War between two countries caused by Europeans\u2019 love of war, hegemony and dominance, says ex-Malaysian PM
\n Kuala Lumpur
\nFormer Malaysian prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad has said that the current crisis between Russia and Ukraine can be interpreted as the \u201cstart of the third World War\u201d.
\n\u201cI hesitate to write this article. I may be accused of apologising for the Russians. I am not. I think the present war between Ukraine and Russia is caused by the Europeans\u2019 love of war, of hegemony, of dominance,\u201d he wrote in a series of tweets on Friday.
\nHe said that Russia was the partner of the US, Canada and Western Europe in the war against Germany. \u201cThe moment Germany was defeated, the west declared that Russia, their partner was their new enemy,\u201d he added.
\nThe former prime minister said that the west started preparing for war against Russia and NATO was set up to form a military alliance against Russia.
\nIn response, he said, Russia then set up the Warsaw Pact and a Cold war ensued, adding that the world had to choose between the west and the east.
\nHe said that after the Russians disbanded the Warsaw Pact and allowed the countries of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics to leave the bloc, NATO did not disband.
\n\u201cInstead the countries freed from Russian hegemony were urged to join NATO as enemies of Russia. The pressure against the weakened Russia was heightened.\u201d
\nAs the former socialist republics join NATO and the threat against Russia heightened, Mahathir said, Russia rebuilt its military capabilities and confronted the powerful western alliance, saying that tension increased as NATO forces carried out exercises close to Russia.
\nThe former prime minister said that Russia pre-empted with the invasion of Ukraine and that can be interpreted as the start of the Third World War.
\n\u201cThere is talk of using nuclear weapons. Already the world has to endure shortages of supplies due to sanctions against Russia and Russian retaliation,\u201d he said.
\nHe talked about US provocation in the Far East. \u201cA visit by a high US official to Taiwan caused an increase of tension between China and Taiwan. Both are arming and the US has sold a lot of weapons to Taiwan, while China became more belligerent.\u201d
\nHe further said that Malaysia is also experiencing shortages and inflation, advising his country to prepare \u201ccontingency plans to deal with what may be the beginning of a Third World War\u201d.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
War between two countries caused by Europeans\u2019 love of war, hegemony and dominance, says ex-Malaysian PM Kuala Lumpur Former Malaysian prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad has said that the current crisis between Russia and Ukraine can be interpreted as the \u201cstart of the third World War\u201d. \u201cI hesitate to write this article. I may be […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":316136,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-316110","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n