Morality in foreign policy is often subjective. The US administration is confident that it represents the forces of democracy and freedom, and thus feels free to do whatever it judges best to promote these fine things. Israel perceives Palestinians and Arabs committed to its destruction, justifying any action taken against them. Some in the Muslim world see no prospect of frustrating Western cultural, economic and military dominance on Western terms of engagement, and so choose other methods -- such as suicide-bombing -- that better suit their weakness.
Many Americans and Israelis believe that virtue is anyway unimportant, that the Arab world -- and indeed the world at large -- chiefly respects the successful use of power. Yet the weakness of this argument is laid bare in Lebanon, Iraq and elsewhere. The US, Israel and their backers -- prominently including British Prime Minister Tony Blair, if not the British people -- are perceived both as behaving immorally, and using force ineffectually. In a recent article for the International Institute for Strategic Studies journal, Kishore Mahbubani, dean of the School of Public Policy at Singapore University, analyzed the precipitous decline of perceived Western legitimacy. His principal argument was that it is essential for the US and its allies to be seen to abide by the same rules that they seek to impose on others. He proposed a recasting of the post-1945 Truman consensus, within which most nations acknowledged that the US sought to exercise its might for the welfare of all.
Urging the US to renew its commitment to making the UN a real force, Mahbubani acknowledged the justice of giving large powers large voices through the security council. He argued, however, that its members' special influence must be matched by a special sense of responsibility, which is today perceived as lacking.
The world is unimpressed, he said, by US attempts to limit the rising power of China. Osama bin Laden has "successfully delegitimized American power in the eyes of hundreds of millions of Muslims ... One of the key factors in the growing delegitimization ... is [US] indifference to its impact and to how it is perceived in the eyes of the 6 billion people in the rest of the world."
The principle of political and economic even-handedness is key, and is being flouted.
Most of the above seems undeniable by any reasonable person. It is hard to overstate the practical consequences of the West's moral erosion. The 2001 Afghan invasion commanded widespread international support. Yet, in Afghanistan today, most NATO members are fulfilling their commitments to help stabilize the country in the most half-hearted fashion. US behavior elsewhere has diminished willingness to assist American purposes anywhere. This is mistaken, but unsurprising. The British contingent is striving its hardest in Helmand Province, but the leakage of moral authority from Iraq has impacted on the legitimacy of military action in Afghanistan.
On July 18, UK Attorney General Lord Goldsmith delivered a shamefully complacent speech about Britain's proud record in upholding international law, notably in Iraq and Afghanistan.
"We in the United Kingdom," he said, "take great care to ensure that we comply with the rule of law ... We take legitimacy very seriously."
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