President Joe Biden in February.
But as one news headline puts it, “US finds Israeli military units violated human rights; withholds consequences”.
The US drive to counter China and Russia’s attempts at gaining influence across the Global South has been undermined by its almost unconditional support for Israel and the slaughter of the Palestinians.
It is willing to suppress domestic dissent and protests for what is ostensibly a foreign country. That’s the true meaning of “no limits”.
Meanwhile, the much propagandised “no limits” friendship between China and Russia is turning out to be rather opportunistic and transactional.
It has benefited one side far more than the other. Admittedly, trade between China and Russia hit a record high last year of more than US$240 billion, overshooting the goal of US$200 billion and representing a 26.3 per cent jump from the year before.
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Russia has quickly replaced Saudi Arabia as China’s top oil supplier. But after losing its key market in Europe, Moscow has had to offer steep discounts in the prices of oil and gas to China, and other non-Western countries such as India. New Delhi has forced the Russians to accept the rupee as payment, which is now accumulating in Russian coffers with nowhere to spend given the limited trade between the two countries. A friend in need is, well, someone to take advantage of.
For all the hyped-up accusations from Washington and Nato, China has not supplied weapons to Russia. Unlike North Korea, it has no interest in joining or helping Russia with its war in Ukraine. The geopolitical advantages Beijing has derived from the war precisely requires that it sits on the sidelines. China is not the US; it doesn’t want to have a finger in every war and conflict around the world as part of the workings of a global empire.
As for dual-use devices such as semiconductors, well, China and most other non-Western countries have not joined the Western sanctions. And in fact, most of them are happily trading with Russia, not just China.
The US may like to warn against the Chinese-Russian axis, but the tight US-Israel bond is far more dangerous and destabilising for the world.
