Unilateral U.S. actions risk destabilizing global order, historian warns

LISBON, Jan. 27 (Xinhua) -- The United States' recent actions toward Venezuela constitute "a severe violation of the United Nations Charter and the basic rules of international relations," said Lisbon-based historian Rui Lourido in an interview with Xinhua.

"It is totally unacceptable to use the policy of the strongest power, through commercial blackmail, military threats, the blockade of international waters and airspace, and the seizure of the legitimate president of a country without a United Nations mandate," Lourido said, criticizing Washington's "growing reliance on coercion."

The researcher accused the U.S. of maintaining "an illegitimate naval blockade" and of "pirating and stealing oil tankers sailing to and from Venezuela."

He warned that "the danger for the remaining countries of South America, especially Cuba, Colombia, and Mexico, is very great," and this danger also extends to Canada and Greenland.

"According to the new strategy approved by the Pentagon, the countries of the American continent should submit fully to U.S. hegemony," he said.

Lourido alleged that the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and contracted agents are increasing their manipulation of information "and covert actions to create internal chaos," paving the way for regime change and access to natural resources.

He warned that if economic sanctions do not lead to submission, the U.S. will apply "a brutal military threat," which represents "a real danger" to economic development and political autonomy.

For decades, argued Lourido, the U.S. has promoted a "rules-based world, shaped by U.S. interests." It has justified past interventions in countries such as Iraq, Libya, and Syria with the need to restore democracy and human rights, a narrative Lourido considers to have been discredited.

"The genocide of the Palestinian people by the State of Israel, with U.S. military support, shows that human rights and the export of democracy were and remain mere rhetoric," he said.

He warned that "military and economic blackmail and open piracy have assumed a central role in U.S. tactics." Lourido cited Venezuela and U.S. pressure on Europe, particularly Denmark and Greenland, as examples.

"The military threat is real and deeply disturbing for any country in Africa, the Middle East, or Asia that actively opposes the United States," he added.

In Lourido's view, the weakening of international and multilateral organizations poses "a serious threat to global stability and security."

He criticized U.S. actions affecting the United Nations system and the World Trade Organization, as well as attempts to create alternative mechanisms outside the UN framework. Such moves, he said, aim to legitimize unilateral policies and undermine international law.

Regarding the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), Lourido said recent U.S. military actions are "a temporary destabilizing factor" for the alliance. "The threat to take Greenland, whether by purchase or by force, does not respect the sovereignty of Denmark, one of NATO's most loyal members," he underlined.

While Europe has often aligned itself with U.S.-led interventions, Lourido observed growing discomfort when similar coercive methods are directed at European allies.

Nevertheless, he does not foresee the dissolution of NATO. The elite is already planning the best way to essentially concede to U.S. demands, while trying "to save face and formally preserve sovereignty," he said, warning that such dynamics "corrode stability and trust" within the alliance.

Lourido said actions such as the seizure of a president, maritime piracy, and airspace blockades without UN approval are "dire, serious, and illegitimate."

In a turbulent world, he concluded, "Europe should diversify and intensify its economic relations with Asia, Africa, Eastern Europe and the Americas, to reduce its energy, economic and political dependence on the United States."