Stop the War coalition Newsletter July 2022

Newsletter – 01/07/22

NATO: On the War Path

Russia’s deadly war in Ukraine continues with bombings of civilian targets in recent days and weeks. These attacks highlight the urgent need to bring this war to an end for the sake of the Ukrainian people and peace around the globe.

Unfortunately, this week’s NATO summit in Madrid made the prospect of peace a far more distant prospect. Rather than any talk of negotiations or diplomacy NATO set out plans for expansion and conflict. 

As Lindsey German wrote in her latest column:

“The war between Russia and Ukraine is a proxy war. The NATO powers still fear fighting it directly with Russia because the danger is this will drag them into a much larger war between nuclear powers. So their strategy is to engage in everything but direct military conflict with Russia. That means the militarisation of Europe which is going on at very high levels, especially in the largest power, Germany, which is doubling its military spending. It means a tearing up of NATO’s previous plans in relation to Russia. The new Strategic Concept will increase on a previously undreamt of scale the number of troops deployed in the Baltic states and elsewhere near Russia’s borders…

None of this will make Ukraine safer but it will increasingly strengthen the NATO camp against both Russia and China. It does not serve the interests of working people around the world, but increases the profits of the masters of war who provide the arms and the governments who facilitate them.”

The desperate plight of the Ukrainian people will not be helped by any of this. They deserve peace, and every government should be prioritising how to achieve this, not how to escalate war.

NATO: A War Alliance – Online Briefing Launch

The events of 2022 have put the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation and its policies under the spotlight more than at any time in the post-Cold War period, perhaps ever in its seventy-three years of existence. As the war in Ukraine develops into a proxy war between NATO and Russia, we must step up our campaigning against this aggressive war alliance.

As part of this campaign we’ve produced a new briefing analysing the past and future of NATO. We’ll be hosting an online launch of the pamphlet with two of its contributors, Stop the War Officers Andrew Murray and Jenny Clegg on Tuesday 12 July.

Join us on as we question whether NATO is fit for purpose and why, after multiple military failures from Afghanistan to Libya, it remains unchallenged in foreign policy circles.

Durham Miner’s Gala & Tolpuddle Martyrs Festival

The Durham Miners Gala and the Tolpuddle Martyrs Festival are both unique, solidarity building staples of the summer calendar. We’re looking forward to being a part of both over the couple of weekends and we need your help!

If you’re going to be at either and are willing to lend us a hand for a few hours we’d love to hear from you. Just click on the buttons below for either event and drop us a line with your availability.

This Week’s Anti-War Briefing