Commentary
BEIJING – Many recent media reports focus on one fact: The international community, especially developing countries, are more and more vocal in their criticism of the hegemonic and selfish behavior of the United States.
A peaceful and stable international environment – the biggest aspiration for developing countries – is a precondition for national development. However, it is made out of reach by the United States – the biggest peacebreaker and troublemaker in today’s world.
Countries like Iraq and Afghanistan are still trapped in turmoil because of the wars launched by the United States there. As for the Ukraine crisis, the United States is constantly fanning the flame and hindering other countries from promoting talks for peace.
Leaders of many developing countries believe that by prolonging the crisis, the United States is exacerbating the Ukrainians’ suffering, and impeding the resolution of other pressing issues facing the international community.
“We don’t want to go on discussing who will be the winner or the loser of a war,” said Colombian Vice President Francia Márquez. “We are all losers and, in the end, it is humankind that loses everything.”
US hegemony has damaged all economies in the world, especially the developing ones with a relatively weak development foundation.
Over the years, the United States has arbitrarily imposed sanctions on other countries, erected tariff barriers, and disrupted global industrial chains and supply chains.
After the escalation of the Ukraine crisis, US-led Western countries launched severe sanctions against Russia, resulting in a spike of prices of global food, energy and other commodities, which overwhelmed developing countries.
The United States is playing camp confrontation, undermining international cooperation. However, Cambodia, Malaysia, Indonesia and other countries have made it clear that they do not want to be forced to “choose sides” between China and the United States.
In the name of promoting “democracy” around the world, the United States is actually harming the interests of many developing countries.
When US Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited South Africa last August, South African Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Naledi Pandor made it clear that “you can’t just come in and claim to lecture about democracy ... Foreign interference has created instability, including funding opposition groups against liberation fighters.”
It is obvious that more and more developing countries are now vocal in their opposition to the various irresponsible actions of the United States, with many refusing to follow the United States in imposing sanctions against Russia.
Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud said lately that he is prepared to pursue Saudi interests without the help of the United States, including restoring ties with US adversaries like Iran.
Kishore Mahbubani, a distinguished fellow at the Asia Research Institute, National University of Singapore, said Washington must adapt to the new reality: Developing countries are becoming more sophisticated and more capable of making their own decisions.
A report recently released by the European Council on Foreign Relations, a European think tank, pointed out that America’s global hegemony is rapidly declining, and many people in the Global South wish to build a new multipolar world.
For years, American politicians have been used to pointing fingers at other countries and acting willfully on the international arena. It remains to be seen if they have noticed the changes in the Global South and started to reflect on the reasons behind them. – Xinhua
