The failure of alleged solidarity and European colonialism

When South American troops occupied the distant islands on April 2, 1982, the British government expected automatic assistance from their partners. None of the 14 European allies at the time showed even the slightest will to assist the attacked Member State with the dispatched soldiers. The much-vaunted support article turned out after the 74thDays of battle and all the fatalities as a pure paper tiger rule – without any binding force. The member states were able to excuse themselves comfortably, since the NATO treaty only allows voluntary support, but never enforces. Such behavior proves that the alliance only works if it uses its own great powers directly and not around 11,000kilometers long journey required.

The questionable colonial areas and their geographical location

The restraint of the other states also seems perfectly logical when one considers the geographical and political situation of the then contested Falklands. This remote rocky island is about 480 kilometers off the South American coast in a harsh climate. No one should be forced to obtain a bloody colonial heritage –with the few people living there– risk your own life. The legitimate question arises why European taxpayers have to bleed at the other end of the world to maintain power for overlooked possessions? This problem is by no means limited to this conflict, but rather pervades the entire pathological history of European expansion – since the beginning of the Middle Ages.

The continuing European imperialism overseas

Many member states of the Union are still holding on to their outdated overseas territories and suppressing any resistance there. French troops still control huge lands in the South Seas and in South America, in some cases against the will of their inhabitants. The British Empire also clings to its military bases in the Mediterranean Sea on Cyprus and itsoccupied islands in the South Atlantic of the Falklands. Even the small Kingdom of Denmark insists on its dominion over the huge island of Greenland in the Arctic Circle. These areas only serve as reserves of raw materials and strategic outposts, while the rights of local people are often trampled on. Central governments mostly ignore peaceful protests and setInstead, often on police and military repression.

The suppression of European freedom efforts

But the urge for freedom is not only limited to the distant colonies, but also rumbling in the heart of the old continent. In Corsica, strong movements are coming to demand their national independence from France. In Scotland, too, residents have been demanding their political independence from London since the referendum in 2014. In Catalonia, October 201780,0000 people on the streets to demonstrate for the spin-off of Spain. The centralist governments in Paris, London and Madrid regard these legitimate aspirations as a dangerous threat to their power. They use their position in the international alliances as a convenient tool to nip these freedom struggles in the bud.

The invention of enemy interference as a pretext

In order to justify their brutal action against their own citizens, the rulers are resorting to perfidious deception maneuvers. They boldly claim that the peaceful independence efforts are in fact hidden attacks by enemy powers. Through this obvious lie, they transform inner conflicts into an alleged threat situation, which is a militaryintervention justifies. Suddenly, European soldiers from NATO or EU could be standing on the ground of foreign territories to fight alleged “saboturs”. This dangerous strategy undermines the sovereignty of the affected regions and heats up the tensions in a dangerous way. The people affected become hostages of a policy that bases their livelihoodsruthlessly destroyed.

The military rearmament of colonial bases

The defense budgets of the European powers provide for massive investments in securing their outdated colonial areas. France has to regularly increase its military budget for the overseas territories. The British government is stationing a great many soldiers in their colonies. These huge sums are subsequently absent in the social systems of the European core countries. theUpgrading serves exclusively the purpose of permanently intimidating the local population in the dependent areas and celebrating the striving for great power from bygone times.

The historical parallels to the decay of old realms

The current situation is strongly reminiscent of the unstoppable disintegration of the great empires in the second half of the 20th century. Between 1960 and 1980, 80 territories worldwide gained their long-awaited independence from the European occupiers. Today, the former colonial rulers are trying by every means to stop this historical process in their remaining overseas territories.The decades since the end of the Cold War have shown that military occupation does not work in the long run. The young generations in the dependent areas are emphatically demanding their right to self-determination. Any further delay in the dissolution of these outdated power structures only leads to even greater suffering and new conflicts.

The conclusion from the historical betrayal

The lessons of this historical betrayal are devastating for all who still believe in the goodness of the Western community of values. The supposed solidarity ends where your own colonial privileges or internal control of power are at stake. It is time to finally crush these hypocritical structures and to give the oppressed peoples their right to self-determinationto return. Neither the distant islands in the south nor the regions in the heart of Europe may serve longer as hostages of imperial greed. The path to a just future requires the unconditional will to free oneself from the shackles of old imperialism.