Are the Muslims fond of the United States of America which they may be seeing as the new ‘Caliphate’ that can bring them back to world power? This is what it appears to be with the lack of response from Muslims and their leaders with regard to the events in Georgia and Russia.

Only a handful of countries with a Muslim leader offered a differing view to that of the Americans and this included Syria and Iran. It is not wrong to conclude that the Muslims are now the servants of the new ‘Caliphate’ in Washington with its warmongering leader in the person of George W. Bush who in 20012 also became an expert in Islamic religious affairs.

We understand that the Muslim world is living in a dream, that of the old days when its armies led by a Caliph was the security that protected the Muslims from foreign attacks. In the wake of the Muslim nation’s dismemberment by the British and other European forces after years of colonial rule the Muslims has turned their fondness towards America.

Muslims protects their choices for their favorite fast food chains which are all Americans. A brief survey on the success stories of American fast food chains indicate ‘Asia’ and ‘Arabia’ as the continents where American businesses are more successful and makes more profit.

They also read American news and watch American shows and television. It is such since these are readily available on the marketplace and are altogether the favorite picks of local networks. The blame probably goes to the Russian people for not promoting enough their television channels, their networks and their fast food chains.

It is not that Russia does not have anything to offer but it is the approach that is lacking in creativity from Moscow. This has to change for one simple reason: Russia has its place in the world.

The Georgian incursion in Ossetia and the consequences of the drastic move by Tbilisi has opened a new realm in world politics. Besides exposing the warmongering policies of the US it has also exposed the lax attitude by a large majority of Muslims, writers, observers and even students who did not care to bother what was happening.

Again the distorted version of events in Ossetia after the Georgian attacks fed to the Muslim public from Africa to Asia and Arabia (where Russia has good influence though), is due to the absence of an international Russian network that would beam the images and the views of the Russian people and government to the rest of the world.

I read somewhere on the Internet that Russia in fact won the bout against Georgia but lost the propaganda war in the media. It is very important for the Russians to give to the Muslim population the alternative that they badly needed. Why?

The Americans have proven their ill intent towards Islam but Russia did not attempt at erasing Islam even during the 75 long years of communist rule. Russia should follow the example given by China. The Chinese nation now has more than 65 years of communist rule but Islam thrived during the 65 years and has grown in proportion and in economic importance.

The Chinese nation altogether has set itself to protect landmarks that are of Islamic origins and has even named Masjids (Mosques) as national monuments that are to be protected by law. The Chinese government has a very pro-active news agency in the name of Xinhua and it pays a lot of attention to the views of Muslims from outside China

The Chief Editor of WorldFutures was even interviewed by Xinhua on the relationship between China and the Muslim world and the Muslims in China. The Chinese Communist Party has a network of television programs, news items, and analysis and also documentaries that help the rest of the world see China in a different light.

In this modern age, it is relevant to spend a little fortune on the internationalization of the media and this is what Russia should do. Either by cooperating with Xinhua or by creating its own international satellite and cable television network that will beam media’s to the rest of the world. The Muslim world will surely accommodate the network which could become the alternative station that is badly needed in the world today.

The Americans does not have to push hard on the pressure buttons to get Al-Jazeera for example to show a pro-US report and or to support an anti-Moscow diatribe. While Xinhua and the Chinese international television networks are doing well for China, Russia lacks this support. An international Russian network does not have to turn into a propaganda machine ala Soviet era but it would be salient to present Moscow’s views and the people of Russia’s views to the rest of the world.

The Muslim world is dependent on the fake caliph who intend to come back to haunt the Arabs and the Mujahideen after the rule of the next US president is over. It does not have to be George Bush himself but another representative of the American Neo-conservatives will surely take power sooner or later. This will not augur good for the Muslims, for Russia and for China.

With this in perspective, it is wiser for the Russians to strike a deal with the Chinese nation and build closer ties with the Muslim world with the clear intent to lend support to the Muslims. To achieve that, Moscow will have to shift gear and attack the Muslim world aggressively with its commerce and trade potentials.

It should also offer the Muslim poor across the world more help in terms of educational scholarships and help train Muslim doctors and nurses to assist in the field of medication. Moscow can also offer a para-military deal that could be shaped on the proposals made by Syria’s President Bashar Assad who offered his country to host a missile barrage that could help protect Moscow and Syria altogether.

On the political front, the Russians may come closer to the Muslims – not necessarily the Muslim Presidents – but the Muslim people in Arabia, Asia and Africa by helping them in their quest for political freedoms.

The Russian government needs a major blue print to help the Muslims break down the link that exists between the fake caliph in Washington and the Muslim masses that are hungry for fast foods and cheap cinemas.

It is cooperation between the Muslim people and the Russian people that should be enhanced and bettered in order to create a new paradigm shift that will help in the re-invention of the world order. Russia definitely has its place and a bigger role to play despite the heavy presence of the Americans in the Muslim hinterland from Malaysia to Yemen and Iraq.

Cooperation at all levels must be developed between us Muslims and Moscow and one way to start it is to open up the Russian space and expose the Russian Muslims and their achievements to the rest of the Muslim world. This will not make the Muslims become a protected species in Russia; on the contrary, it will bring more Muslims to visit Russia in the first place and more and more Muslims to get interested in investing the Muslim areas in Russia.

That open space will then help develop greater relationship between the two peoples of Islamic faith and of Russian origin. Again it is through cooperation that this could be achieved in the short and long run. Russia has nothing to lose if it opens up further towards the Islamic world and perhaps it could implement some Islamic banking and finance principles in the Russian motherland in order to catch the attention of rich Muslim investors who are always on the lookout for lands of opportunities!

Then only will we be able to say that fake ‘Caliph' in Washington.

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OIC redundant
written by observers, August 25, 2008

I read this article with interest. I understand one thing. The OIC is redundant and should be disbanded or it should not hold all Muslim nations together. Russia must be brave to pull some, many actually, Muslim states away from the pro-Americaanist OIC. Form a group that will help Muslims and Russians build a better, safer just world. Go Go go...Russia

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