By Mehmet Perinçek
Following NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg’s statement in favor of Ukraine using weapons supplied by Western countries to hit military targets on Russian territory, Western countries one after another began to grant Kyiv permission about it.
With each passing day, the Atlantic front is taking new steps to increase the intensity of the war and even to expand its scale and geography.
Europe preparing for war
French President Emmanuel Macron has kept talking about sending troops to Ukraine for a long time.
The whole world learned from the leaked audio recordings that German generals were planning to shoot down the Crimean bridge.
Naturally, it must be assumed that there are many other secret plans which have not been leaked.
European countries multiply their defense budgets several times over. In Germany, conscription is coming back. Even the Minister of Health emphasizes that the health system of the country is not suitable for warfare, and they need to restructure it.
In this regard, the UK is already the leading country in adding fuel to the fire.
The assassination attempt on Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico and similar threats against Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, who have different policies than France, Germany, and the UK on the Ukrainian issue, show that the process has entered another phase.
Without articulating it with more examples, what we can say with certainty is that Europe is preparing for a war and undergoing a rapid process of militarization.
The Atlantic era is ending
To understand this process, we should examine several different developments.
Let’s start with the general facts…
Atlantic hegemony is on the decline.
On the one hand, the center of the world economy is shifting from the Atlantic to the Pacific.
With the pandemic and the war in Ukraine, everyone can see that the neoliberal system is in deadlock. The Atlantic front has deficiencies in almost every war that it fights.
Israeli aggression has failed in the face of Palestinian resistance, even genocidal policies could not break the resistance of the Palestinian people.
The West could not overthrow Assad. Western plans in the South Caucasus failed.
In Africa, independence movements are rising based on states. Latin America is not different.
Gulf countries such as Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are not bowing to US pressure. They are acting on many issues like the military and the oil prices not in accordance with Washington’s interests, but their own.
Moreover, countries in all these regions that are targeted by the Atlantic, are coming together.
Associations such as the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, BRICS and the Organization of Turkic States are becoming strength rapidly shaping a new multipolar world order.
Bad news from the front
And the context of Ukraine…
Economic sanctions on Russia did not work. The European economy suffered, not the Russian. On the contrary, Russia acquired an opportunity to break away from Western dependence and focus on national production.
Ukraine’s counter-offensive came out to be a complete failure. There was a time when some in the West believed that the Ukrainian army would parade on Red Square in Moscow.
This failure at the front also caused cracks in the Kyiv regime, fighting for the throne, and the West began to look for alternatives to Zelenskyy. On top of that, Zelenskyy’s term of office expired, and he lost his legitimacy by not holding elections.
In this period, we witnessed accusations among the patrons of the Kyiv regime, mainly the US and the UK. The disagreements between Paris and Berlin also became visible.
We will certainly see deeper cracks in Europe. The governments of the old continent, which have adopted a policy of “Europe for the US” rather than a “Europe for Europe”, are facing social objections at home.
It is inconceivable that the peoples of Europe, already paying an economical price, would be willing to give their lives in war.
All these developments would inevitably create a feeling of panic in the West. They would go to any lengths not to lose the war.
Russia seems to be preparing for an offensive with the expectation of seizing great advantages on the front. The West aims to deter Russia from this. The terrorist attack in the Crocus City Hall intended to distract Moscow triggering an internal disturbance thus, to prevent a possible offensive. All the statements coming from the West, from sending troops to Ukraine to authorizing the use of their weapons on Russian territory, are dedicated to deterrence.
Preparation for the upcoming US elections
We also need to take the upcoming US elections into consideration.
Everyone has started to make projections based on the “return of Trump”. Who will fill the vacuum when Washington retreats to its own continent, giving up the claim of “ordering the world”. Macron was very enthusiastic about it during the first Trump era, but things didn’t go well as he wished.
When Biden came to power, all European powers silently accepted Washington’s guidance. After all, they were sharing the same mindset with Biden. Today, once again, European centers debate replacing the US if it leaves the stage. The forces ready for a new adventure in Europe are getting prepared for the upcoming US elections.
Is Europe bluffing?
Our conclusion from the above: There are bluffs to curb Russia on the one hand, and those who want to become the new “Hitler” within the European big bourgeoisie, on the other.
Ukraine conflict spills over into Africa
To achieve these aims, the Atlantic front also wants to expand the geography of the war.
Actually, they have already tried this several times in Moldova or the Baltic States using the Transnistria issue. But it didn’t work.
Now there are moves on an even more distant geography: Africa.
There is already a confrontation in Africa. African countries are revolting against the neocolonialist policies of the US and France and expelling them from the continent step by step.
Russia, China and Türkiye are the most important pillars for African countries in this struggle. These three function as a counter-balancing force against neocolonialism militarily, economically and politically.
Now the Atlantic front is seeking to introduce a new “player” in Africa.
New Ukrainian embassies have recently been opened in ten African countries (Ivory Coast, Ghana, Rwanda, Botswana, Mozambique, Democratic Republic of Congo, Sudan, Tanzania, Mauritania and Cameroon). Paris in particular wants to compensate for its failure on the continent with this move. And for Ukraine, it is a kind of paying the price of the aid it receives from the West.
It was even revealed that military forces of the Ukrainian Secret Service were fighting in Sudan. The aim was to break Russia’s influence in Africa.
While Kyiv is sending troops to Africa for France’s neocolonialist policies, it is also trying to recruit soldiers from there to fight against Russia in Ukraine.
For example, after Ukraine opened an embassy in Côte d’Ivoire, a country known for its support to the strategy of France, the press published a document on the recruitment of volunteers to join the Ukrainian army. In Senegal, the Senegalese authorities intervened, and Ukrainian recruiters were prevented from travelling to the front line against Russia.
Ukrainian embassies are also lobbying for Western “peace” in Africa by playing the trump card of “sending grain”.
Since there is no doubt that Ukraine will also pursue the Western strategy in Africa, Ukraine’s activities will target not only Russia, but also the struggle for independence of the African peoples and therefore Türkiye as one of important supporters of this struggle in the continent.
BRICS membership: Contribution to world peace
Preparations for war in the West and plans to transfer the Ukraine conflict to Africa clearly reveal the threat the world is facing.
In such an environment, Türkiye’s announcement that it wants to join BRICS is of particular importance.
The way to prevent a war is the consolidation of power by multipolar organizations such as the BRICS. Unification of the Eurasian front is what can deter the US and Europe from delving into dangerous adventures.
A strong and institutionalized BRICS, a strong Shanghai Cooperation Organization, a strong Organization of Turkic States will force Biden, Macron, Scholz alike to act more carefully. Otherwise, they seem ready to appeal to all kinds of violence methods when they perceive any slightest weakness on the opposite side.
By joining BRICS, Türkiye would make an important contribution to world peace.
Türkiye should not pursue “BRICS membership” as a leverage for trade off with the West, as it did in the past on different issues. Instead, Türkiye needs concrete steps as soon as possible.