“The strong do what they can and the weak suffer what they must.” This formula is the foundation of realism in international relations. It is not new. This formula has been the reality that decides especially geo-political power balance since time immemorial.

Life should not — and ought not — to be like that.

If that is your view, you are not alone.

For thousands of years, millions of people who fall in the category of the weak (easy peeps) have argued and begged for power and its application to be grounded in morality. Thousands of years later, the balance of power in the world is still determined and governed by what is, not by what should and/or ought.

I am not a betting man, but if I were, I would wager that for thousands of years to come, assuming mortals still exist, the geopolitical dynamics will stay pretty much the same. The geopolitical actors will change. That is the nature of empires — they rise and fall, but the inherent actions which govern how man treats man will not.

Realpolitik, which describes a system of politics or principles and is based on practical rather than moral or ideological considerations, will fundamentally stay unchanged. It is human nature.

THE MELIAN DIALOGUE

The cruel reality of geopolitical power is unvarying. Here is an illustration from centuries ago which is as relevant today as it was when the incident took place: Athens was the Aegean power in 416 BC. Athens possessed tremendous wealth, and its armed forces were numerous, well-equipped, and highly trained. The Athenians used their power to demand that the small island of Melos submit and pay them tribute. The Melians rejected Athens’ demands. They argued that it was immoral to demand tribute from them simply because they were small and lacked the economic or military power to defend themselves against mighty Athens. The Melians also foolishly believed that, in the absence of power and influence, the gods would protect them — since they operated from a position of neutrality and their cause was just and righteous.

The Athenians did not see morality and neutrality as important factors in the determination of the balance of power and international relationships. They maintained, “The strong do what they can and the weak suffer what they must.” Sounds familiar?

This strategy of the Athenians is a primary pillar of what is commonly termed realism in international relations. It is a reality, like it or not. That’s a fact!

Anyway, the Athenian subjugators sent emissaries to the Melians to inform them that if they did not submit immediately to all demands, they would suffer terrible consequences. The Athenians told the Melians that any sense of justice is a conversation between equals. The Melians refused to submit. The Athenians invaded and killed all the men, and enslaved the women and children.

Some will, doubtless, scream: “These Athenians were brutal and heartless.”

The Melians thought so too. But that did not stop the Athenians from slaughtering them.

“Might is never right,” some will bellow.

In a just world that adage has real currency. But the reality is we do not exist in a just world. Pretend if you want, I will not.

The reality is we do not live in a world of ‘shoulds’ and ‘oughts’. We live in a world of what is.

“What of international law?” some will shout.

Listen, the cold reality of especially economic power decides how international law is applied — when, where, and how. It’s a fact of life.

SOBRIETY IS KEY

How is the Melian Dialogue applicable to Jamaica?

Recently, some among us called on the Dr Andrew Holness-led Administration to condemn the capture of Nicolás Maduro, the former leader of Venezuela, and to lead a broader condemnation. I made my position on the tyrant Maduro very clear in this space long before — and also after — he was captured by the United States of America.

Anyway, some from near and far, some well-credentialled and some not, some well-heeled and some not, some in bright shiny robes and some in crimson-red secular outfits, rained criticisms on the Holness Administration for not bolting out of the gates with fire-and-brimstone condemnations of America for its capture of Maduro. Many of those who pilloried Prime Minister Holness glowingly reminisced about what they called the ‘glory days’ of the 1970s, when Prime Minister Michael Manley occupied a front-row seat in what was called the Non-Aligned Movement.

Some who berated Dr. Holness’s approach called him a sell-out. One minister was branded as a hireling.

The Holness Administration was also labelled sell-outs’ and cowards for not shooting criticisms at Jerusalem and Washington, DC, during the so-called 12-day war.

Recall that, “Israel attacked nuclear and military sites in Iran on Friday, June 13, claiming Iran was close to building a nuclear weapon. Israel said it had no choice but to bomb Iran after diplomatic talks aimed at curbing the country’s nuclear programme stalled.

“The Israeli offensive took place amid growing international concern that Iran has increased its production of enriched uranium — a key component in the making of nuclear weapons. However, there is no international consensus on how close Iran has come to building its own nuclear weapons.

“In the following days, Israel targeted Iranian infrastructure it said could be used for ‘nuclear weapons development’. The US later joined the strikes, dropping its so-called bunker buster bombs on the Fordo site, a nuclear enrichment facility buried deep below a mountain outside Tehran.” (British Broadcasting Corporation, June 24, 2025)

Twenty-three days ago, the US and Israel struck Iran. According to Jerusalem and Washington, DC, the attacks were launched to target Iran’s missile infrastructure, military sites, and leadership in the capital, Tehran, and across the country. Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei — who had occupied the highest seat of power in Iran since 1989 — was killed during the first wave of strikes. Israel’s military said dozens more senior figures in the powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the regime’s Praetorian Guard, were also killed.

Like clockwork, some emerged from various dark and dingy hiding places, while others came from palatial spaces, to inflict blows to the solar plexus of the Holness Administration.

“How can Prime Minister Holness remain quiet and watch this kind of injustice being inflicted on the Iranian people?” some howled. Others growled that the US was a brutal global bully and Israel its closest accomplice. They proclaimed that the rule of injustice and global bully-ism would soon end, and that they were counting down to the great day when the trumpet of fair play would sound. Penurious political/diplomatic swagger is costly.

The great irony is that some of these very people who now wax eloquent about global injustice and fair play have aided and abetted some of the worst atrocities in our land. I have presented the verified receipts here in previous columns. Human memory right here at home is sterner than many who now sell themselves as paragons of virtue and exemplars of rectitude. We see you! And Google never sleeps.

Doubtless, some in the Administration are still collecting the political shrapnel from the verbal bombs dropped in recent days and weeks over the developments regarding Jamaica’s hosting of Cuban health workers who have faithfully served in this country for almost 50 years.

“Holness has destroyed Michael Manley’s legacy,” some cry.

“The Jamaica Labour Party has kowtowed to Donald Trump and the US,” others bawl.

Understand this: “The mother of ignorance is always pregnant.” This proverb is Italian in origin. It means that foolishness is perpetually reproducing. Self-styled radicals have not bothered to inform themselves of the facts set out by Senator Kamina Johnson Smith, our minister of foreign affairs and foreign trade.

CLANDESTINE MOTIVATIONS

Ignorance is not the only limitation of those who advocate that Jamaica must cut her own throat by unilaterally inserting herself into geopolitical issues which are at present well above Jamaica’s pay grade.

Interestingly, some radicals are well-schooled. In fact, some have benefited from huge public investment in their schooling. The poor people of this country, especially through blood, sweat, and tears, have enabled them to grace the halls of some of the finest institutions of learning in the world.

Mark Twain famously stated, “I have never let my schooling interfere with my education.” Twain was absolutely spot on. Some among us feign ignorance because of rank political expediency. These are dangerous. They know that Jamaica has to walk an uncertain geopolitical tightrope especially at this time. They know that one missed step and the consequences would be exceedingly deleterious for the majority of the people in this country who, unlike some, do not have the wherewithal to jump on an aeroplane and escape the “autoclaps” of diplomatic, political, economic, and social suicide.

The advocates of diplomatic self-immolation are fully aware of the Melian Dialogue, but they are prepared to see Jamaica reduced to rubble, provided that destruction would enable them to become kings of the ashes. These are brutes!

These brutes also fully understand that the primary function of an Administration in a Western liberal-type democracy is the social and material advancement of especially ordinary people in a sustained manner. Here at home, this primary function is essentially embodied in the duties of Prime Minister Dr Andrew Holness.

His assignment is two-fold. First and foremost, our prime minister has a non-negotiable duty to defend Jamaica’s interests at home and abroad. Second, he has a sacrosanct duty to do all that is humanly possible to improve the condition of Jamaicans.

The brutes know that if our prime minister were to step out of the realm of his assigned duties and insert Jamaica in acts of political/diplomatic self-immolation, sanctions would come fast and furious, as happened in the 1970s. When sanctions are imposed on Jamaica in various forms, tourists would abandon Jamaica in their thousands, as happened in the 70s. It is ordinary Jamaicans who would suffer the most. The brutes know that when the shelves in supermarkets go empty and the pumps at gas stations go dry it is ordinary Jamaicans who get the hardest pinch. When medical supplies run dry and remittances come to a drip, it is the poor who have to “suck salt through wooden spoons”. Yet the brutes call for Jamaica to hug diplomatic suicide.

“So, Higgins, Jamaica must just keep quiet like a mouse when it comes to international relations matters?” some will inquire.

There is a regional body called Caricom (Caribbean Community). I believe it is best that responses to certain matters of international relations be channelled through that important conduit. Jamaica is not Superman.

I have said here several times that there are no strong countries with weak economies, and there are no weak countries with strong economies. This must be Jamaica’s highest priority at this time. We need to focus like a laser beam on the task which National Hero Norman Manley assigned to this generation — that of economic independence.

COMMON SENSE

“We paid dearly for it.” Those are the words of Beverley Anderson-Manley, the fourth wife of the late Prime Minister Michael Manley, offered in a recent documentary. She was referring to her husband’s decision to walk to the mountaintop with Fidel Castro, the former communist leader of Cuba. It is common sense not to go back that horrid way.

It is best to tailor — not ape — the pathways of countries like Singapore to our needs and focus. I have said it here before. Singapore lacks the natural resources that Jamaica possesses. In the early 1960s Singapore was derided as a malaria-infested island plagued by disease. Racial tensions led to major riots, especially in 1964 and 1969. In 2025 Singapore’s nominal gross domestic product (GDP) per capita was estimated to be around US$94,000. The GDP per capita, adjusted for purchasing power parity (PPP), was estimated to be US$132,500 according to Trading Economics. This can be us.

Prime Minister Dr Andrew Holness during his contribution to the 2026/27 Budget Debate in Parliament on Thursday. (Photo: Garfield Robinson)

Former Prime Minister Michael Manley

ANDERSON-MANLEY…we paid dearly for it.

Jamaicans express their appreciation to the Cuban doctors and nurses by engaging in a gratitude walk on Tuesday from downtown Kingston to Heroes’ Circle. (Photo: Llewellyn Wynter)

This photo taken on April 13, 2002 shows Cuban President Fidel Castro participating in the celebration in the town of Guira de Melena, Havana, Cuba. (Photo: AFP)

Former Venezuela President Nicolas Maduro (Photo: AFP)