Egyptian writer Azza Radwan Sedky receives an interview with Xinhua in Cairo, Egypt, Dec. 9, 2021. (Xinhua/Ahmed Gomaa)
"While the invasion of Iraq by the United States was considered a liberation, the operation taken by Russia is seen as a cut-throat invasion in the eyes of the Western media."
CAIRO, March 8 (Xinhua) -- Clear double standards have emerged in the Western media's reporting of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, Egyptian professor and writer Azza Radwan Sedky said recently.
"The United States got away with invading Iraq in 2003 under false pretenses, and Russia, having the reason of security concern to take actions, is now considered to be a pariah," Sedky told Xinhua and also wrote in her article titled "Double standards on Ukraine," published by Ahram Online, the English news website of Egypt's state-run Al-Ahram newspaper.
"The Western media misled the world into accepting the invasion(of Iraq), siding with the U.S. administration," Sedky lamented, emphasizing that "the Western media chooses its battles and sides with whomever it pleases."
Photo taken on March 5, 2022 shows armed personnel in Donetsk. (Photo by Victor/Xinhua)
Sedky pointed out the apparent double standards in the U.S. invasion of Iraq and the current conflict in Ukraine.
"While the invasion of Iraq by the United States was considered a liberation, the operation taken by Russia is seen as a cut-throat invasion in the eyes of the Western media."
She also cited American political writers and scientists, such as John J. Mearsheimer and Diana Johnstone. Both blame the West for the current outcome and their use of sanctions, propaganda and other measures to Russia's detriment.
The Egyptian writer pointed out that the issue began in the 1990s when the United States began moving NATO eastwards towards the Russian border and integrating Ukraine economically into the West.
Iraqi protesters take part in a demonstration against the presence of U.S. troops in the country in Baghdad, Iraq, Jan. 24, 2020. (Xinhua/Khalil Dawood)
"Due to Ukraine's proximity to Russia, Russian President Vladimir Putin sees such moves as an existential threat," Sedky said, quoting the Russian president as saying that Georgia and Ukraine becoming part of NATO is a direct threat to Russia.
Sedky said Western media follow Washington's lead, with a narrative focused on an oppressive Russia.
She considered the Western media's focus on the notion that the operation opens the way for further expansion by Russian military forces into Europe as "a far-fetched assumption."
Sedky hoped that diplomatic dialogue would begin immediately and that Russia, Ukraine, and the Western allies would sit together and negotiate a deal satisfying to all concerned parties. ■