America's objective to dominate oil fields, not destroy WMD

By Firoz Osman - Sept 17, 2002

Saddam Hussein's last-minute agreement to permit United Nations weapons inspectors unconditional access will hopefully unmask America's veiled ambitions for the region.

There can be little doubt that the primary objective of the United States of America is to maintain and perpetuate its control over the Middle East – the oil reservoir of the world.  Essential to the US government's vision of the New World Order has been the politics of subjugating Iraq with proven crude oil reserves of 112-billion barrels, the second largest in the world. In spite of its defeat in the 43 day Gulf War and the devastating and cruel American-led sanctions, Iraq refuses to submit to US domination.

In violation of international law, the US and British imposition of air-exclusion zones in northern and southern Iraq is a further attempt to weaken and topple the regime. It is no coincidence that these areas are rich oil-producing areas. Having gained total control over Saudi and Kuwaiti oil, the US is more determined than ever before to establish its dominance over Iraq so that the entire petroleum-exporting region would be under its suzerainty.

The western media has bombarded blatant American propaganda and deceit, proclaiming that it wants to save the world from Saddam Hussein. It is true that Saddam is not an exemplary ruler. He has been ruthless in his suppression of dissent and opposition - with American-supplied arms. It was the CIA that brought Saddam's Ba'athist Party into power in what the CIA officially described as "our favourite coup".

American antagonism towards Saddam Hussein developed in 1972 when he pushed for the nationalisation of oil in 1972. He was determined to break the stranglehold of the West upon the Arab world, and he used the weapon of Arab nationalism. He rejected in total the US-brokered Camp David Accord, but his collaboration with the West in the war against Iran tarnished his anti-imperialist image. However, the USA's role in his dispute with Kuwait proved to Saddam that the US was not prepared to accept his leadership.

As John Pilger notes that Saddam was sustained in power during the 1980s by Ronald Reagan, George Bush senior and Margaret Thatcher, who gave him all the weapons he wanted. The invasion of Kuwait was instigated by the American ambassador April Glaspie, who feigned disinterest when informed by the Iraqis of their intention. Saddam walked into the trap that has cost a million and half-lives thus far, 500,000 of them children.

But ruthlessness cannot be the real reason behind his demonization in the West. For there are other leaders in the Middle East who are perhaps even more ruthless and yet are not vilified in the same way. Look at the horrible track record of Ariel Sharon or Shimon Peres or Bibi Netanyahu or other Israeli leaders. Witness the harsh repression of King Fahd of Saudi Arabia or Mubarak of Egypt or King Abdullah of Jordan. They are not made out to be 'evil monsters' because they happen to be allies and supporters of the

United States.

Scott Ritter, senior UN weapons inspector for seven years, categorically and convincingly debunked and demolished all of America's assertions and claims-in particular that of WMD, terrorism and that Saddam is a threat to world peace, on his recent visit to South Africa. He stated that they had achieved a 90-95% level disarmament, and that 96% of Iraq's 98 missiles were destroyed. They also destroyed all the factories producing chemical weapons, and that with the available technology any attempt by the Iraqi's to produce them on any meaningful scale would be easily detectable.

Former president Nelson Mandela, one of the world's most respected statesman, condemned "the attitude of the United States of America (as) a threat to world peace..." and that it" is motivated by George W Bush's desire to please the arms and oil industries in the United states of America." He showed up the Western world's hypocrisy when he said:" But what we know is that Israel has weapons of mass destruction. Nobody talks about that. Why should there be one standard for one country, especially because it is black, and another one for another country, Israel, that is white."

Many in the developing world have been angered by the perception that there is one law for the strong and powerful; another for the weak and powerless. As Chandra Muzaffar of the International Movement for a Just World correctly opined: "The double standards, the selective morality, the lop-sided justice of the US and its allies, more blatant in west Asia (Middle East) than elsewhere, have given rise to a strong feeling of antipathy, even antagonism towards the west within a significant segment of Arab society."

If the US and its allies persist in their endeavour to establish their hegemonic rue not only in West Asia but also in other parts of the world, people everywhere will begin to resist what they will soon perceive as an unjust international order - an international order where might is right. For humankind will never accept a world where the strong do what they will and the weak suffer what they must.

Dr Firoz Osman is Secretary of the Media Review Network, an advocacy group based in Pretoria. Tel: 0823376976 E-mail: <mrn@mweb.co.za> 

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