[NYTr] A Reflection on Hard and Obvious Realities (Fidel Castro, Aug 4, 2007)

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Agencia Cubana de Noticias (ACN)
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Reflections by the Commander in Chief


A Reflection on Hard and Obvious Realities

By Fidel Castro Ruz

Because of its importance, I am prioritizing this subject, among others.

I am not going to deny that the prerogatives of power, whether real,
relative or fictitious, have an influence on human beings, because they
were all educated this way, right from the remotest of times of the
species.

I did not arrive in just a minute at what I am thinking today about
power, but I consider that this is a matter of consistent thinking. I
attribute the modest contribution of our Revolution to the fact that
our responses to questions have never regressed, despite the harsh
reality imposed upon us by the empire’s brutal blockade.

In the reflection published on July 31st, I explained what it meant for
me to have spent a year gathering information and meditating in depth
on the vital problems which today threaten our species as never before.

On July 24th , the Russian news agency Ria Novosti published the
following information:

Colonel General Leonid Ivashov, a defense expert, stated that the main
instrument of the US policy is the economic, financial, technological
and military dictate.

By implementing this, the US is trying to secure the world’s hegemony
for itself. Its national security strategy explicitly indicates the
necessity of guaranteeing sustainable access, in other words,
controlled access, to the key regions of the planet, strategic
communications and global resources. It is a strategy that has been
turned into a law, and this brings us to the conclusion that in the
future the United States will face even tougher conflicts with Russia,
China and India.

Washington insists on building a system capable of neutralizing the
nuclear potential of Moscow and Peking, its strategic rivals, in order
to achieve military superiority. The United States wants to deploy its
anti-missile shield not just in Europe but also in other parts of the
world, to see what is going on in Russia and China. Likewise, it is
seeking to increase its offensive arsenal at a pace that surpasses even
that which was followed during the Cold War.

After the collapse of the Soviet Union, NATO lost the status it had as
a defensive organization when it was founded in 1949, and was
transformed into a powerful and aggressive instrument at the service of
the world oligarchy, eager to dominate the world. The new strategic
concept of the Alliance, approved on April 1999 as a result of the
efforts made by the United States, comprises new functions and expands
its sphere of responsibilities to include the entire world, not just
the North Atlantic. The current Secretary General of NATO, Jaap de Hoop
Scheffer, frequently visits Australia, New Zealand and Japan. The
Alliance has started to ignore International Law and the UN Security
Council. Meanwhile, the United States promotes the expansion of NATO
and refuses to ratify the Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe
(CFE), taking on the right to act outside of any limitations and
disposing of troops as it wishes.

The United States would do anything in its power to prevent Russia from
being an autonomous player. The debates on anti-missile defence, Iran
and Kosovo, have not generated any formulas for compromise.

It is important for Russia to consolidate its positions and recover its
geopolitical potential. Early on the 1970’s, when Moscow had achieved
nuclear parity with Washington, the latter became aware of the fact
that it could not beat Moscow militarily and accepted to negotiate on
equal terms. Consequently, in 1972, the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty
(ABMT) as well as all other subsequent Strategic Arms Limitations
Treaties (SALT) were signed. Strength is the only thing that the United
States cares about. If it feels to be in a stronger position, it will
never make concessions to anyone.

In order to neutralize the plans for world hegemony it is necessary to
build an alternative pole, and we already have the foundations to do
so: the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO).

In fact, it appears to be rather incorrect to speak about the United
States strength. The United States has military power, a vigorous
economy and an enormous amount of hard currency which it can mint in
unlimited quantities, but the geopolitical level of the country is
extremely low. The United States inspires very little political
confidence in the rest of the world.

In 1999, China and Russia stated before the UN General Assembly the
need to preserve the Anti Missile Defense Treaty of 1972. All nations
voted in favour of the proposal except for four: the United States,
Israel, Albania and Micronesia. The result bears witness to the United
States’ total international isolation.

Without the participation of Russia, it would be impossible to resolve
the situation that has taken shape in the Middle East, the Balkans, the
Korean Peninsula and other regions of this planet. This also holds true
for China, which is able to put up to the pressures exerted by the
United States. China enjoys great prestige in the world; it has a
powerful economy and a strong currency.

The SCO ought to recruit new allies and combine the potential of those
countries which want to and are capable of implementing an autonomous
policy. First, it is necessary to officially proclaim the rejection
against the United States world hegemony. Second, China and Russia must
denounce the deployment of the US anti-missile defense system before
the UN Security Council, as an action altering the architecture of
global security and threatening the entire international community.
China, India and Russia could form a united front in the face of the
United States’ dictates. It is also possible to propose the
stabilization of the global financial system as a task. Within the SCO
framework, a novel philosophy could be formulated, based on the harmony
among civilizations and on the rational use of natural resources. The
majority of States will surely support such measures, of that I am
convinced. Thus, a new political pole will come into being, the pole of
peace. The SCO mission is to create a new model of development for
human civilization.

Only an alliance of civilizations could oppose the United States’
empire: the Russian civilization whose orbit includes the Community of
Independent States (CIS); the Chinese, the Indian, the Islamic and the
Latin American civilizations. It is an immense space where we could
create more equitable markets, our own stable financial system, our
collective security mechanisms and our philosophy, giving priority to
the intellectual development of man in the face of western modern
civilization, which emphasizes material goods, and measures success by
the amounts of mansions, yachts and restaurants people have. Our
mission is to reorient the world towards justice and intellectual and
spiritual growth.

So much for Ivashov’s essential thoughts, as published by Ria Novosti.

We have been able to find out that General Leonid Ivashov is Vice
President of the Academy on Geopolitical Affairs; he was Secretary of
the Council of Defence Ministers of the Community of Independent States
(CIS) and Chief of the Military Cooperation Department at the Russian
Federation Ministry of Defence. On September 11, 2001, the day when the
tragic events in New York occurred, which served as a pretext to define
the basis of the genocidal policy of the United States almost 6 years
ago, General Ivashov was the Chief of Staff of the Russian Armed
Forces. He is a truly well-informed man. It is worthwhile that our
people know about his views.

The concern which the Cuban Revolution has always had about the
education of the people is obvious. Judging by my own experience, I
soon came across the idea that only conscience could prevail over the
instincts that govern us. Technological advances today speak of the
possibility of manipulating the functions of the cells in the human
brain. What good would all this do in a world ruled by the commercial
value of goods and services? Who will have the final say in this
regard? By this means and through the shameless brain drain, a
phenomenon we should adamantly continue to discuss, the most valuable
part of the human being could be destroyed: a human being's education
via its conscience.

Laboratories can produce medicines to save lives, which could be
something of great social value provided such products are available to
all. But laboratories are also manufacturing all kinds of weapons that
could put an end to human life.

Commercial advertising and consumerism are incompatible with the
survival of the species. After all possible calculations, you will
realize that natural resources, space, climate, weather, and the system
cannot yield any other outcome, given their pace and the direction in
which they are moving.

Havana, August 3, 2007., 7:15 p.m.