Foreign Digest: Syria, Iraq, Italy, China, Russia, Venezuela and Guyana; World Human Rights Day

Syria and Iraq: There have been more attacks on American forces in Iraq from Iranian-sponsored militants operating in Syria and Iraq. There have also been attacks in the Red Sea from Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen on Americans and on international shipping. The Islamic Republic of Iran, the greatest state sponsor of terrorism in the world, foments Islamic revolution around the Muslim world and thus opposes the Christian West and secular representative governance based on equality and liberty. Iraq, which maintains friendly relations with Iran, did not object to strikes by United States on its soil against the pro-Iranian militants, not only for self-defense when under attack, but even for punishment and deterrence, which is an encouraging sign that its tolerance for its more powerful neighbor using it for its own ends is coming to an end. Italy and Communist China: Italy has left Communist China’s infrastructure program that was intended to create a New Silk Road with road and port construction, as I had posted I expected. China uses such projects to exert influence and for strategic purposes against the West. Russia: The United States charged four Russians with the kidnapping and torture of and American civilian in Ukraine during the Russian Federation’s aggression against its neighboring former Soviet Republic. The U.S., the International Criminal Court, Ukraine and human rights organizations, among others, have accused Russians and Russian-backed separatists of war crimes and crimes against humanity. Venezuela and Guyana: Socialist Venezuela has revived its claims to territory of neighboring Guyana, even though the claim was long since renounced, now that there are lucrative mineral rights known to be in the area. Guyana is conducting timely military exercises with the U.S. to deter aggressive action by the anti-American dictator leading its larger neighbor. World Human Rights Day: Today is World Human Rights Day on the 75th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. There had been progress made on protecting human rights toward the end of the Cold War and shortly afterward, but the rise of authoritarians who use elections to gain power and then take away liberty and limit free and fair elections to use them only to use their rigged results to gain legitimacy, and then further increase their autocracy has decreased freedom around the world, and thus peace and security.