TEHRAN, Feb 09 -An American political analyst says that the US will get involved in more conflicts in the Middle East if its “unconditional support for Israel” continues.
TEHRAN, Young Journalists Club (YJC)-James Petras made the remarks in an interview with Press TV on Wednesday when asked about US President Donald Trump’s second State of the Union address.
In December 2017, Trump officially declared the disputed city of Jerusalem al-Quds as Israel's capital, despite warnings from around the world that the measure risks triggering a fresh wave of violence in the Middle East.
During his address in the chamber of the House of Representatives on Tuesday, Trump once again brought up the issue, saying: “My administration recognized the true capital of Israel — and proudly opened the American embassy in Jerusalem” al-Quds.
Petras said that “the proclamation of Trump that he will continue to support Israel is pretty much the defining issue for the US in the Middle East.”
“The unconditional support for Israel means that the US will be dragged into more conflicts in the Middle East, perhaps even returning …occupational efforts in regard to Syria and other countries in the Middle East,” he added.
Commenting on Trump’s remarks about China, the analyst said that there is no future in trade talks between Washington and Beijing, because Trump wants structural changes in China, a demand Beijing will never agree to.
“Trump says the US is interested in fair trade and then he says structural changes, I think the key word is structural changes,” Petras said, adding, “China has agreed to increase its imports from the United States, but it is not willing to dismantle its technological and industrial structures and this is what Trump is aiming for, so I don’t think any substantial agreement will come out of these negotiations."
“I think the US will enter into a period of confrontation with China,” he noted.
Trump initiated what is effectively a trade war with China in April, when he first imposed unusually heavy tariffs on imports from the Asian country. Beijing has imposed retaliatory tariffs of $50 billion on US products in retaliation to earlier tariffs by the US. In December, the two countries agreed to temporarily stop their trade war following high-stakes talks between Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Petras also talked about Trump’s remarks about Venezuela, saying that the US wants to “sponsor a civil war” in the country.
“Today, in press news we find that the US has been shipping arms from Miami to the terrorists in Venezuela, so I think that it’s forgone conclusion that Washington is looking to sponsor a civil war and an invasion of Venezuela,” he noted.
Tens of thousands of Venezuelans have thronged the streets of Venezuela, holding rallies in support and against Maduro, who began his second six-year term in office last month.
The clashes began after Juan Guaido, the opposition leader in the country’s National Assembly, proclaimed himself as “interim president” and urged Maduro to resign.
The US rushed to support Guaido, announcing sanctions on Venezuela’s oil industry. Other US officials have also doubled down on the possibility of military action, reiterating President Trump’s stance that “all options are on the table.”
Source: presstv
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