A tradição é algo que o tempo tende a esbater. Os Estados, tal como as pessoas, vão-se desligando dos hábitos e dos costumes que, em muitos casos, remontam a séculos. Neste sentido, Portugal é um bom exemplo de um país que quebrou uma das suas maiores tradições históricas: a sua ligação ao mar enquanto factor estratégico e de identidade.
De potência marítima, Portugal passou a ser simplesmente um país com uma extensa costa, com algumas fragatas e pouco mais. Há anos, por exemplo, que se discute a aquisição de um navio polivalente logístico (a Espanha tem dois), que seria um eficaz e proveitoso instrumento de política externa em várias vertentes.
Por outro lado, a Inglaterra assumiu-se sempre como uma potência marítima e, apesar de longínquos os tempos gloriosos do Império, o Reino Unido continuou ao longo de todo o século XX a ser uma das maiores potências navais do mundo.
Agora, em pleno século XXI e num mundo de ameaças difusas, o Governo britânico pretende manter e reforçar essa tradição de hegemonia dos mares e, por isso, disponibilizou 3,2 mil milhões de libras para a construção de novos porta-aviões, os maiores de sempre da Royal Navy.
Ontem, o Ministério da Defesa britânico disponibilizou uma excelente e elucidativa animação digital sobre o aspecto das futuras embarcações de guerra. AG
O Diplomata reproduz aqui os quatro pontos definidos pelo Ministério dos Negócios Estrangeiros israelita após um ataque terrorista perpetrado hoje com um bulldozer em Jerusalém, que fez quatro mortos e pelo menos 45 feridos. Mais uma vez se constata que as tréguas assinadas há uns dias entre o Governo hebraico e o Hamas pouco ou nada alteraram na conjuntura da Cisjordânia e da Faixa de Gaza:
At least four people were killed and over 45 wounded in a terror attack in Jerusalem shortly before noon. Driving a bulldozer against the traffic on Jerusalem's main artery (Jaffa Road, between the Central Bus Station and the Mahane Yehuda market), a terrorist plowed into two public buses carrying passengers, overturning one of them, as well as crushing a number of cars and pedestrians. Police shot and killed the terrorist. The following points should be stressed in the wake of this attack:
1. Terror Purposely Targets Civilians – The terrorist operating the bulldozer chose his victims deliberately - even starting his attack by motioning for a woman driver to precede him, before crushing her vehicle with his shovel. He went on to run-down pedestrians, ram two buses, and crush a number of civilian cars.Among his innocent victims is an infant, who was injured in the attack and taken to hospital. Eyewitnesses told police that the murdered mother saved her baby, by throwing the child out the car window, just before the bulldozer crushed her to death.
2.Hateful Extremism vs. Cooperative Pragmatism – The terrorists of the region are indoctrinated and driven by a blind hate for Israelis, Jews and all non-Moslems, denying them their most basic rights, even their right to life. The attack took place in Jerusalem, a city which serves as Israel ’s capital, yet is shared by Jews and Arabs, with freedom of movement for all its residents. While the terrorist was an Arab resident of Jerusalem , so too was the driver of the first bus he attacked. This bus driver, who serves as an example of cooperation that can be achieved between Jews and Arabs, was able to swerve his bus and minimize the damage of the bulldozer’s blade.
3.Terrorism despite Peace Efforts– The attack today comes as Israel is actively pursuing peace negotiations with the Palestinian Authority led by Mahmoud Abbas. It also comes as an Egyptian-brokered state of calm was just achieved regarding Gaza, in which Israel demonstrated its desire to exhaust all efforts to achieve a halt to terrorist rocket attacks against its citizens, without having to resort to the use of force. Israel will continue its efforts to achieve peace with its pragmatic Palestinian neighbors, despite the efforts of the extremists to torpedo the process.
4.International Action is Essential– The international community must weigh in on the side of pragmatism and peace. A clear and unequivocal condemnation of terrorism must be heard, and concrete actions against terror organizations and their supporters must be taken, so that the extremists know that there will be no tolerance for their barbaric acts."