‘Effective, sustainable deals vital for security in region ... not arms supplies’
“JOE Biden’s visit to the Middle East last month was not aimed at promoting a new and different regional security, according to what some political analysts announced, nor was it with the aim of resolving the situation in the occupied territories while affirming the vision of a two-state solution,” columnist Suad Al-Mojil wrote for Al-Qabas.
“The US President announced it more than once that the goal of the visit is to consolidate a different influence in the Middle East, based on building an integrated force throughout the region against Iran, noting that the US defense establishment will undertake the task of developing this alliance in the coming years, as the main means of curbing the Iranian aggression in the region, as he put it.”
“Look for economics in all military and political wars. Money is always the first motivator, not principles, intellectual values, or political slogans.
“The great economic collapse of the thirties was the hot coal that ignited the fires of World War II, and the global economic recession at the end of the eighties sparked wars in the Middle East for more than three decades. Indeed, the politically contrived war of Ukraine is behind money with its power and influence.
“Since the 1990s, we have heard in the Western literature the term ‘Chinese dragon and the Russian genie’. When these dangers neared the walls of Washington and the NATO countries, war became inevitable, and besieging the dangers of the dragon and the genie is a matter of survival and continuity, especially for Washington, which was able to drag the NATO countries into a war of attrition over the impact of the economic threat from the Far Eastern countries, which has become more tangible than ever, especially in the areas of influence of Washington and the West in the Middle East, which is rich in its resources and geographically strategic.
“In February 2020, just before the global shutdown due to corona, I received a call from the media office at the US Embassy to attend a closed dialogue session in which three officials from the US Congress would speak, focusing on the relationship of the countries of the region with China and the United States.
“Attendance was limited and the dialogue was open, as one of those officials began to speak in a very provocative manner about the urgent need of the Gulf States for the American presence, and that we, as Gulf States can cooperate commercially and economically with China but in case of danger, China will not be the one to defend us.
“The provocative talk of the speaker at the time prompted me to comment on him about the difference between the presence of the two forces in the region.
“China entered the Gulf through commercial deals and construction projects, and did not interfere in the internal affairs of the Gulf states, did not provoke one country against another, did not sow dissensions, did not ignite wars, did not drain wealth, did not work on dividing the region ethnically and did nor promote sectarianism while Washington and the West did that, and here is the division of the region according to the map drawn by Churchill.
“The response of the American guest came at the time that all this is not true, and that the United States enjoys very tolerant and cooperative trade and political relations with China, nevertheless, according to his words at the time, he invites us to buy any phone of any brand except for ‘Huawei’.
“He said it was proven that it is a spy device, ignoring here that spying is a feature that all devices share today, not just Huawei.
“The trade alliance between Russia and China, and with them Iran is what awakened the fears of Washington and the NATO countries, and the war in Ukraine is only the beginning of expressing these fears, which will inevitably draw various measures to the Middle East.
“The United States will not be able to pressure China economically without the support of NATO, nor can it contain Chinese ambitions in the Middle East without first reaching Eastern Europe.
“Amidst the conflicts and wars of the great powers on our land, we have no choice but to try to get out of it with the least damage, which comes on top of developing relations between the countries of the region, not destroying them according to Washington’s vision, which has become clear that it is in the process of replacing the Zionist enemy with a neighboring country like Iran. This will plunge the entire region into an endless series of wars.
“Washington is returning today with the same old claims of promoting democratic values in the region to reducing the military presence and other things that have proven to be the opposite, as is the case in Iraq, Syria, Libya, Yemen, Egypt, Lebanon and others, while Washington’s call, which Biden carried this time, aims at one project that is summarized in attempts to contain China and Russia through the territories of others.
“Stability and security in the region are not provided by the arms supplies that Washington has long pledged to, but rather effective, stable and sustainable agreements between the countries of the region, and only then the need for weapons secured by Washington and the wars ignited by the West over our land will cease.”
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“The Ministry of Interior banned the family visits of expatriates to the country, and its excuse is that many of those who entered with a family visit visa remained in the country after the expiry of their visa, thus burdening the economy with heavy financial costs such as their need for most state services. Of course, no one talks about armies of domestic workers and their cost to the economy, assuming that the burden of the sponsor are mostly limited to paying the salary,” columnist Hasan Al-Issa wrote for Al-Jarida daily.
“On the other hand, the Ministry of Interior’s decision to ban family visits visa is unfair to the Kuwaiti woman who is married to a foreigner and has minor children and complains that she cannot bring her 3-year-old daughter.
“In her complaint the Kuwaiti mother said she suffered a lot in rushing through the corridors of this ministry to obtain permission to bring her daughter and a number of senior officers sympathized with her, but they had instructions that did not have any rational exception, such as excluding the minor children of Kuwaiti mothers from the ban.
“The request of the mother was met with rejection, which means that a mother leaves her child in her husband’s country with anyone, so is this fair in a country that we claim is the country of humanity?
“Formally, there are women ministers, leaders, prosecutors, and judges in the state, but this is just a façade of modernity and urbanization limited to high buildings, malls and luxury villas, while all human thought and culture are far from modernity and urbanization.
“When Kuwaiti women are deprived of their most basic human rights, what and why should we be proud of -- with all hypocrisy around -- about their appointments in those high positions?
“Today comes the memory of the brutal Iraqi invasion. We must not forget what happened in the ordeal after the second of August 1990. The new generations may not have lived through the treachery and deceit that occurred and the harsh repercussions which followed, but these are still present in the region,” columnist Dr Hind Al-Choumar wrote for Al-Anba daily.
“How many heroic acts the sons of the homeland did, setting the greatest example of sacrificing souls, blood and money for the country? Whatever heroism we remember, history preserves the heroes’ memory on its brightest pages, considering the sacrifice they made. This is in addition to the stand of brothers and friends. They were the best support for Kuwait until it was liberated from the defilers.
“Greetings to Kuwait and its children on this anniversary, in which there are still lessons that all of us must learn. We must teach these lessons to the new generations. The lessons learned are fertile sources for all generations and considered the fuel of the future.
“We will not forget the images of treachery and stories of loyalty to the homeland that we lived through during the ordeal. We learned a lot from them. We must pass on what we learned to the new generations that were not born at the time of the brutal Iraqi invasion.
“I pray to God to protect our country, Kuwait, from all evil, and to perpetuate security, safety and stability for us under our wise leadership.”