Shenali D Waduge

She maybe the highest ranking American official but most Americans do not even know her name. However, she is visiting Sri Lanka twice in one year & that should mean something. Why is she visiting Sri Lanka is however more important. She first visited Sri Lanka days before riots started resulted in the resignation of the former President. Naturally, all eyes are fixed on what is likely to emerge after her forthcoming visit. Over the years, there is no doubt the US has created local agents” covering all spectrums of society.

While UK held position of might during colonial rule, the western world have had to move over to allow US to dictate world affairs. US bullying tactics was seen in the leaked call between Nuland & US envoy to Ukraine in 2014, berating the EU. This got her a thumbs up from both Republicans & Democrats.

It is no surprise she has been in the forefront of most of US incursions. Nuland was Deputy Chief of US mission to NATO in Brussels during the unilateral attack on Afghanistan after 9/11.

Nuland & ambassador Nicholas Burns strategized to get Allies involved. He & Samantha Power are on the Board of the Future of Diplomacy Project at Harvard Kennedy School in which Nuland is a Senior Fellow.

While she claims Russia has invaded” Ukraine, she is mum on all of US invasions. Afghanistan remains illegally occupied since 2001. Nuland was the foreign policy advisor to Dick Cheney during that invasion.

She rose to fame with her Fuck the EU” 2014 February leaked tape which part of US effort to replace Ukrainian President Victor Yanukovych – which succeeded in a matter of 3 weeks. Attention was diverted from the abusive rhetoric towards the EU by an American official to blaming the Russians for taping her! US involvement in Ukraine has resulted in 13,000 lost lives & Ukraine is the poorest country in Europe – so what is the cost of this war for Ukraine?

While she could declare ‘Fuck the EU’ & expected the EU not to respond, when the Turkish may referred to a State Dept spokeswoman as a ‘stupid blonde’ after her comments regarding how Turkey handled a demonstration in 2013, Nuland in 2015 took issue with Turkey for the ‘inappropriate comment’ by the Turkish mayor. This was followed by the US ambassador to Turkey posting a picture of himself on instragram with his brunette hair photoshopped to appear blonde with caption American diplomats: we’re all blonde”. They lengths they go to, to defend each other.

Nuland’s husband Robert Kagan is the co-founder of the Project for a New American Century which is a neoconservative policy think tank.

However, the Politico Magazine in 2014 released top 50 influential people in Washington & Brookings Senior Fellow Robert Kagan & Victoria Nuland was described as the ultimate American power couple”.

The manner that Nulands’ husband Kagan’s neocon lobby exerted pressure on even President Obama was seen in the manner Obama was eventually attacked as a ‘weak leader’ by them & Nuland even advocates permanent NATO bases along the eastern border. It is said that Obama learned too late what a wrong person, in the wrong place, at the wrong time & with a wrong direction can do – Sri Lanka, saw that after her visit to Sri Lanka days after which a riot started, she is returning again & that return should not be taken lightly. She is obviously arriving to see if the plans she has set are in order & to decide how & when to turn the switch.

Also in 2015 Nuland was at the receiving end of Egypts Muslim Brotherhood which accused her of unreserved audacity” when she criticized the Egyptian government of stifling freedom of expression.  Her comments on the detention & interrogation of Bassem Yousself means she will certainly be making a comment on Wasantha Mudalige, the hero of the Sri Lankan aragala movement supported heavily by the US embassy in Colombo & its pawns across the board. She may also pop in a word for Sepala Amarasinghe in prison for insulting Buddhism, which is similar to the offense for which Bassem Youssef was imprisoned (insulting Islam). Youssef was eventually released.

In April 2022 Nuland visited Bangladesh. Not beating about the bush, Bangladesh was told to support US-NATO war against Russia. She visited India & Sri Lanka too & China was on that list. Her visits were infamous for what ensued after her departure. The 2014 Ukraine coup that overthrew Viktor Yanukovich was followed with the overthrowing of Sri Lanka’s President in July 2022. Her trip to Bangladesh, resulted in Bangladesh voting with 139 countries in a resolution that demanded ‘aid access & civilian protection in Ukraine’ accusing Russia of creating a ‘dire humanitarian situation’. Bangladesh had previously voted with India, Pakistan & China & abstained from UN resolution reprimanding Russia. Interestingly like Sri Lanka, Bangladesh’s major share of exports goes to US & EU while Russia supplies wheat, fertilizer, machinery, fresh & dried fruit to Bangladesh. Russia is also constructing Bangladesh’s biggest power plant. The best way US knows to deal with such situations is to pluck the human rights topic & accuse Bangladesh & threaten sanctions, which US did. Any nation that US aligns with & commits human rights violations are however omitted from US statements or sanctions. Such is the hypocrisy.

Exactly who holds power & decision in USA? Is it the President, the Congress or groups of think tanks & secret societies who promote neocon ideology disadvantageous mostly to the American citizens. They bear all the costs of the wars that US enters. The backers of the wars walk away with all the deals & profits. Unfortunately, this reality has not dawned on the American people & the few that understands are often neutralized by other means.

If Nuland was the mastermind behind the February 2014 regime change” was she also behind the riots that ensued from March 2022 in Sri Lanka leading to the resignation of the Sri Lankan President in July 2022. US overthrew 2 democratically elected Presidents. Of course, both were hailed as victory for democracy” & echoes Prince Charles ‘whatever love means’. In the case of Ukraine, anyone speaking against the US regime change were dubbed pro-Russian, while anyone speaking against the undemocratic ouster in Sri Lanka was equally dubbed with all sorts of names.

Ukraine is in a mess, with no nation likely to come to the rescue of the Ukrainian people, while US pawns have declared default, devalued Sri Lanka’s currency & saddled Sri Lanka with the IMF with a likely cut & paste of the Jamaican tragedy likely to happen to Sri Lanka. All that the US-local promoters will end up doing is sing hosanahs about ‘democracy’ & ‘good governance’ though none of them will feel the pinch as the IMF only punches the poor & middle class.

What we need to realize is that the decisions on regime change are coming out of policy plans of the think tanks that reign the US. Most of the top officials are serving on this think tanks & what they decide the President & Congress require to parrot. We see some of these think tanks heavily involved with youth, civil society, religious entities, legal fraternity, academia, media & even politicians funding numerous programs to align them to the US think tank goals & objectives.

The question Sri Lankans must answer – who is the US regime-change heart throb for 2024 Presidential Election? Prior to that we must all wonder what her arrival in Sri Lanka is likely to result in the moment she leaves Sri Lanka. Riots have been a corner stone of every visit, therefore Sri Lanka’s intel should be on alert even room for a possible foreign troop invasion”.

Shenali D Waduge