A NATO OF THE EAST? Dick Weisfelder called my attention to this article which describes the Shanghai Co-operation Organization. The organization consists of Russia, China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzystan and Tajikistan and observers and among other things has called for a timetable for the removal of American troops from Central Asia. The article refers to commentators who refer to the new grouping as the “NATO of the East” and suggest that it may mark “the end of Western global dominance.” Kids, there are a lot of countries and people out there with interests different from ours, and we should expect them to assert those interests during your lifetimes. I have always thought that the phrase “superpower” is misleading. It was a useful shorthand way at one time of indicating that the USSR and the United States had much the strongest militaries and weaponry in the world, but the power that they had in the world was greatly overstated. Think of how little influence either the USSR or the United States had at the height of the Cold War over day-to-day affairs in India, China, Africa, Australia or Canada. The end of the Cold War did not give the United States appreciably more power in any of those places.
What I find remarkable, Phil, is that these developments are noted and discussed at places like the University of Pretoria, rather than in the USA, whose power is being challenged. Your readers might want to check out the list of interesting commentaries on the website from which the NATO of the East piece came. Check the following address under e-briefing: http://www.cips.up.ac.za