By Oseni MOMODU
Foreign policy and diplomacy around the globe is a serious business for ambitious nations who aspire for greatness. It is one that is intellectually engaging, backed with advanced military capabilities, economic strength, citizenship dipolmacy and political will power to sustain these long term projections.
With ongoing warfare between US-Isreali and Iranians on the one part and other anscillary target-neighbours in the gulf region, escation of hostilities would undoubtedly alter the balance of power in the Middle East.
Given the fierce missile attacks against Ayatolah Ali Khomeini’s residence in the early hours of Saturday February 28th by the joint US-Israeli air strikes killing the Supreme leader, his family and top military officials, this action threatens political and territorial sovereignty to third world countries who not only depend on foreign aids, but possessed no nuclear weapons for self defence. This ultimately exposes them to constant bullying in the hands of their oppressors- USA and the west.
On February 28th, the world was stunned by Washington and Tel Aviv’s aggression whilst diplomatic discussions were still actively ongoing. One is poised to query wether diplomacy as a tool of settling dispute still hold any significance in modern international relations or balistic missile capabilities which evade nations’ sovereign airspace across continental boundaries to harm adversary, is the new normal.
The IRGC has struck several countries within the gulf region in retaliatory move to the joint US-Isreali strikes on its soil. Major infrastructures including military, health, education, oil and gas, atomic energy, administrative and residential buildings, public social services have been destroyed. Young school pulpils, hospital patients have been bombed or annihilated from both sides, etc. It’s a devastating loss to the Iranians and Isrealis since the last 8 days when the war began. The US loss may even be more when compared with multi-billion dollars expended on military arsenals. But again, it’s only limited to monetary not loss of lives as much as recorded in Iran and Isreal. Official figures is not clear yet.
Aljazeera news reports that “at least, 1,332 people have been killed in the US-Isreali attack on IRAN. That’s a humongou figures and the war is continuing without end in sight following intense bombing mostly against Iranians early Saturday (today) morning.
The US central command say it has struck more than 3,000 targets in Iran and destroyed 43 Iranians warships since February 28, according to Aljazeera news report.
While each sides counts losses in billion dollolars as the war progresses, the US-Isreali nations may well locked themselves in a fundamental war of attrition with the Iranians, noted by US official.
Trump’s recent kidnap of Venezuela’s President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores on January 3rd, 2026 was an albatross and degradating to their personalities. It’s better to die as martyre than be cheaply captured that way. Yet another, was the unprovoked attack against Iran. This poses danger to international peace of sovereign nations, territorial integrity and security, and a clear violation of United Nations Charter of 1945.
The world should not forget that a devastating precedence is being allowed to stamp its root. One that would later be experimented in other nations, nay Africa years to come. Neither Trump at global stage nor Netayahu in Middel East is vested with the legal powers of policing other nations. The USA has often times violated and infringed on fundamental rights of other nations and no institution could call it to order. Not even the UN Security Council which no Africa nation is a member. That tells how international politics and diplomacy operates. You could sin and go away with it without consequences provided your economy and military might are gallant. A reason the US government will forever continue building military armaments for global dominance.
African has always been a bullying continent for the West. Prominent amongst the developing and depended nations is Nigeria. The joint strikes against Iran by US-ISRAELI states were tagged “preemptive attack”. Can you imagine! Should Nigeria surrender on survivalist model of governance by exporting oil abroad whilst relying on earning dollars alone?. Should the country, with its vast endowments of natural and human resources including Uranium, Crude Oil, Gold, etcetera except itself from ambitious foreign policies as done by US, Isreal, Iran, North Korea, Russia, China, Pakistan, and Turkey, at least, for deterrence? Can we say In similar situation of “preemptive strike” by external aggressor against Nigeria, does the country possesses defensive capability to repel and defend its sovereignty in an era of Ballistics Warfare?
I ask these salient but fundamental questions having regards to the 21st century warfare dynamics as it’s being demonstrated in the Middle East today where regimes not loyal to US’ interests are violently toppled using military and economic sanctions. The UN Charter contemplates that nation-states should be free to run governments model that befits them. Monarchy, democracy, oligarchy, theocracy, militocracy, plutocracy, etc. are a matter of choice not compulsion. Each nations defines their goals according to their historical evolutions. China, USA, France, Germany, Iran, have a reach historical antecedents and so are their peculiar styles of government they practice.
Prior to July 4, 1776 when the US got independence, America was not a democratic state. It only evolved gradually and adopted democracy in 1789 with ups and down. The US started promoting democracy as foreign policy objective in the 1970s anchored on its 3Ds- Defence, Democracy and Diplomacy.
As student of diplomacy in the department of History & International Studies and Political Science at Lagos State University (LASU) which pride itself of reputable scholars in diplomatic history, l was privileged to drink from the fountain of erudite scholars including Professors Abolaji Adeniji, Dapo Thomas, Habeeb Sani, Lawal, Abubakar Momoh, Tobi Oshodi, and several others who tutored me on the complexities of Middle Eastern crises, politics and diplomacy. I learnt the importance of sovereignty of nations without which only exist on paper. No nation is sovereign if it still depend substantially on key essentials and life enablers from foreign powers. I do not mean Nigeria can’t collaborate with other nations on peculiar needs. However, it must demonstrate strength in the real sense, only needing cooperation or mutual collaboration when necessary.
Nigeria as sovereign nation must vigorously pursue its foreign policies goals that significantly advances its short, medium and long term interests. Since independence, Nigeria’s foreign policy centers on “Africa as its center of foreign policy. It also maintains “non alignment” policy adopted since the 1960s post independence era. Since the demise of the founding fathers, the nation grapples with visionless and self serving leaders. The question now is: is Nigeria truly sovereign, given the prevailing context in international order as dictated by the Trump’s led USA.
With the US. assisting Isreal to bombard Iran in an historic warfare in the 21st century and the calculated efforts to dislodge the Iranian regime of Khamenei to protect Isreal in the region, I have become even more worried as citizen that the leaders are only concerned solely with economic survival and political -leadership succession every four years as against ambitious-domineering strategy within the sub region and African continent at large.
Assuming these horrific exchange of ballistic missiles were against Nigerian shores or regional boders, what technological capabilities do we possess to detect, intercept and defend our airspace? Tinubu’s government must begin to prioritize history as curriculum, space technologies, atomic nuclear engineering training of Nigerians and special government fundings with time frame implementation. Learning history will guide upcoming generations about our historical struggles and values.
The world once learned about the following empires namely: the Egyptian Empire (c.3100-30 BC); Roman Empire (27 BC-476 A.D); Ottoman Empire (c. 1300-1922); Spanish Empire (1492-1898); Russian Empire (1721-1917); and British Empire (17th-20th Century).
How long will the USA dominate current world order of modern day imperialism? Only time shall tell. And Nigeria must not allow itself to be conquered the second time after the 1861 conquest or annexation of of Lagos for a period of 99 years (1861-1960). The world must unite to purge the USA of its foreign policy of reinventing slavery and imperialist principles in this 21st-century.
~Oseni MOMODU, LFP, B.A, LL.B. writes from Abuja. He can be reached via: osenixyz@gmail.com or 08120567606. Columnist with embassy66 news.