‘The UK and US are trying to bring democracy to the Middle East’; this style of media portrayal of UK and US foreign policy is an example of their level of learnt naivety. It may justify a major socio-political issue that is modern political apathy, the enthusiasm drainer being the notion that politics has become stale. There is though an absolute taboo within the news corporate media to mention any distasteful, wrongdoings of the elite: global firms and politicians. But just like in ‘Primark’, you have to sieve through the crap to find something worth looking for. If you look hard the media are hiding total gems of intelligence that would interest the most apathetic of all citizens.
In a war that has lasted longer than the First World War, the justifications for it have been vague and an in depth analysis of the political history has been minimal. All that seems to matter is instantaneous events. It is little known that Iran, for instance, was a secular democracy up until 1953 were it was transformed, due to a political coup, to a strict dictatorship. This coup was waged by the UK and the US.
Dr. Mohammed Mossadegh was democratically elected on a landslide victory in 1951. Mossadegh nationalisation of the Iranian oil reserves resulted in huge Iranian popularity. It did though mean that the UK and US no longer had power over the oil. The foreign office recommended a coup which was instigated in 1953. Churchill, Head of the British Army, put up £1.5 million to help finance it. US President Dwight Eisenhower placed a further £1 million on the table; on the sole provider that Theodor Roosevelt’s grandson, Germit Roosevelt was placed military commander of the coup. G. Roosevelt was released from prison, were he was on charges of being a Nazi collaborator, and the covert manoeuvre named ‘Operation Ajax’ began.
Mossadegh was arrested on the 19th of August 1953 with Mohammad Reza Pahlavi’s, head of the notourious secret SAVAK police, becoming his replacement. As he develped Iran’s infrastructure he simutaneuosly crushed alternative political opposition, by exiling or inprisoning anyone who spoke out about the regime. The once prospering nation deterioated due to Phlavi privatising the Iraninan oil fields (now owned by BP). In 1976 Amnistie international described Pahlavi’s regime to be inciting the worst human rights attrocities on earth. A regime which most probably would have never occurred it was not for the intervention of the UK and US
The current war on Iraq could also be seen to be waged purely on economic bases. On the 30th of October 2000 Iraq; a country labelled the number one axis of evil in George Bush’s fight for democracy, switched the currency used for oil exchange from US dollars to Euros. A decision deemed irresponsible at the time due to the Euro only being worth 80 American cents. But by 2001 due to this transaction the Euro had gained 25% on the US dollar which immediately lost value, as every bank tried to flush out the dollar in exchange for Euro. The Iraq’s decision was now followed by Iran, axis of evil number 2, North Korea, axis of evil number 3, and Venezuela, axis of evil number 4. Eventually most other petroleum exporting countries in the world were now hinting at changing currency.
This was the US home offices worst nightmare, for the US is the biggest debtor nation in the world and it now had no international currency strength to fall back on. Therefore this action by Iraq could conceivably be a notable justification for the Iraq war. Not a fashionable or concrete theory but a viable one which was not even considered by the corporate media.
Even in the First World War, the ‘just’ war, the first regiment deported by Britain was sent to Basra. This was after the UK and US feared a German infleunce over Iraqi oil resources because of the building of a Berlin – Basra railway line.
Therefore the Western coporate media’s preferred headline of ‘bringing democracy to the Middle East’ may seem ironic. In the 95 years since oil was found in Iraq the UK and US governments have been in control or at war with the nation for 45 of them. It is also notible that almost every US and UK militrary intervention with the Middle East has greatly benefitted their respected economies.
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