This message is in MIME format. The first part should be readable text, while the remaining parts are likely unreadable without MIME-aware tools. Send mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] for more info. --------------51FDF8552F5 The U.S. has a long history of declaring any nation which opposes the U.S. imperialist dictate as a "rogue state." It accuses these nations of "state-terrorism," and declares they constitute a threat to peace so as to cover-up the fact that it is U.S. imperialism which is the biggest aggressor against the peoples of the world and the biggest threat to peace. This was underscored during the visit of U.S. Defence Secretary William Cohen to Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Oman from June 13 to June 18. He made a number of threats against both Iran and Iraq. Speaking to a news conference in Bahrain on June 16, Cohen said Iran "continues to support terrorism in addition to developing weapons of mass destruction, improving missiles that can strike neighbouring nations and boosting the facility to close the Strait of Hormuz." He then went on to boast of the U.S. military might in the region. Bahrain is the headquarters of the U.S. Fifth Fleet, which keeps more than two dozen warships in the Gulf. "The United States retains overwhelming naval strength in the Gulf and we are fully capable of protecting our ships, our interests and our allies," Cohen said, adding " ... I am satisfied that the United States has the full capability to stop any operations that Iranians might seek to launch against us or our allies." Cohen also accused Iran of attempting to "intimidate its neighbours and to interrupt commerce in the Gulf." Iran has repeatedly opposed the presence of U.S. imperialism in the Gulf and along with other nations in the region, including Iraq, has called for the immediate withdrawal of all U.S. troops so that the people of the region can themselves sort out their problems. A commentary carried in Iran News on June 17 points out that Cohen was trying to "sow again the seeds of discord between Iran and its neighbours on the southern shores of the Persian Gulf." "The Isamic republic has existed alongside the Arab countries for the last 18 years and not a single shot has been fired at its neighbours from these borders ... ," the article states. Given that during his entire visit Cohen stressed the "superiority" of U.S. imperialism's air, naval and fire-power in the region, given the millions it also spends on intelligence and espionage in the region, the brutal war of aggression it waged against the Iraqis, its continued violations of the partial lifting of the UN-imposed embargo against the people of Iraq and its opposition to its complete lifting, all that Cohen seemed to prove during his visit is that it is the U.S. which is guilty of all the crimes of which it accuses others. CPC(M-L) Shawgi Tell Graduate School of Education University at Buffalo [EMAIL PROTECTED] --------------51FDF8552F5--