Assange Lightning Rod Places U.S. Bullying and South American Contradictions on Vivid Display
Published on Sunday, August 19, 2012 by Common Dreams
Assange Lightning Rod Places U.S. Bullying and South American Contradictions on Vivid Display
by Nikolas Kozloff
For just one man, Julian Assange has certainly managed to discombobulate and disrupt a large swathe of the geopolitical system. Not only is Sweden gunning for Assange, but there is little doubt that Britain and the U.S. will now stop at nothing to get their hands on the controversial founder of whistle-blowing outfit WikiLeaks. Having apparently concluded that he could no longer count on the support of his native Australia, which is beholden to Washington, Assange has now thrown in his lot with the tiny South American nation of Ecuador. Could this John Le Carré story of diplomatic intrigue get any stranger?
It now seems fair to say that the high stakes drama unfolding in London and the Ecuadoran Embassy has taken on wider political implications. Indeed, the Julian Assange imbroglio highlights the escalating tug of war which has been playing out between the United States and South America for some time. Rafael Correa, Ecuador’s combative leftist/populist president, has felt encircled and pressured by Washington and may have felt that he had nothing to lose by offering diplomatic asylum to Assange.
By over-reacting and daring to suggest that it might even raid the Ecuadoran Embassy, which would constitute truly rogue-like behavior, the Cameron government has only managed to harden the resolve of Correa and his allies in South America, who may surmise that Washington was probably egging on the UK all along. For now, Correa seems to be winning the battle of public relations, yet it’s far from clear that the Ecuadoran leader’s high stakes gamble will pay off in the long run. Indeed, if anything the Assange matter will further strain Ecuador’s relations with Washington and Correa could wind up paying a steep political price for challenging “the Empire.”
Ratcheting up the Anti-Imperialist Rhetoric
Over the past few days, South America seems to have hardened its position on the Assange affair and this has certainly benefited Correa. There’s no love lost between Washington and ALBA, Latin America’s populist left bloc led by Hugo Chávez of Venezuela, and, true to form, the organization lost no time in making hay out of the WikiLeaks imbroglio. “We hope that the British government respects not only international law but the right to political asylum that Assange has received,” remarked Venezuela’s Foreign Minister, Nicolas Maduro.
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