Iraq, Afghanistan & The Imperialism of Our Time

Author: Aijaz Ahmed
Publisher: LeftWord
Year: 2004
Language: English
Pages: 285
ISBN/UPC (if available): 818749638X

Description

Starting immediately after the catastrophe of 11th September, 2001 and spanning over the next two years, Aijaz Ahmad published a number of long articles on the global imperial design and the wars of occupation that the US launched against Afghanistan and Iraq. Twelve of those articles are included in this book. Together, these articles offer a wealth of factual detail and analysis covering the background of US policy, preparation and execution of the two wars, and the re-emergence of resistance in the two countries. A lengthy introduction and a brief note on the captivity of Saddam Hussein by the US forces brings the story up to mid-December 2003.

This is followed by the essay The Imperialism of Our Time. In a major theoretical intervention, Aijaz Ahmad argues that the US has pursued a consistent policy since the First World War and the Bolshevik Revolution aimed at destruction of communism; defeat of Third World nationalism; and establishment of clear and permanent superiority over competitors in the capitalist world. After the dissolution of the USSR, the US has launched a global offensive to undo the gains that socialist and anti-imperialist forces had made through much of the 20th century to impose client regimes in Asia and Africa, and to monopolize the strategic resources of the world. The author tracks the wars of occupation in Afghanistan and Iraq as they unfolded within this larger theoretical framework. Inter alia, he also covers a number of related topics: the regime of genocidal sanctions and ferocious bombing by the US-UK alliance over roughly twelve years; the dastardly role of the UN; the ambiguous role of the EU and the currency war between the dollar and the EU and the currency war between the dollar and the Euro; the politics of oil in Iraq, the Middle Eat and the Caspian Sea basin; and several other issues of fundamental importance for understanding the imperialism of our time.

Contents

Preface

Frankenstein and the Monster: Saddam in US Captivity

PART ONE
In Lieu of an Introduction

PART TWO
A Task That Never Ends': Bush Proposes Perpetual War
Re-mapping the Globe
In the Shadow of Permanent War
US Design and Global Complicity
World Peace in the Balance
Imperial Overreach and the Resisting Multitude
War, Oil and the Dollar
War of Occupation Begins
Barbarians at the Gate: The Battle for Baghdad Begins
Wars Yet to Come
Resistance in Iraq, Disarray in the US
Afghanistan: The Forgotten War

PART THREE
The Imperialism of Our Time

Appendices
Sanctions and Their Effects of Iraq
Ramsey Clark's Report to UN Security Council
WMD: Who Said What When