Date: Wed, 4 Sep 1996 09:58:04 +0200 (MET DST)
From: rolf.martens-AT-mailbox.swipnet.se (Rolf Martens)
Subject: Re: France and Iraq


Barkley R. wrote:

>     There is more to the disdain by France of US actions 
>in Iraq than mere legalities, which the French have never 
>been known to respect when it has not been in their 
>interests. 
........
 
>     Furthermore, France has in the past had lots of 
>military trade deals with Iraq and would like to do so 
>again.
........
>     Finally it should be noted that Iraq was once ruled by 
>the British.  However, according to the imperialist 
>British-French Sykes-Picot Agreement of 1916, France was 
>supposed to get the area in northern Iraq around Mosul 
........
>  A bit of French resentment 
>over this long ago loss may also be playing a role here.
>Barkley Rosser
>

Certainly there were some own bourgeois interests involved.
But it was a very good thing that France protested anyway.

This matter again shows the importance and correctness
of Mao Zedong's 1974 "three worlds" analysis, pointing to
an element in the international situation which still exists,
the fact that countries like France are not in the same 
situation as the USA and (still today) Russia.

Despite the of course bourgeois character of the Saddam regime
too, the US missile attack was an outrage and must be protested
against.

Rolf M.



     --- from list marxism-AT-lists.village.virginia.edu ---