Daily Times

The noble rhetoric of American leaders about development, prosperity, freedom, liberty, safety and security is informed by their lust for land, markets and security. The US diplomacy is meant only to control the economic resources of other nations. To this end, it offers loans through international financial institutions.

The World Bank and the International Monetary Fund – two main institutions of international finance – were established after the end of the World War II to revive the economies shattered by years of conflict. The main objective of the World Bank was to assist the development and reconstruction of European states. The purpose of the IMF was to ensure global economic stability.

Over the years, both these institutions have become agents of American imperialism. Their policies and strategies are drawn and implemented to promote and impose American influence in borrowing countries. After decades of their successful operation, America has gained control over military and economic assets of most borrowing states.

Governments of heavily indebted countries watch helplessly as International Monetary Funds goes about making their policies for them. It tells them when to devalue their currency and to what extent, which resources to sell, what to buy, what to own, how much to spend and what to spend it on. It tells them how trade.

The American imperialism aims at expanding its political, cultural, social, economic and military control beyond its boundaries. Its tools include gunboat diplomacy, military conquest and economic penetration through multinationals.

Developing countries easily lose control of their resources and become clients of imperialist powers. Being the lender of last resort, the IMF finds the most efficient ways for imperial powers to impose their policies on them. Governments approach the IMF when they have no other option or choice and are in extreme need for assistance. The IMF deals with them in such a way that they are soon reduced to the status of virtual slaves. States getting IMF loans have to forgo their sovereignty. IMF advisors and consultants tell them what to do, when to do it and how to go about it. Facing a serious foreign exchange shortage, Pakistan is now seeking an IMF bailout. As such its sovereignty is at stake. In the past too financial, military and political decisions have been influenced by the IMF under US supervision.

In the age of economic imperialism, imperialist countries use their surplus capital in the form of direct investment and loans to derive maximum profit from slave states. The imperialist powers impose their political, social, economic and military dominance over poor or developing countries by first making them dependent on foreign assistance and loans. Dependent economies have to bear unequal exchange of raw materials. While foreign investors extract enormous profits, the client nations suffer from trade and budget deficits. To meet their day to day needs they are forced to borrow heavily so that their debt burden increases further. The IMF uses such dependence to make the poor countries’ policies subordinate to American imperialism. Debt servicing keeps the developing countries underdeveloped and makes them slaves to its lenders.

In the age of economic imperialism, the imperialist states use their surplus capital in the form of direct investment and loans to gain maximum profits from slave states

Since the financial crunch of 2008, the world economic system has been affected by stagnation and depression. It has sometimes been called the great recession.

The crisis has left America weak. The uni-polar world is seeing a gradual transformation into a multi-polar one. America is seeing China rivalling it in many areas even though in some ways it is still a developing country. Its per capita income, $9,844 is way short of the $12,000 benchmark for developed states. The economic, political and cultural rivalry among imperialist states has intensified.

According to the Institute of International Finance, the global debt is $247 trillion. It is 318 per cent of the world GDP. This is the predictable outcome of the games played by the imperialists to make more and more countries dependent.

Pakistan has the natural and human resources it needs to develop but it also has phenomenal corruption and incompetent leaders. Its total external debt has soared from $56,338 million in 2002 to $99,108 million in 2018.

Pakistan thus finds itself forced to seek another loan from the IMF under tough conditions. The adjustments the government is willing to make to obtain the loan have made it is highly unpopular. It is said that debt is the worst economy. In Pakistan’s case it is threatening to make Pakistan a slave to American imperialism.

It is important to remember that American imperialism dominates the world economy and politics to control militaries and to expand its geopolitical influence. Pakistan has been a victim of this policy for many decades.

NATO is the strongest military alliance in the world. Its forces are used to control governments when needed. The military-industrial complex of the US is the most vital part of its own economy. It makes huge profits by selling weapons and causing wars around the world.

The US exploits and destroys the economies dependent countries. It then offers them loans at a very high interest rates and tough conditions. The IMF works under the influence of the US. The IMF and the World Bank work together to prevent poor and underdeveloped countries from making policies that can result in actual development. They both protect the vested interests of the US. The client states are made to obtain loans and provide sovereign guarantees for them. Ultimately their citizens have to suffer huge taxes and inflation.

The IMF is a tool of imperialism. It imposes neo-liberal policies on borrowing states. It is on account of its policies that there is so much poverty and inequality in the world. According to Oxfam International, the one per cent richest people carry 82 per cent of the world’s wealth, while the poor half of the humanity has nothing. According to the latest report, 42 individuals have the same amount of wealth as the poor half of humanity.

Pakistan is under the IMF influence. It has to make its decisions in accordance with the IMF dictation. There is no doubt that beggars can never be choosers.

American imperialism is on the decline in political terms. In economic terms, however, it is still going strong.

The writer is a PhD scholar