Can US, Iran and others follow the example of Scandinavia?
Many of us who take keen interest in news and current affairs now have a fresh but undesirable menu—thanks to the United States and Iran. We have already been treated to scenes of death and destruction, and we will witness more.
If the two countries do not pull back from the brink, they may start a conflict that will soon overshadow Syria, Yemen and Libya and reinforce the Middle East’s unenviable distinction as the world’s most conflict-prone region and leading exporter of refugees.
Iran has been trying to retaliate since the US murdered its top military commander, Gen Qasem Soleimani, two weeks ago in a drone strike in Iraq, but its attempts at retaliation have so far been catastrophically haphazard.
First off, days after the assassination of Soleimani, Iran fired ballistic missiles at US military bases in Iraq but killed none of those it targeted and destroyed nothing, probably the best evidence you need to conclude that a retaliatory strike has been ineffectual.
Second, Iran disastrously scored an own goal when it unintentionally shot down a Ukrainian passenger airliner leaving Tehran for Kiev, the capital of Ukraine, killing all 176 people on board, most of them Iranians.
As images of the terrible crash site made the rounds on social media and hit TV screens, and as videos emerged showing the plane was brought down by missiles, Iranians did something humans are wont to do when they are suspected of wrongdoing. They issued denials and even got the head of their aviation agency to join in, insisting the Boeing 737-800 was not shot down by Iranian missiles.
But incontrovertible evidence that the aircraft was brought down by missiles was growing by the day. The US had cited its satellite imagery and intelligence. Canada, which had passengers on the aircraft, like Iran and Ukraine, also weighed in, saying a review of its own intelligence suggested the Iranian military accidentally shot down the aircraft.
Iran then made a stunning about-turn, which has since sparked angry protests. It admitted its military accidentally shot down the plane. But people who are knowledgeable about Iran’s military were not surprised. A senior US government official quoted by The New York Times said the Iranian military had poor command and control, and that this was reflected in what had happened with the airplane.
The US, meanwhile, has continued to sound drums of war and warned that should Iran attack any US military base anywhere or any US citizen, Washington will use its brand-new military equipment it just acquired to devastating effect.
It is not clear yet how Iran is going to placate anger among Iranians and retaliate properly for the killing of its general. But the tensions between the two countries raise fundamental questions about the world we live in.
The world really needs to ask how Scandinavian countries and many others in Europe, the world’s most peaceful region, according to the Global Peace Index, have managed to remain peaceful and prosperous, with high incomes per capita and high standards of living.
The countries in question are Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden. Iceland, for example, remains the most peaceful country in the world, a position it has held since 2008, according to the Global Peace Index. Norway, as all informed people know, is the country where the Nobel Peace Prize was founded. Both Norway and Denmark use their taxpayers’ money to run two major refugee agencies—the Norwegian Refugee Council and the Danish Refugee Council respectively—looking after millions of people displaced by wars started by other countries.
Some Scandinavian countries are members of NATO and joined the UN-mandated International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan—which operated there from August 2003 to December 2014—but they have never backed any country in any conflict or sold weapons to countries at war.
Rather than waging costly wars, these countries have often done everything in their power to help end conflict and tensions between countries.
What’s more, Scandinavian countries are star performers not only on the Human Development Index (a measure of average achievement in healthy life, formal education and a decent standard of living) but also on the Corruption Perception Index. They are also the happiest nations in the world. Finland, for example, topped the list, followed by Norway and Denmark in that order.
The world should and can emulate Scandinavia. Countries acquire weapons and wage wars mainly because of national security. But how have Scandinavian countries managed to steer clear of wars while also maintaining their national security?
The writer is a journalist and former Al Jazeera digital editor in charge of the Africa desk
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@kazbuk
