Ghassan Charbel
Editor-in-Chief of Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper
TT

Ukraine and Sudan and the Benefits of Chinese Medicine

From Ukraine to Sudan, the world is ill and in need of a doctor who cannot be found. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy weighs his option and reaches the same conclusion. Fate has tasked him with a semi-suicidal mission. He never thought that he would turn into a general in a war that is producing rivers of coffins and millions of refugees and displaced. He never predicted that bad luck would bring him head-to-head in a bloody confrontation with the seasoned professional fighter, Vladimir Putin. Zelenskyy is constantly being asked about the new counteroffensive. But such an operation demands massive sacrifices and ammunition. Yes, the United States and NATO have been generous with him, but these veins that are flowing with weapons to his army may run dry. He is very much aware that expelling Russian troops from all Ukrainian territories is impossible. The master of the Kremlin cannot return home defeated in Ukraine. Defeat may lead to the breakup of the Russian federation, similar to what happened with the Soviet Union. He is very much aware that the Russian forces will destroy what remains of Ukraine if they sense defeat. The world is ill and the doctor is missing. Antonio Guterres is on the verge of closing his clinic. He has surrendered to his inability to provide treatments and has made do with seeking the renewal of the grain deal, while handing out blankets and tents. The United Nations is one of the most prominent casualties in the Ukraine war. It was wounded by a permanent member of the Security Council, just as it was injured two decades ago by the US invasion of Iraq. When major powers are involved in war, they leave the UN with no other role besides counting funerals and bandages. Russia is in no way troubled by what its forces are doing in Ukraine. It is rallying its people to make sacrifices in a “national holy war.” Guterres didn’t dare remind Sergei Lavrov of the basics of the dance in the Security Council chamber. The United States is also not a doctor who can be summoned. It is a clear party in the war. Were it not for its generous support, Ukraine would have succumbed to Russia in the first few weeks of the war. The US cannot go so far as to deal Russia a resounding defeat and it doesn’t want to. Moscow is making veiled nuclear threats to remind the US of the dormant devils in its arsenal. The continued American generosity simply means that the war will go on and Russia will be prevented from declaring victory through a knockout blow. The continuation of the war exposes Ukraine to all forms of death, such as the death of the state, people and economy. The European Union is also no doctor. It may have jumped to Ukraine’s aid, but the war exposed how fragile it is and how modest are its means compared to those of the US. Zelenskyy is weighing his options. No one else remains but the Chinese doctor. The Ukrainian president knows of Chinese traditional medicine, such as acupuncture and herbal remedies. The philosophy is based on balance and harmony within the patient and with their surroundings. The success of the treatment depends on the accurate diagnosis of the patient and their cooperation with the remedy. With the current enflamed state of affairs, the treatment must target both Kyiv and Moscow. Herbs are not enough to rein in Putin’s ambitions. The Chinese doctor. Zelenskyy thought about Xi Jinping. US President Joe Biden is in the eye of the storm and Donald Trump is pledging to defeat him in the upcoming elections. The whole of America is now caught up in the elections. Putin is mired in the war and wants to use it to elevate his status in history so that he can face his predecessor Joseph Stalin with his head held high. Zelenskyy himself cannot go down in history as the man who emerged from under the rubble to sign off the annexation of some of his country’s territories. In all likelihood, the solution needs surgery that goes beyond acupuncture pricks and the concoction of herbal remedies. Xi opened a small window to Zelenskyy. It is a portal that must be crossed. China did not condemn the Russian invasion. It has only spoken of peace and respecting the sovereignty of nations. It has no interest in a Russian defeat that would only deepen the crisis with Taiwan, which Mao’s heir is seeking to reclaim through small needle pricks, rather than all-out war. In Sudan, the country is ill and the doctor is missing. The Arab League is not a doctor, even though its intentions are good. The same goes for the African Union. Russia is not an acceptable or trusted doctor. The only treatment it has for African fissures is a bitter medicine called Wagner. The concoctions of the Kremlin Chef lead to all dangers: weapons, mercenaries, mines and blows under the belt. It’s not easy for Lavrov to declare that Sudan has the right to turn to Wagner that is deployed in several African countries and is eyeing its mines and minerals. Wagner has also been expelling French and western influence from Africa. Turning to it would instantly make the US an adversary. Guterres is helpless in both Ukraine and Sudan. The war in Sudan raises significant issues and poses risks to neighboring countries and the vital Red Sea waterway, potentially threatening the global economy, security and stability. China has for years shown a keen interest in Africa, its stability, wealth and minerals. China doesn’t want to export a model and impose it on Africa. It seeks stability that would give way to trade and ensure that interests are protected. China is also clearly interested in Red Sea security. It is no coincidence that it set up its first foreign naval base in Djibouti in 2017. Djibouti sits in a strategic location on the Mandeb Strait that separates the Gulf of Aden and Red Sea. It would be beneficial for Sudan’s Abdul Fattah al-Burhan and Mohamed Hamdan “Hemedti” Daglo to think about turning to the Chinese doctor if he is prepared to intervene. Treatment through needle pricks and herbs, no matter how bitter they taste, is better than languishing in an open war with no doctor in sight and as Sudan is torn apart. No one would be able to save Sudan if it drowns in a destructive civil war, which is why the war must be stopped now before it is too late. Given the situation in the international arena, one must turn to Beijing, no matter how long the journey to get there. The Chinese doctor has shown his skill in sponsoring the reestablishment of relations between Saudi Arabia and Iran based on the principle of refraining from meddling in the affairs of others. This is encouraging and the Chinese doctor should be called up.