‘At the Present Moment in World History’

“At the present moment in world history nearly every nation must choose between alternative ways of life.” U.S. President Harry Truman’s special address to Congress in 1947 became the Truman Doctrine that announced the Cold War between America and the Soviet Union. This speech split the world into his own camp, which promoted freedom from oppression and totalitarianism, which oppresses freedom, and pledged to contain the latter. The Cold War mentality that classified friend or foe by ideology gripped the world until the Soviet collapse. “The free world must triumph over this new tyranny.” This wasn’t spoken by someone during the Cold War. Only a few days ago, America’s Secretary of State Mike Pompeo stressed the Chinese threat in a speech, asserting that “securing our freedoms from the Chinese Communist Party is the mission of our time.” He sprinkled ideological criticisms of “totalitarianism” and “communism” that haven’t been heard much since the Cold War throughout his speech. America and China have also closed each other’s consulates, and it is no longer unreasonable for the world to prepare for a new cold war. What’s surprising is Pompeo’s call for a new alliance structure in the free world against China that makes use of international frameworks like the U.N. For the Trump administration, which turned its back on multilateral cooperation through allies and international institutions, this is a sudden return to the early days of the Cold War. This “Pompeo Doctrine” conceals domestic failures ahead of the presidential election, but even if America temporarily reverts to a Democratic administration, its hardened anti-Chinese posture is unlikely to slacken. As America finds its economic and military supremacy challenged and revives an ideological cold war, I hope that it doesn’t lead to unforeseen situations.