21st Century Business Herald reporter Shi Shi reported that on Greenwich Avenue in the lower Manhattan area of New York, there are two square sunken pools with a depth of 6 meters and an area of 4,000 square meters each, known as "reflection pools". The pool is home to two of the largest artificial waterfalls in the United States, where the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center, once a Landmark of Manhattan, stood and is now the "Ground Zero."
Twenty years ago, a terrorist attack left the Twin Towers in ruins; a decade ago, the "Zero Land" was officially opened to the public; and today (the morning of September 11, EST), US President Biden, former President Barack Obama and Clinton and their wives attended the 20th anniversary of 9/11. The three presidents have witnessed two decades of America's "path to counterterrorism." After the 9/11 terrorist attacks in 2001, Clinton's successor, George W. Bush, became "wartime president" and launched two wars on terror; on May 1, 2011, Obama witnessed the killing of al-Qaida bin Laden and ended the war in Iraq at the end of that year; and on August 30, 2021, Biden announced a complete withdrawal from Afghanistan, ending the two-decade-long "war on terror."
Looking back over the past two decades, the U.S. "counterterrorism" efforts may be difficult to say successful, because of the increasing number of terrorist attacks around the world, and the decline in the international credibility and economic influence of the United States. The experts interviewed believe that counter-terrorism is not the responsibility of one country, but the common responsibility of all countries around the world. Counter-terrorism should therefore be one of the "ballast stones" of multilateralism.
<h4>"Zero" is struggling to restart</h4>
On September 11, 2001, the United States suffered a terrorist attack. On the same day, terrorists hijacked two civil aviation airliners that took off from Boston Airport and Newark Airport, crashed into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center, and caused two skyscrapers about 415 meters high to collapse. This scene became one of the most memorable shots of the century.
"At the time, I was in a park in Jersey City with a direct view of Manhattan. I carried my three-year-old son with the others as the Twin Towers burned and collapsed, just like in the movie. Each of us was shocked, didn't have the heart to work all day, and many companies let employees leave work early. James Nolt, a professor of international relations at New York University, recalled to 21st Century Business Herald, "It was shocking because we never imagined such a thing becoming a reality." ”
In addition to New York, Washington was also targeted for terrorist attacks at the time. Two other civilian aircraft hijacked by the terrorists from Washington Dulles Airport targeted the political and military center of the United States, one crashed into a corner of the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, and the other aimed at the White House or the Capitol crashed into a field in Pennsylvania.
At the time of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, Zhou Shijian, a senior researcher at the Center for U.S.-China Relations at Tsinghua University, was negotiating with the U.S. side in Washington with the Chinese delegation. "We were in a law firm not far from the White House when we heard the sound of bombing," he recalled. At that time, I judged that the direction of the sound came from the Potomac River, where the Pentagon is located. ”
He then went on to recall, "We received notice to evacuate because a fourth hijacked plane could have hit the White House, but ended up crashing outside Pennsylvania under the interception of U.S. military fighter jets." If the White House had really been attacked at that time, the area around the White House could have been flattened. ”
Mark Weiss, former captain of American Airlines, recalled in an interview with the 21st Century Business Herald reporter that he was in Washington at the time of the incident and was preparing to fly to Boston, but at about 5:30 a.m. on the 11th, he was told that the flight was canceled, so he was on standby. Not long after, the 9/11 terrorist attacks occurred. Weiss said: "When the first plane hit the World Trade Center, I didn't think it was a terrorist attack. But after the second plane and the third plane collided, I realized that this was a terrorist attack. ”
He continued, "I knew the eight victims on American Airlines planes, and the captain of the plane that hit the Pentagon was a friend of mine, and the co-captain often flew with me to the Caribbean. ”
The dead are gone, and the living will continue. As a captain, Weiss continued to fly. "After it happened, I wasn't afraid to fly. To pay tribute to my colleagues, I deliberately strive to fly on September 11 every year. ”
In addition, Weiss volunteered to be a member of the Allied Pilots Association 's (APA) National Security Council. "This position gave me a very unique opportunity to work with 3 4 government agencies to help develop strategic protocols that we still follow when we travel today. After the 9/11 tragedy, through the efforts of many unknown people, planes, passengers and crew have become safer to fly today. ”
Zhou Shijian stressed to reporters that in 2001 the United States was in an absolute hegemonic position in the world. This flying disaster is a slap in the face for the United States and a turning point in the 21st century.
According to statistics, this shocking terrorist attack caused a total of 2977 people to die. Today, the names of the victims are inscribed on the walls around the pool.
After zeroing out, New York decided to restart. On the edge of the "zero land", the new World Trade Center rose from the ground. In November 2014, the One World Trade Center went into operation and is considered a sign of America's rebirth.
Although the new World Trade Center is still only two blocks from the New York Stock Exchange, the reopened World Trade Center is no longer the domain of financial institutions. Under the leadership of former New York Mayor Bloomberg, the new World Trade Center has become a new city of science and technology media. U.S. media giant Condé Nast moved into One World Trade Center in 2014, and Spotify, a streaming music service platform, signed a 15-year lease with World Trade Center Four in 2017.
According to statistics, today, the proportion of financial and insurance companies in lower Manhattan to all office tenants has dropped from 55% in 2001 to 30%.
<h4>"Drunkard's Intention" is not anti-terrorism? </h4>
As New York struggled to be reborn, the United States began its war on terror. Zhou Shijian pointed out to the 21st Century Business Herald reporter that since 9/11, the United States has been eager for revenge and has returned to the old road of military intervention in other countries.
"Our generation has experienced the horrors of the Vietnam War, so we don't think U.S. military intervention in other countries is necessary," Nolt said. We shouldn't do that. But 9/11 fundamentally changed the views of some. They see the need for vigilance and sustained intervention abroad, particularly in the Middle East. ”
Shortly after 9/11, former U.S. President George W. Bush W. Bush launched the war in Afghanistan in the name of fighting terrorism. Two years later, the United States launched the Iraq War on the grounds that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction and covertly supported terrorists. Both wars lasted for several years, with the war in Iraq ending on December 15, 2011, and the war in Afghanistan lasting 20 years until the complete withdrawal of U.S. troops on August 30 this year.
I remember Bush declaring war on Afghanistan, saying, "We don't want to start this war, but we will win." ”
But is the United States the victor? It may or may not be.
On the one hand, on May 1, 2011, al-Qaida leader bin Laden was killed, revenge was avenged by 9/11, and dozens of al-Qaida "training camps" in Afghanistan were eliminated. On the other hand, in the name of the war on terror, the United States has caused the death of a large number of innocent civilians, and has used this to arbitrarily interfere in the internal affairs of Iraq, Afghanistan and other countries, causing new political disasters.
Nolt pointed out to the 21st Century Business Herald reporter that the US war on terror has little to do with foreign policy, but is mixed with commercial interests. He noted that the United States has not achieved any of its goals in these wars, and the only beneficiaries are U.S. arms dealers.
He explained, "Since 1991, as a result of a series of wars and interventions, businessmen engaged in arms trading have made a lot of money. That's important because a lot of politicians get campaign money from these companies, so arms dealers really don't care about winning or losing. ”
According to statistics, military contractors in the US Department of Defense receive more revenue than many government agencies in one year. In fiscal 2020 alone, Lockheed Martin secured more than $75 billion in Defense Department contracts. In addition, military stocks rose sharply after 9/11, and the stocks of the top five defense companies with a market capitalization of about $1 trillion at the beginning of the war are now worth nearly $10 trillion.
"I think it's important to remember that because without commercial funding, many wars don't have the motivation to go on because they don't achieve any of their goals," Nolt said. ”
"Arms dealers only care about whether the war lasts, so they always sell more and more weapons," he stressed. They don't care (win or lose). It's all business. ”
Two decades of war on terror have not only displaced countless innocent civilians and destroyed their homes, but also gradually reduced the economic influence of the United States around the world. According to statistics, the ratio of China's GDP to the US GDP in 2001 was 12.8%, rising to 70.23% last year.
Zhou Shijian pointed out to reporters that before the "9/11" incident, the United States had already regarded China as an imaginary enemy. But because the sudden terrorist attack changed its diplomatic strategy, the strategy of returning to the Asia-Pacific region was forced to be shelved, which gave China the opportunity for economic development and increased China's influence in the international community.
As its economic influence declines, america's international credibility is being questioned by its allies. Former US President Trump pursues an "America First" policy and constantly withdraws from international organizations, triggering dissatisfaction among his allies. Despite Biden's efforts to repair relations with his allies after becoming president, the hasty withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan has once again disappointed the allies.
Tom Tugenhart, chairman of the Uk Parliament's Foreign Affairs Committee, said that "the sudden withdrawal of the Us military from Afghanistan led to the downfall of the democratically elected government, which caused serious doubts from US global allies about the credibility of the United States and its ability to deliver on its commitments, affecting the future policy choices of the above-mentioned countries".
Zhou Shijian also told reporters that the United States has chosen to go up the ladder in Afghanistan, which has caused US allies to have a sense of distrust of the United States. All of America's allies are likely to re-weigh the stakes.
<h4>Counter-terrorism requires multilateral cooperation</h4>
There is no doubt that for the United States, the two wars were time-consuming and labor-intensive. Despite the killing of bin Laden, terrorism has not been eradicated. Zhou Shijian pointed out to reporters that when launching the war in Afghanistan, George W. Bush said that he must win this war on terrorism. "Twenty years later, it turns out that the United States has not won the war, and the Islamic State is still operating inside Iraq."
Nolt told reporters, "The United States is not concerned with eliminating the root causes of terrorism, but blindly uses force to attack and use puppet regimes to rule conquered areas." However, encroachment is impossible, because the United States does not understand the cultures of other countries and cannot cooperate with progressive social forces, and therefore destroys the countries it occupies. Almost all U.S. military interventions have made the situation worse, not only hurting the local population, but also inflicting heavy losses on the United States. ”
Carl Rove, a former senior political adviser to President George W. Bush, noted that Biden's withdrawal plan for Afghanistan was an unnecessary surrender that had a devastating impact on the United States, allies and nearly 40 million Afghans. Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said it could only take 12 months for "terrorism to make a comeback."
In fact, the US approach has also led to the result of "the more anti-anti-terrorist". Since the "9.11" incident, there have been major terrorist attacks in many parts of the world, such as the 2002 Bali serial bombing, the 2003 Mumbai serial attack, the 2004 Madrid serial bombing, the 2005 London "7.7" bombing, the 2013 "4.15" Boston Marathon bombing, the 2015 Paris "11.13" Paris terrorist attack, the 2016 "6.12" Orlando shooting, etc.
Nolt believes that while the United States is fighting terrorism, it should also reflect on the lessons of 9/11. He believes that various departments in the United States should also cooperate with each other. Before 9/11, the FBI and the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) did not communicate with each other, so terrorists were able to exploit loopholes. "If the two sides had cooperated and communicated with each other, we could have arrested the terrorists before the attack and prevented the tragedy from happening."
On the eve of the twentieth anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, Biden said in a period of speeches: "The core lesson of 9/11 is that national unity is the most powerful force in the United States. In those two decades, "we've also seen something very rare: national unity in the true sense of the word." Unity and resilience are the ability to recover and repair in the face of trauma. ”
Nolt pointed out that terrorists are not only against the United States, but many countries face the challenge of terrorism. Therefore, countries around the globe should cooperate in the fight against terrorism.
Zhou Shijian told reporters, "I think China and the United States have both competition and cooperation, of which counter-terrorism is an important area of cooperation." ”
He added that climate change, curbing the proliferation of nuclear weapons, counter-terrorism, fighting the epidemic, and economic and trade cooperation are the five major aspects that China and the United States should cooperate in. "The new crown pneumonia epidemic is difficult to solve in the short term, china and the United States should also increase cooperation in fighting the epidemic, and the research and development of vaccines and special drugs requires Sino-US cooperation." The US side should not blame the virus on the issue of tracing the source of the virus. ”
On September 10, Eastern Time, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres issued a statement on the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 incident. In his statement, Guterres said he remembered the unity, unity and determination of nations 20 years ago to achieve a future free of terrorism. "Today, as we stand in solidarity with the people of New York City and the victims of terrorism around the globe, we will renew our commitment to working together to uphold their rights and needs."
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