Liz Truss Is Not A "Freedom Fighter"

The war in Ukraine grinds on. Russia continues its offensive and Ukraine and the West vows revenge. The Foreign Secretary and possible future Prime Minister follows in Boris Johnson’s footsteps by promising to be Kyiv’s “greatest friend”. Liz Truss says she is a “freedom fighter” and that she will “do what is right and necessary in Ukraine.” In her eyes, the right thing is providing ever more lethal aid, and she swears she won’t stop until Putin is defeated.

Meanwhile the UK fails to push for a ceasefire, making no attempts to negotiate a peace proposal although we know negotiation is the only way to end this war.

Instead, day in day out there is more shelling and bombing, with huge numbers of injuries, and many thousands continue to be killed.

All the while the war on the poor at home wages on. The cost of living crisis is the worst it’s ever been. Rail workers, nurses and teachers are all expected to take pay cuts while bills soar across the board. But there is always more money to pump into the military for the war in Ukraine.

The leadership race is doused with hyperbole and scaremongering rhetoric, framing China as a mortal threat to our values.

Sunak claimed that China and its ruling Communist Party represented the “largest threat to Britain and the world’s security and prosperity this century.” Truss has vowed to clamp down on Chinese media companies, with promises to face down China and tackle Chinese cyber threats if elected.

Defence Secretary Ben Wallace and both leadership contenders want to up defence spending to 3% of GDP – the equivalent of £20-£25 billion. This is in the name of keeping Britain and its allies safe – apparently.

It’s our job as anti-war activists to challenge these ideas and campaign against these dangerous policies.

This summer break is a great time to build or join your local Stop the War group. We have nearly 50 active groups up and down the country so your closest one is probably just around the corner!

Local groups’ coordinators are in the process of pinning down dates and speakers so get involved now!

 

Click below for details of your local group.