US ‘playing with fire’ by extremely provocative moves, not Russia: American scholar
The growing conflict between the United States and Russia over the Ukraine conflict is a result of Washington struggling to maintain its hegemony and making “extremely provocative moves” in Eastern Europe, according to an American political and economic scholar.
“The conflict that Washington has created with Russia is entirely Washington’s doing,” said Paul Craig Roberts, an economist who served as an assistant secretary of the treasury for economic policy in the Ronald Reagan administration.
“It’s a serious situation in which the United States is driving Europe into a conflict with Russia, and it’s all about the United States protecting its hegemony, protecting its unique power status,” Dr. Roberts told Press TV on Friday.
“And in order to protect its status, it has to bring tremendous pressure on Russia and also on China in order to try to make those countries accept Washington’s leadership and to comply with Washington’s foreign policies,” he added.
“So this is a dangerous situation but the fault is entirely in Washington.”
Dr. Roberts blasted US Deputy Defense Secretary Robert Work for his recent comments in Congress blaming Moscow for the rising tensions in Eastern Europe.
Speaking to lawmakers in the US House of Representatives, Work said Russia is "playing with fire" by threatening to expand its nuclear weapons arsenal in response to a rising military presence by the United States and its NATO allies near Russian borders.
“I think the United States Defense Department is confused because it’s Washington that’s playing with fire, not Russia,” Dr. Roberts said.
“Washington is the one who organized the coup in Ukraine, which is a strategic threat to Russia, Washington is pushing NATO to put more tanks and troops and artillery and missile bases on Russia’s borders,” he said.
“Washington is involved in color revolutions in Armenia and Kyrgyzstan, Washington has pulled out of the ABM treaty, has announced it is putting ballistic missile bases on Russia’s border, Washington has rewritten American strategic war doctrine to permit preemptive nuclear first-strike,” Roberts observed.
“All of these are extremely provocative moves by Washington and Russia has been very, very slow to respond, it has been very un-provocative,” he noted.
AHT/GJH
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