The claim that “colonialism was normal back then” distorts history, wounds the victims a second time, and obstructs global peace. By Dr. Halim Gençoğlu This article evaluates the claims allegedly expressed by some Western, particularly American, academics and commentators at the International Munich Peace Conference dated February 2026—such as “colonialism was normal back then, we are not ashamed of our ...
Targeting “godless communist revolutions and anti-colonial uprisings” as reason for “Western” decline. “The great Western empires had entered a terminal decline, accelerated by godless communist revolutions and anti-colonial uprisings that would transform the world.” With these words, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio sparked one of the biggest controversies at this year’s Munich Security Conference. Rubio’s reference to anti-colonial movements—historically ...