(Ahlul Bayt News Agency) - The US observed the anniversary of its Independence Day on July 4 to publicize its 'democratic' values, which squarely contradicts the country's official foreign policy in practice that include waging wars on sovereign states and meddling in internal affairs of numerous other countries.
In an interview, Michael Maloof, a former Pentagon officer in Washington, shared his views on the international image of the US. The following is the rush transcript:
Q: Looking at the independence of the United States, would you say that the United States of today is what American leaders wanted, when they fought for its independence?
Maloof: Well, I think that the United States is very troubled these days. There is a lack of optimisms. People still believe in their basic freedoms on which this country was founded, but there is a new atmosphere here that is rather debilitating, I think, and that is that there is not only a lack of optimism but also the fact that the economy is down.
We have at least four wars that we are involved in now overseas. We have a recession which its length is probably longer than any has ever thought about, plus, we have a national debt issue that could topple the financial structure of the world if the congress doesn't act. And what some people here are beginning to think is that it's not so much the individuals any longer, like during the [Jimmy] Carter administration when we had problems with the leadership back then, but people are seeing a real systemic problem here now, and I think that is what we are beginning to see, and we can always resort back to the good old days of patriotic fervor and feeling, but the reality is what we are facing right now, and it is a very unsettling moment in the eyes of the American people, especially when you look at the Americans in a recent poll that more than a majority do not feel that they have the freedom that they used to have and that their own children will not realize the economic prosperity that they had.
So, I think that we are at turning point in when there is a lot of ... taking place, and all that we are seeing these days are politicians bickering and fighting among one another, and I think this is also reflects in the disarray in oversees right now in the extension on US foreign policy.
Q: To mention how the US has been blamed from preventing certain governments that have been elected from staying in power, in a sense taking that independent from these other countries. Isn't that a violation that they are creating when they interfere in other countries' internal affairs?
Maloof: Well, it's a double standard that we have been proving to the world in terms of our foreign policy. We say one thing and do another. You look at the support that the United States has given to the regimes in Egypt, Libya, Sudan, and Bahrain, they are all supporting the autocrats, and we are still supporting them in spite of the uprising by people, when there has been criticism within the United States as to what is the United States talking about trying to propagate democracy, freedom of expression, and you only have lip service. To this day we are still being cautious with Syria, we are bringing very cautious with Bahrain, and in Egypt we are doing the same thing. Unless, the country suits and the leadership suits our particular foreign policy interest then it will have to be taken away or so.
I remember Chile many, many years ago, a democratic regime was voted in during the [Richard] Nixon administration, and the CIA [Central Intelligence Agency] and the Nixon administration staged a coup, and it resulted in the death of that president.
So, it really depends upon what suits our particular interest at that time and it is unfortunate that we have this tattered history, where we say something on the one hand and but do something else. I think we still need to lead by example and respect the rights of other countries.
I remember when Hamas was voted in through democratic elections in the Gaza Strip, we talked about democracy, but as soon as a democratic took place and was over, and Hamas happened to win, we immediately repudiated it. We cannot be speaking at of both ends of our mouths basically, that what we are doing.
Q: Based on some of the ideas that have been presented to you by our other two guests, combine that with yours, were is the US headed given the current scenario?
And is the 4th July going to be a time were even in a few years time people are going to be sitting around and watching the fireworks and watch the barbecue, but really deep inside suffer form what is happening.
Maloof: Well, I think we are always going to have our barbecues and our celebrations on the 4th July. I think we are becoming a little bit more pensive as a result of the realities of what we are surrounded with. I think that for one day people will break and think back on the good old days and the traditions upon what this nation supposed to have been founded. But the reality is that the state of the nation is in a sad shape right now, and I think people are very apprehensive, they are very concerned, and they are going to remain in such.
And I think for the future, in order to get people's minds off of these problems, I would doubt that the United States leadership will continue to try to agitate oversees in order to draw people's attention away from the problems at home.
We have tremendous infrastructure problems and a lot of other issues that we need to address, but they are so mammoth that we cannot get a leadership to agree on anything right now.
As a witness to the most recent debate with the Congress, the Congress cannot get it straight, so I think that the United States is going to continue a policy approach overseas that will, in effect, balkanize the Middle East and North Africa in order to keep everything unsettled to the point that there is no coalescence of forces that will directly threaten the US interest, or that of Israel for that matter and I think that, that will probably be the way that they are going to go, for the time being.
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