Russia, Islam, and the West

Russia, Islam, and the West
Dr. Muhammad Shamsaddin Megalommatis
December 4, 2007

As last Sunday’s farcical elections highlight the Western apathy and shyness in front of the rising forces of Russian totalitarianism, we are rather left with the impression that England and America may have even wished the victory of United Russia, the party supported by the Kremlin dictator.

The reasons are not limited within the bilateral context, West vs. Russia, that the Anglo-Saxon powers want to preserve in order to avoid a more complicated, triangular relationship USA – European Union – Russia. The reasons of the Western indifference for the diffusion and implementation of Democracy, freedom and Human Rights in Russia pertain also to Islam. This has little to do with the Muslims included with Russia’s borders and their eventual manipulation by the Western powers (in what would be the closest parallel to Afghanistan’s Taliban). It mostly hinges on the fact that sizeable parts of the Islamic World occupy territories that are either Oil and Gas rich or critical for Oil and Gas transportation. And these territories are adjacent to Russia, at its southern flank……

Apparently provocative Western attitudes towards Russia

The Western world has proved to be a politically inconsistent, ideologically disparate, and morally perverse complex of conflicting economic interests. They all emanate from two diametrically opposed circles of behind-the-scenes power that coexisted for many long centuries, plunging Europe first and the entire world at a later stage into ceaseless wars.

The Western world’s expansion spread problems rather than solved issues. Since the collapse of the East European Soviet bloc and the Soviet Union, 16 – 18 years have passed, and they are a very long period for intentions and interests to be manifested clearly. If many believed in 1990 that there was a genuine Western interest in the oppressed peoples of the European East, Central Asia and Siberia, as well as in the satellite countries, namely Angola, Vietnam, Mongolia, ‘Ethiopia’ and Cuba, few are left with this impression today.

Already in the days of Gorbachev, a genuine interest was expressed by the last Soviet leader for a Russian participation in what he called as ‘the Common European House’. However, since the middle 90s the term was methodically buried, as the Western attitude towards Russia was rather reminiscent of robbery; Bulgaria should join NATO, Estonia should join the EU, Ukraine should separate completely, and the Russian natural resources should be sold as cheapest as possible.

The West never demonstrated a really serious interest to reach out to the Russian democrats, to extend a real concern for the various non Russian oppressed nations, and to integrate Russia in a decent way in the NATO, the WEU, and the EU. As a matter of fact, Russia has been treated far worse than Turkey in this regard. The Western attitude vis-à-vis Russia has been as biased as in the case of Turkey’s Kurds. It is definitely mendacious and hypocritical to show an interest in the use of Kurdish in Turkey’s Primary and Secondary Education without also demonstrating an equivalent interest in the use of Breton, Alsatian, Langue d’ Oc, Corsican, Basque (Euskara), and Catalan in France.

In the case of Russia, even this sort of interest for the rights of the minorities was not shown by the Western democrats and liberals! Russia was presumed to be a permanently despotic and totalitarian realm, and it was dealt with in this way even at a moment the overall situation had not yet degraded to the extent it has today. Russia was undesired within the EU, not by the majority of the European peoples but by a secretive Anglo-French Directoire that exercises an ominous influence over the economically strong but politically dwarf Germany, thus imposing its biased strategies on all the rest.

In the case of the Russian Oil and Gas resources US – UK – Dutch Oil and Gas companies attempted to display an attitude already recorded vis-à-vis the Kuwaiti, Saudi, Emirati, and Qatari lewd thugs who impersonate the World History’s most vulgar, ignorant and pathetic pseudo-noblesse. Finally, NATO strategists thought possible to annex Russia in they same way they may record the adhesion of Macedonia.

Improper Western attitudes triggered Russian inflexibility

One should be mad to think that all this would have no effect; finally, it let average Russians believe more easily the anti-Western rhetoric expressed by various Russian politicians as a political tool useful to anyone wishing to become a popular leader. The pathetic Western attitude, multiplied in its manifestations, was so overt, so overwhelming, and so exasperating that even the stupidest politician in the world, if trying to rise to power in Russia, would understand that it is to his benefit to maintain and help deteriorate.

In a way there was not a single possible mistake that the Western administrations failed to commit when dealing with early post-Soviet Russia. Why?

The answer is simple; the Western administrations and diplomats failed to conceive in its correct dimensions the new world that emanated out of the economic – political collapse of the Soviet world; the European Directory failed to see that, under terms of fair treatment, Russia would be able to grant Europe otherwise unachievable dimensions of world power. Even worse (because it reveals a quantitative approach to historical phenomena evaluation), the NATO strategists concluded that they had won a military victory over the Soviet block – and nothing is more untrue than this aberration.

Russian Neo-totalitarianism: not an epiphenomenon of the Soviet Era

The next mistake the Western elites make as regards Russia and the rise of the totalitarianism is that they view it as an epiphenomenon of the Soviet expansionism whereas it is not; plenty of attributes of the Cold War are not there anymore. The worst of all is the total absence of the Nash equilibrium that characterized the theory of deterrence and the doctrine of mutual assured destruction.

The rise of religious fundamentalism amalgamated with Messianism and Christian Orthodox eschatology cancels any further Russian ascription to the Cold War theoretical arsenal. Strong Russian presence in Jerusalem is necessary for the Russian Millenarists, and this has to do with the elimination of their ulcerous opponents, the Zionists, the Evangelicals and the Catholics.

In other words, the West does not understand that this time an uncontrolled, uncontained, alienated and exasperated Russia will hit. This is very clear and in all fronts; Russia will cause serious troubles and divisions among states of the EU, using the energy weapon. One should expect a determined Russian revanche in this regard.