End of the unipolar world?
US ambitions multiplied at Russia's weakening and at «colour revolutions» resulted for America in fatal perception of self-exclusiveness.
Rejecting a $700 billion bailout package meant to save the financial market the US Congress made another step towards driving the unipolar world into the grave. Judging from the dramatic course of events the USA is losing its status of a superpower in the financial world, and, consequently, its political authority. The current situation is compared to the Great Depression of 1929, when stock markets plummeted, and ruined bankers jumped out of the skyscraper windows as Don Corleone would put it "after lack of imagination".
The House of Representatives rejected the "Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008" with 207 pro and 226 con votes, the Republicans voting mainly for and the Democrats against it. According to the Press-Secretary of the White House Tony Fratto on the eve of the polls George Bush had himself phoned the members of the House of Representatives trying to talk them into supporting the bill. However, most of the lawmakers took into account the fact that many Americans regard the Wall Street rescue plan as an attempt to save bankers at the expense of common people. The congressmen have to act with great caution in order not to ruin their reputation among the electorate, for besides Presidential Elections there will also be held legislative elections in November.
As EU Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson said on Monday, " U.S. lawmakers have taken leave of their senses by rejecting a $700 billion financial bailout plan. I hope that in Europe we will not see politicians and parliamentarians replicating the sort of irresponsibility and political partisanship that we have seen in Washington ," Mandelson said in an interview with the BBC. In his words a broader international response to the global financial crisis was needed. The EU's executive Commission would propose measures to reinforce cooperation among regulators, bankers and governments and to clarify the role of credit rating agencies. By the way the news entailed serious consequences - collapse of stock indices, first in the United States , then in other world trade areas.
Meanwhile the global financial crisis leads to new structural changes in the world banking system. The other day the biggest American bank "Citigroup" declared about its purchase of the US bank "Wachovia" (the sixth in size); Belgium , the Netherlands and Luxemburg partially took over the struggling bank "Fortis" after the collapse of its shares. Earlier the British government had nationalized mortgage lender "Bradford & Bingley".
Great Depression of 1929, which ended only in the second half of 1930s, affected not only more or less developed countries of the West, but spread all over the other states as well. Industrial cities suffered most of all and construction almost ceased in a number of states. Because of the cutback in effective demand, prices of agricultural products fell 40-60%. And the world became unipolar then: the USSR was on the way to development and European countries had not yet recovered from the World War I. Years later the "New Deal" of Franklin Delano Roosevelt, the World War II and the USSR growth made the world bipolar. The situation carried on until the USSR breakdown, and it seemed nothing could "promise" the current collapse. However, US ambitions multiplied at Russia 's weakening and at «colour revolutions» resulted for America in fatal perception of self-exclusiveness.
The crisis is not a novelty however; it broke out still at the time of President George Bush Senior, when the latter «liberated» Kuwait from the Army of Saddam Hussein. Then came the turn of the Iraqi Dictator himself, not to mention the division of Yugoslavia and the war in Afghanistan . In fact, Washington cut down the branches on which its economy stood: energy resources from the Near East and drugs from Afghanistan . It is already a widely known secret that a great amount of opium is imported into the United States . All that the present Administration did was directed to controlling the energy resources and drugs. To be more exact, it aimed at the growth of oil and pharmaceutical corporations. And everything seemed to be quiet until the beginning of 2008, when the country went into an economic recession. The country was struck by mortgage crisis and banks closed one after another. Saakashvili's intrusion into South Ossetia and his infamous defeat speeded up the process. Actually the Georgian President made the world realize that the neocon policy towards the post-Soviet republics and towards the whole world had been erroneous.
According to Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim, the world's second richest man, no country in the world can protect itself against the current economic crisis. "The crisis will affect the whole world. The situation is so complex and serious that it can affect the economy of every country," said Slim, who has an estimated capital of $60 billion.
What worries the Mexican magnate most of all is the risk that the financial crisis may find a passage from the bank level and mortgage crediting into the sector of real economy. Slim considers that American authorities are already late in taking measures for softening the crisis consequences.
Let us assume that the new US President will take up a "New Deal" too. But will he be potent enough to put it into practice like Roosevelt did?
Karine Ter-Sahakyan
As EU Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson said on Monday, " U.S. lawmakers have taken leave of their senses by rejecting a $700 billion financial bailout plan. I hope that in Europe we will not see politicians and parliamentarians replicating the sort of irresponsibility and political partisanship that we have seen in Washington ," Mandelson said in an interview with the BBC. In his words a broader international response to the global financial crisis was needed. The EU's executive Commission would propose measures to reinforce cooperation among regulators, bankers and governments and to clarify the role of credit rating agencies. By the way the news entailed serious consequences - collapse of stock indices, first in the United States , then in other world trade areas.
Meanwhile the global financial crisis leads to new structural changes in the world banking system. The other day the biggest American bank "Citigroup" declared about its purchase of the US bank "Wachovia" (the sixth in size); Belgium , the Netherlands and Luxemburg partially took over the struggling bank "Fortis" after the collapse of its shares. Earlier the British government had nationalized mortgage lender "Bradford & Bingley".
Great Depression of 1929, which ended only in the second half of 1930s, affected not only more or less developed countries of the West, but spread all over the other states as well. Industrial cities suffered most of all and construction almost ceased in a number of states. Because of the cutback in effective demand, prices of agricultural products fell 40-60%. And the world became unipolar then: the USSR was on the way to development and European countries had not yet recovered from the World War I. Years later the "New Deal" of Franklin Delano Roosevelt, the World War II and the USSR growth made the world bipolar. The situation carried on until the USSR breakdown, and it seemed nothing could "promise" the current collapse. However, US ambitions multiplied at Russia 's weakening and at «colour revolutions» resulted for America in fatal perception of self-exclusiveness.
The crisis is not a novelty however; it broke out still at the time of President George Bush Senior, when the latter «liberated» Kuwait from the Army of Saddam Hussein. Then came the turn of the Iraqi Dictator himself, not to mention the division of Yugoslavia and the war in Afghanistan . In fact, Washington cut down the branches on which its economy stood: energy resources from the Near East and drugs from Afghanistan . It is already a widely known secret that a great amount of opium is imported into the United States . All that the present Administration did was directed to controlling the energy resources and drugs. To be more exact, it aimed at the growth of oil and pharmaceutical corporations. And everything seemed to be quiet until the beginning of 2008, when the country went into an economic recession. The country was struck by mortgage crisis and banks closed one after another. Saakashvili's intrusion into South Ossetia and his infamous defeat speeded up the process. Actually the Georgian President made the world realize that the neocon policy towards the post-Soviet republics and towards the whole world had been erroneous.
According to Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim, the world's second richest man, no country in the world can protect itself against the current economic crisis. "The crisis will affect the whole world. The situation is so complex and serious that it can affect the economy of every country," said Slim, who has an estimated capital of $60 billion.
What worries the Mexican magnate most of all is the risk that the financial crisis may find a passage from the bank level and mortgage crediting into the sector of real economy. Slim considers that American authorities are already late in taking measures for softening the crisis consequences.
Let us assume that the new US President will take up a "New Deal" too. But will he be potent enough to put it into practice like Roosevelt did?
Karine Ter-Sahakyan
