Retired Brig. Gen. Gyasuddin Chowdhury said in a commentary published on Saturday that the US policy makers will have to know and understand well the people of divergent culture, religion and the deep-rooted nationalism embedded in their heart. If the United States being the sole supper power fails to understand their own follies, it not only will harm itself but also many innocent nations will become its victims, he added.

Chowdhury, former ambassador in Asia, Europe and Middle Eastern countries, said that today the world opinion is divided, and that even some Americans, powerful nations, and Security Council members vehemently opposed the war on Iraq. However, he said, one must agree that the Middle East will remain an exploiting ground for all the military and economically powerful nations as long as oil and money is there.

A phobia about insecurity will be kept alive and embedded in the hearts of the Arab rulers, he said, adding they will continue to buy the most expensive and sophisticated weapons from producers, particularly in the United States.

"The custodian of the peace of the world will keep the arms market alive," Chowdhury said.

(Xinhua News Agency April 5, 2003)