The 5th President Of The United States, James Monroe, who in his 1823 address to Congress enunciated what has become known as the Monroe Doctrine.
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The Biden-Harris Administration has put the two-centuries-old Monroe Doctrine on life support, an ominous event for our security.
In 1823 President James Monroe, in his annual address to Congress, enuncia- ted what has become a bedrock principle of American foreign policy. He warned other powers not to interfere in the affairs of the Western Hemisphere, that a political or military intervention would be viewed as a possible hostile act against the U.S.
What prompted the Monroe Doctrine were concerns that certain European powers—primarily Spain, France and Russia—were attempting to colonize or recolonize parts of the Americas. Spain had made attempts to retake newly independent Mexico, to which Washington said, forget about it. During the American Civil War, France sent troops to Mexico to install a puppet regime. When the war ended, France got the message: Get out of Mexico, or else. It withdrew. Russia ultimately gave up its ambitions in this part of the world when it sold Alaska to the U.S. in 1867.
In 1962, when Moscow attempted to install nuclear missiles in Cuba, we nearly had a nuclear war with the Soviet Union. The Kremlin backed down.
Today, to our peril, the Monroe Doctrine is becoming a dead letter. China, Russia and even Iran are on the march, making ever more brazen moves in the Americas.
China has been relentless, buying up companies and mines to control the region’s abundant resources, while simultaneously controlling or operating its ports. Chinese companies make a point of establishing close ties with Latin governments, gaining diplomatic influence. Brazil, for instance, has just blatantly blocked X, formerly Twitter, nationwide.
China has already made itself the biggest trading partner of most South American nations. Beijing’s biggest project is a massive port that it is constructing in Peru. The goal is to make the port the region’s chief gateway to global markets, especially those in Asia, as well as the entry point for Chinese products, such as EVs, to be sold in South America. The port, of course, could easily become a Chinese naval base. The other ports China controls in the region will facilitate a growing Chinese naval presence. In April U.S. Senator Jim Risch, the ranking Republican on the Foreign Relations Committee, pointed out other actions China has been taking: “China buys land in South America, builds sensitive military sites and then declares the land off-limits to the government where it is located. . . . It has installed telecommunications networks that expose our neighbors to data and cybersecurity risks, and a network of military-controlled cyber and space facilities in Argentina, Bolivia and elsewhere. . . . Chinese military intelligence facilities in Cuba sit less than 100 miles from U.S. shores.” Russia has sent military equipment and personnel to Nicaragua, as well as missile systems to Venezuela. Russian propaganda and disinformation activities are widespread. Iranian agents actively work to help authoritarian regimes. In the face of all this, the Biden-Harris Administration has largely sucked its thumb.
With Russian, Chinese and Iranian support—not to mention the Cuban agents running Venezuelan security services—dictator Nicolás Maduro blatantly stole an election, and the U.S. reaction has been pitifully weak.
By turning its back on the Monroe Doctrine, we are telling the world that the U.S. can no longer be trusted to lead the Free World, as it did since World War II.
We are on the road to catastrophe.
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Publish date : 2024-09-23 23:00:00
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