In 1916, during World War 1, the British and French imperialists secretly drew the borders of Syria, Iraq, Lebanon and Palestine. They vanquished the Ottoman Empire to become the rulers of the Middle East.

After World War II, the US displaced them as rulers of the region, but the borders remained the same. Today, as US hegemony crumbles - challenged by imperial China and Russia, plus regional power Iran – so do the borders.

The jihadist ISIS smashed the Syria-Iraq border and rolled their Humvees through to capture Iraq's second largest city, Mosul, its main refinery and a swath of its territory the size of Jordan.

These dramatic developments do not bode well for world peace. These hundred-year-old borders no longer reflect the balance of forces in the world. A re-division of the world is in order. This will take wider wars and World War III.

US Imperialism's Greater Middle East Dreams

Hoping to reassert its grip on the Greater Middle East, US imperialists invaded Afghanistan and Iraq. They planned to secure the long-term geopolitical interests of US imperialism by controlling this oil-rich region.

They lost both wars. Now, after spending trillions and slaughtering millions, their blood- soaked grip on this oil is weaker than ever.

China, Russia and Iran were the winners, gaining concessions to huge oil deposits, while expanding their influence in the region.

Middle East oil is still crucial for world domination. The region's turmoil reflects mainly the US-China-Russia fight over who will control it. Iran and Saudi Arabia and their proxies, like ISIS, create added chaos fighting for regional hegemony. The US-China-Russia struggle will be decided on the battle fields of WWIII.

US Rulers Divided over their War Strategy: Middle East Now or Asia Pacific Later?

One sector thinks the US should make its stand in the Middle East. It is using the terrorist ISIS "threat" to pressure Obama into a military response.

The "pivot to Asia Pacific" clan, including Obama, will send money, arms and advisors to Syria and Iraq but will not commit ground troops. These imperialists know that they have bigger fish to fry: China and Russia.

Middle East Chaos Detrimental to US Rivals' Present-Day Interests

Although the US press is wringing its hands over ISIS, the current chaos serves US imperialists' needs. It undermines the geopolitical interests of China-Russia-Iran.

Thousands of Shiite militias fighting for Syria's Assad have left to defend their sacred shrines in Iraq threatened by ISIS. Seizing this as an opportunity to topple Assad, Obama and his masters are aiding anti-Assad rebels.

Regime change in Syria would diminish Iran's regional military and political influence. It would isolate and weaken Iran's proxies: Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in Palestine.

Russia would lose its most important Arab ally and its access to Syria's Mediterranean naval base. The on-going chaos impedes Russia and China from exploiting Iraq's and Iran's oil.

Dismantling of Borders Points to Bigger Regional wars

Iraq's bitter civil war is de facto splitting it into three countries: Kurdistan to the north, the center dominated by the Sunnis and the south dominated by the Shiites.

This is a prescription for permanent war. The Sunnis will inherit little or no oil, and will fight for it. Iraq's main oil fields are in the Shiite region, which could become an Iranian protectorate.

Furthermore, this arrangement can explode into a war engulfing Kurdistan, Syria, Iraq, Iran and Turkey. These last four have sizeable restive Kurdish populations (Turkey alone has 20 million) that could be mobilized to fight for a Greater Kurdistan.

This Kurdish bosses' dream seems closer to reality than ever. With the capture of Kirkuk, they increased their territory by one third, acquired major oil fields, and will be exporting a million barrels a day by 2016. With an army of over 400,000 patriotic soldiers, they plan an independence referendum for next month.

Russia and Iran Won't Roll Over in Iraq

Understanding the US plans for regime change in Syria and Iraq, Iran has sent military advisors, fighter jets, drones and other military equipment to fight ISIS. Muqtda al-Sadr, an anti-US cleric, mobilized his massive Mahdi army, pledging to support the pro-Iranian al-Maliki he was key in installing.

Putin has offered Maliki "complete support" to fight ISIS. He has sent 5 of the 12 fighter jets and trainers promised. Long term, by 2020, Russia is adding 30 new war ships to its Black Sea fleet, to bolster what is already the world's biggest navy.

The Nature of Capitalism-Imperialism: Ever-Increasing Chaos and War

Capitalism's needs for maximum profits drives it inexorably toward chaos and wars. As a revolutionary once said, the capitalists will "Make trouble, fail, make trouble again, fail again . . . until their doom." That is capitalism-imperialism's logic.

Our logic, he said, is "Fight, fail, fight again, fail again, fight again . . . until our victory." With Mobilizing the Masses for Communism as our guiding principle, and with workers from El Salvador to Spain to South Africa distributing Red Flag and joining and building ICWP, our logic will prevail.

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