Ukraine War – Page 4 – IPB – International Peace Bureau

Peace Agenda for Ukraine and the World

– Statement of the Ukrainian Pacifist Movement, adopted at the meeting of Ukrainian Pacifists on the 21st September 2022, International Day of Peace (video).

“We the Ukrainian pacifists demand and will strive to end the war by peaceful means and to protect human right to conscientious objection to military service.

Peace, not war, is the norm of human life. War is an organized mass murder. Our sacred duty is that we shall not kill. Today, when the moral compass is being lost everywhere and self-destructive support for war and the military is on the rise, it is especially important for us to maintain common sense, stay true to our non-violent way of life, build peace and support peace-loving people.

Condemning Russian aggression against Ukraine, the UN General Assembly called for an immediate peaceful resolution of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine and emphasized that parties to the conflict must respect human rights and international humanitarian law. We share this position.

Current policies of war until absolute victory and contempt for criticism of human rights defenders is unacceptable and must be changed. What is needed is a ceasefire, peace talks and serious work to correct the tragic mistakes made on both sides of the conflict. Prolongation of the war has catastrophic, deadly consequences, and continues to destroy the welfare of society and environment not only in Ukraine, but throughout the world. Sooner or later, parties will sit at the negotiating table, if not after their reasonable decision, then under the pressure of unbearable suffering and weakening, the last better to be avoided by choosing the diplomatic path.

It is wrong to take the side of any of the warring armies, it is necessary to stand on the side of peace and justice. Self-defense can and should be carried out by non-violent and unarmed methods. Any brutal government is illegitimate, and nothing justifies the oppression of people and bloodshed for the illusory goals of total control or conquest of territories. No one can evade responsibility for his own misdoings by claiming to be a victim of misdoings of others. Wrong and even criminal behavior of any party cannot justify creation of a myth about an enemy with whom it is allegedly impossible to negotiate and who must be destroyed at any cost, including self-destruction. A desire for peace is a natural need of every person, and its expression cannot justify a false association with a mythical enemy.

Human right to conscientious objection to military service in Ukraine was not guaranteed according to international standards even in peacetime, not to mention the current conditions of martial law. The state shamefully avoided for decades and now continues to avoid any serious response to the relevant suggestions of the UN Human Rights Committee and public protests. Although the state cannot derogate this right even in time of war or other public emergency, as says the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the army in Ukraine refuses to respect the universally recognized right to conscientious objection to military service, denying even to replace coercive military service by mobilization with an alternative non-military service according to the direct prescription of the Constitution of Ukraine. Such scandalous disrespect to human rights should have no place under the rule of law.

The state and society must put an end to the despotism and legal nihilism of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, manifested in policies of harassment and criminal punishment for refusal to be engaged in war effort and the forced turn of civilians into soldiers, due to which civilians cannot move freely within the country nor go abroad, even if they have vital needs to rescue from danger, to obtain an education, to find means for living, professional and creative self-realization, etc.

Governments and civil societies of the world appeared to be helpless before the scourge of war, drawn into the funnel of conflict between Ukraine and Russia and wider enmity between NATO countries, Russia and China. Even the threat of destruction of all life on the planet by nuclear weapons had not put an end to the mad arms race, and the budget of the UN, the main institution of peace on Earth, is only 3 billion dollars, while global military expenditures are hundreds of times larger and have exceeded a wild amount of 2 trillion dollars. Due to their inclination to organize mass bloodshed and coerce people to kill, nation states have proven to be incapable of non-violent democratic governance and the performance of their basic functions of protecting life and freedom of people.

In our view, the escalation of armed conflicts in Ukraine and the world are caused by the fact that the existing economic, political and legal systems, education, culture, civil society, mass media, public figures, leaders, scientists, experts, professionals, parents, teachers, medics, thinkers, creative and religious actors are not fully perform their duties of strengthening the norms and values of a non-violent way of life, as envisages the Declaration and Programme of Action on a Culture of Peace, adopted by the UN General Assembly. Evidences of the neglected peace-building duties are the archaic and dangerous practices which must be ended: military patriotic upbringing, compulsory military service, lack of systematic public peace education, propaganda of war in the mass media, support of war by NGOs, reluctance of some human rights defenders to advocate consistently for the full realization of human rights to peace and to conscientious objection to military service. We remind stakeholders of their peace-building duties and will steadfastly insist on compliance with these duties.

We see as goals of our peace movement and all peace movements of the world to uphold human right to refuse to kill, to stop the war in Ukraine and all wars in the world, and to ensure sustainable peace and development for all the people of the planet. To achieve these goals, we will tell the truth about the evil and deception of war, learn and teach practical knowledge about peaceful life without violence or with its minimization, and we will help to the needy, especially those affected by wars and unjust coercion to support army or participation in war.

War is a crime against humanity, therefore, we are determined not to support any kind of war and to strive for the removal of all causes of war.”

The Failure of the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty Review Conference Leaves Humanity Increasingly Vulnerable

Written by Joseph Gerson, IPB Vice-President

The failure of the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty Review Conference to adopt a final conference statement adopting specific goals and deadlines for further disarmament weakens humanity’s ability to defend itself against the existential and increased danger of nuclear war. (The conference was held at the United Nations in New York, August 2-26)

Report “NATO, Building Global Insecurity” – English Version

(UPDATE): This report, which has been published last month, now has a official english version:

Nato, Building Global Insecurity (english version)Download

On the 25^th of June, at the occasion for the Peace Summit Madrid 2022, the Centre Delàs d’Estudis per la Pau, in collaboration with the International Peace Bureau (IPB) and the Global Campaign on Military Spending (GCOMS), issued its 53^th report under the name “NATO, Building Global Insecurity” (La OTAN, Construyendo Inseguridad Global” in the original) with the coordination of Gabriela Serra and contribution of many authors.

This report on the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) presents an updated and detailed reading of military alliances, taking into account the global context of simultaneous crises and the increase of the tensions caused by the invasion of Ukraine at the beginning of 2022.

“NATO’s modus operandi is reflected in its Strategic Concepts, and from the last two approved we can draw some conclusions that help us understand the Alliance’s objectives: on the one hand, it attempts to promote a broad conception of defense, which it makes it possible to greatly expand its scope of action to deal with “new threats”, many of them non-military; There is also an attempt to make submission to the Charter of the United Nations more flexible, situating itself in what has been described as “legal deregulation of war”; Similarly, NATO expands its geographical scope of action beyond what is established by the North Atlantic Treaty, as happened in the case of Afghanistan; Lastly, the democratic deficit with which this strategy is decided, which breaks the most basic rules of parliamentarism, is notable. In June 2021, a new Strategic Concept will be approved in Madrid which, predictably, will focus on reinforcing deterrence and defense, which is equivalent to increasing all military capabilities, whether nuclear, conventional or cyber. It will also include an express reference to the relationship with China, which it considers a “systemic challenge.” In addition, it will state that it will not only respond to armed attacks, but that NATO could intervene militarily against any threat to its security (…)

Therefore, this publication defends the “No to war, no to NATO”, as an amendment to the whole, to a predatory militarism of lives and human resources, of habitats, of economies. peace is not only a hackneyed slogan, but a relationship policy that must be deployed at all levels, from the interpersonal to the interstate, now more than ever”

At the adjunct (annex), from pages 47 to 49, you can find the contribution of Reiner Braun – Executive Director of the International Peace Bureau (IPB) – addressing the Olof Palme Report “Common Security 2022: For our Shared Future”, focusing on how Common Security serves to avoid disasters regarding nuclear armament and militarization. The Common Security report aims to encourage that “in times of acute crisis, there must be those who look forward and give a vision of a better future”, complementing in many ways the words of Centre Delàs’ report.

Click in this link to have access to the full report in Spanish as well, or visit Centre Delàs’ website.

24 Hour Peace Wave – Summary Report

In times of increasing armament and ever-growing insecurities, with current discussions that retrieve fears and traumas from the past century – mistakes that the global community should have overcome – we can still find hope in the actions of those committed to a world without war, with less militarization and more cooperation. For a deeply and widely spread message, only a movement of global reach could connect different voices of the world around the common and ubiquitous demand for peace.

To achieve that, The International Peace Bureau and World BEYOND War organized the very first 24 Hour Peace Wave in protest of excessive military spending and the expansion of NATO, which took place from the 25^th to the 26^th of June, as a counter-action to the NATO Summit in Madrid and the 48^th G7 Summit in Munich, with both also taking place at the end of June. The event served to speak up for peace and cooperation, the scaling back and dismantling of military alliances, the disarmament of governments, and the democratization and strengthening of international institutions of nonviolent cooperation and the rule of law.

This was a one-of-a-kind global rally for Peace and cooperation around the clock, with twenty-four non-stop hours of protests, demonstrations, vigils, teach-ins, speakers, discussion rounds, music, and art from all around the world. To achieve maximum reach, the event was recorded and livestreamed simultaneously across four major social media channels (YouTube, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn), moving West around the globe from 2:00pm in the UK on June 25^th to 4:00pm in Ukraine on June 26^th. The participants had the opportunity to choose between various sessions to join, depending on which part of the world they were in at the time of the event. Divided in twelve different sections, the Peace Wave could be nothing short of a spectacular global appeal for Peace.

The first section started with live street demonstrations directly from city centre of London, United Kingdom – we had speeches, protests, banners and music being played to all of those passing by. We even had some contributions from a protest regarding Sudan. At the end of the session were displayed videos provided to us directly from Western Sahara, instructing the viewers and participants about their culture and current struggles. And to compliment that, more musical contributions.

The second section covered most of South America, bringing contributions from various voices of different countries: Chile, Argentina, Perú, Ecuador, and Brazil. We had the opportunity to learn more about the political structures and struggles of these people, their past, and the actions currently taken to promote peace by music, youth organizations and political engagement against increasing militarization and armament by governments.

The third section was established to cover the Atlantic side of the United States, starting with a great demonstration in Manhattan, at the centre of New York City – poetry, songs, theatre and speeches from many contributors. We also had a poetic participation from Ontario, Canada, beautiful banners, kites and music from Long Island, and a big rally in Asheville, North Carolina.

The fourth section took us back to Latin America, now addressing countries such as Mexico, Honduras, El Salvador, Venezuela, Argentina, the Dominican Republic and Colombia. In this section we followed an important round table of discussions, with many interesting contributions and points of view on Peace education, popular participation, and Human Rights in the face of the dangers of militarization.

The fifth section covered the Pacific side of the United States. We started in the state of Washington, with music, prayers, and a small discussion on military bases at the Pacific side. We had videos from a protesting flashmob, a theatrical piece, and discussions on military environmental impact. Beyond that, we had contributions from Vancouver and Victoria in Canada, and also from California.

The sixth section started in Hawaii, with a poetic contribution regarding a “world without RIMPAC”. We had recordings, poetry and documentaries about military presence on the islands, hearing from natives about how it all impacts their original land. From Guam, we also had a glimpse into the destructive presence of nuclear testing in the pacific and the militarization of the seas.

The seventh section brought us words from Australia and New Zealand. In the first half we had speeches, interviews, choir songs, presentations and protests from many parts of Australia regarding many themes around Peace. From New Zealand, we also had a series of talks, music, and outdoor events, including voices from native peoples and youth.

The eighth section, starting in Japan, presented us a live protest in the streets of Tokyo – a street campaign with speeches, testimonials, signs and music against war, militarization and the use of nuclear weapons. Next in the rally, we had contributions from South Korea talking about RIMPAC exercises, military presence at the peninsula. From the streets, a demonstration with protesting theatre, dance and signs against NATO.

The ninth sections, conducted by the Philippines, brought us multiple artistic contributions to delegitimize NATO, against all imperialism, proxy wars and general sanctions. We had a real-time panel being painted by artists. Poetry, dances, testimonials and different genres of music established the tone of protests here, with many young people participating and helping in this intensive rally.

The tenth section was made by an international participation of people from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Nepal. We had poetry, prayers, paintings, messages, protests and even the presence of state figures. We heard about Positive Peace, media manipulation, economics of Peace, including voices of natives and refugees at our peace wave.

The eleventh section started with a German song and a welcome message from Berlin. Why “no to NATO” from Hungary, and a Livestream intervention from Sinjajevina, Montenegro. From Cameroon we heard about Disarmament for Development, and from Czech Republic words on nuclear disarmament. We had protests from Barcelona and live rallies from Rammstein and Madrid.

The twelfth section, concluded the peace wave with voices from Norway, Finland and Lebanon in an interesting panel discussion about Peace, collaboration, democratization, media and security challenges from peace activists. We also had major live statements from peace activists from Iran, Kenya and Ukraine addressing important topics and their experiences in the struggle for peace.

This peace wave gathered contributions from 39 different countries, not to include the different regions within a given country. From all these contributions, we had close to 200 people collaborating with messages and art from all over the world addressing one common demand: No to militarization, yes to cooperation. Peace was the leading word for those twenty-four hours of activities.

The event was open to the public, with hundreds of people joining from different parts of the world across major social media channels and an average of 50-60 participating directly via Zoom. Being the first-of-its-kind Peace action, our hope is to continue down this path in the years to follow. Many thanks to all who squeezed time out their busy schedule to ensure that this event was a success.

To sum up all the content that we had in this first peace wave we compiled a video with the highlights of the event:

This video serves as a brief highlight of the many activities we had, so you can be sure that much more can be found in the recordings. To have access to the recording of the 24 hours of our event, access this link:

https://worldbeyondwar.org/videos-from-the-24-hour-peace-wave/

The International Peace Bureau (IPB) and World BEYOND War would like to thank all the participants and viewers from all around the world who were present with us directly via Zoom or indirectly in the livestreams (Youtube, Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram). A special message of appreciation to all the coordinators for each section, who accepted the challenge to organize the twelve different parts of two hours, dedicating much of their time and effort in the two months prior to the day of the event.

Berlin, July 2022.

STOP THE WARS, STOP THE WAR IN UKRAINE, STOP THE NUCLEAR WEAPONS! – Le Mouvement de la Paix

Russia’s aggression against Ukraine shows how the existence of nuclear weapons promotes wars instead of preventing them, as the ideologies linked to the so-called nuclear deterrence claim. On the other hand, the present situation and Russia’s repeated threats to use nuclear weapons show how nuclear weapons allow the nuclear powers to disregard respect for international law and oppose the construction of a world of common security and peace.

In this framework, and in the context of its participation in the next World Conference against A and H bombs in Hiroshima and Nagasaki between August 4 and 10, 2022, the Peace Movement joins the appeal launched by the organizing committee of this conference, a committee animated in particular by the associations of survivors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki (Hibakushas) and the victims of nuclear tests.

Le mouvement de la Paix is a non-governmental organization created in 1948 and approved as a “National Association for Youth and Popular Education”. A non-profit association under the 1901 law, the Mouvement de la Paix acts for disarmament, in particular nuclear, but also against the production and transfer of armaments, for the reduction of military budgets.

Even though the originally written in French, most of their last statements are available in English. You can find the the above excert in as a whole in the following link, together with other statements:

Click on the button to load the content from www.mvtpaix.org.

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Thousands call for peace and defunding war as NATO summit begins in Madrid – People’s Dispatch

Thousands of people took to the streets in Madrid on Sunday, June 26, against the NATO summit which began in Madrid on June 28. Protesters called NATO a threat to global peace and demanded its dissolution. The organizers also held a two-day peace summit in Madrid on June 24-25, at the conclusion of which, a joint declaration was issued asserting that “NATO is a serious threat to world peace, having left a trail of destruction from Yugoslavia to Afghanistan”.

The video, provided by People’s Dispatch Youtube Channel, features Reiner Braun, Executive Director of the International Peace Bureau, who was present at the panels and demonstration in Madrid for the Peace Summit.

30.000 Join and Committed and Colorful Against the NATO Summit in Madrid

Encouraging and impressive was the demonstration of almost 30,000 peace activists from Madrid and Spain and supported by smaller delegations from many NATO countries.

The unanimous opinion was that NATO and the international militarization associated with it provoked the confrontation with Russia. That’s why the “No to NATO” chanted loudly and in different languages throughout downtown Madrid. This largest anti-NATO demonstration in a long time expressed a mood: we do not want to be silent about NATO expansion, about global NATO as a danger to peace, also and especially about of Russia’s war against Ukraine, which is contrary to international law.

Commitments to disarmament and international cooperation united the thousands of participants who marched through the streets of Madrid in the great heat. Left-wing National, European and international, radical left-wing groups were represented as well as peace organizations, women’s groups, solidarity organizations and environmental organizations, including Friday For Future, all with clear anti-militaristic statements.

Impressive was not only the number, but also the clear recognition that NATO and peace are not compatible and that a global peace cannot be achieved with a “global NATO” which now also prioritizes military containment of China.

It was clear to those committed to peace that the struggle to overcome/dissolve NATO is a long and great challenge and that many (even greater) actions are still necessary, certainly also in the “heart of the empire”, Washington.

The perspective and alternative to NATO was the focus of the Peace Summit and Counter Summit in Madrid, which took place on Friday and Saturday. We regret that political differences of the anti-NATO forces in Madrid were too deep to agree on a unified counter summit in Madrid. Unfortunately, two separate platforms were organized as counter summits although perspectives and alternatives to NATO have been the focus of each. The international dimension of both summits could have been more emphasized as well.

In the analysis of NATO’s role as a threat to peace, however, the commonalities outweighed the differences, although it will not a surprise to anyone that differences did emerge in the assessment of Russian policy. But the peace summit clearly rejected Russia’s intervention in Ukraine as an aggressive action in violation of international law.

The discussion on alternatives was also varied, with the policy of “common security” repeatedly being formulated as a unifying position worthy of support. At the well-attended event on this topic, the new Olof Palme Report by International Peace Bureau (IPB), World Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) and International Olof Palme Center was welcomed as a good basis for developing also a new security architecture for Europe and beyond.

Disarmament for social and climate justice, for protection of environment and nature was demanded again and again, along with the worldwide engagement of women against war and militarism were convincingly presented.

An active, encouraging weekend, which also shows how much still lies ahead of us. It remains for all: first we struggle for a ceasefire and for negotiations for a peace solution in Ukraine.

The discussions of the weekend will continue on Monday at the annual meeting of the international network “No to war – no to NATO”, which will certainly focus on more, bigger, and still more internationally, more networked actions against the “global NATO”.

The necessary active role of the peace movement became clear at an impressive 24 hour global “peace wave” organized for the first time by the international peace movement (International Peace Bureau (IPB), World Beyond War (WBW), No to war – no to NATO (No to NATO) and Codepink). In 12 time zones, creative events, live music, performances, actions and much more – there were no limits to creativity – were developed by hundreds of activists and committed people and sent an impressive signal of a worldwide networked peace movement.

With this first contribution we would like to open a discussion about the peace actions of this weekend against the US Air Base Ramstein, against the G7 summit in Elmau, Germany (summit of the economic NATO) and the NATO summit in Madrid, in order to be able to organize even more actively the resistance against national and worldwide militarism.

Madrid, 27. June 2022

Kristine Karch, Germany, Co-Chair international network “No to war – No to NATO” (No to NATO) Campaign Stopp Air Base Ramstein

Reiner Braun, Germany, International Pace Bureau (IPB), ICC No to NATO

Ludo De Brabander, Belgium, vrede vzw, ICC No to NATO

Joseph Gerson, USA, Campaign for Peace, Disarmament and Common Security (CPDCS), ICC No to NATO”

Interview des pacifistes Oleg Bodrov (Russie) et Yurii Sheliazhenko (Ukraine)

Pouvez-vous vous présenter brièvement ?

Oleg Bodrov : Je suis Oleg Bodrov, physicien, écologiste et président du Conseil public de la rive sud du golfe de Finlande, à Saint-Pétersbourg. La protection de l’environnement, la sécurité nucléaire et la promotion de la paix ont été les principales orientations de mon travail au cours des 40 dernières années. Aujourd’hui, j’ai le sentiment de faire partie de l’Ukraine : ma femme est à moitié ukrainienne, son père est de Mariupol. Mes amis et collègues sont des écologistes de Kiev, Kharkiv, Dnipro, Konotop, Lviv. Je pratique l’escalade, lors des ascensions j’étais relié par une corde de sécurité avec Anna P. de Kharkov. Mon père, qui a participé à la Seconde Guerre mondiale, a été blessé en janvier 1945 et a été soigné dans un hôpital de Dniepropetrovsk.

Yurii Sheliazhenko : Je m’appelle Yurii Sheliazhenko, je suis un chercheur, éducateur et militant pour la paix originaire d’Ukraine. Mes domaines d’expertise sont la gestion des conflits, la théorie juridique et politique et l’histoire. En outre, je suis secrétaire exécutif du Mouvement pacifiste ukrainien et membre du conseil d’administration du Bureau européen pour l’objection de conscience (EBCO) ainsi que de World BEYOND War (WBW).

Pouvez-vous décrire comment vous voyez la situation actuelle ?

Oleg Bodrov: La décision de l’opération militaire contre l’Ukraine a été prise par le Président de la Russie. Dans le même temps, les citoyens russes, à en juger par les informations des médias indépendants, pensaient que la guerre avec l’Ukraine était par principe impossible !

Pourquoi cela s’est-il produit ? Au cours des huit dernières années, la propagande anti-ukrainienne a été diffusée quotidiennement sur toutes les chaînes publiques de la télévision russe. On y parlait de la faiblesse et de l’impopularité des présidents ukrainiens, des nationalistes qui bloquent le rapprochement avec la Russie, du souhait de l’Ukraine de rejoindre l’UE et l’OTAN. L’Ukraine est considérée par le président de la Russie comme un territoire faisant historiquement partie de l’Empire russe. L’invasion de l’Ukraine, en plus de la mort de milliers de personnes, a augmenté les risques de dégradation au niveau mondial. Des opérations militaires sont menées sur le territoire où se trouvent des centrales nucléaires. L’impact accidentel d’obus sur des centrales nucléaires est plus dangereux que l’utilisation d’armes atomiques.

Yurii Sheliazhenko: L’invasion illégale de l’Ukraine par la Russie s’inscrit dans une longue histoire de relations et d’hostilités entre les deux nations, ainsi que dans le conflit mondial de longue date entre l’Ouest et l’Est. Pour le comprendre pleinement, nous devons nous souvenir du colonialisme, de l’impérialisme, de la guerre froide, de l’hégémonie “néolibérale” et de la montée des hégémonismes que l’on nomme illibéraux.

En parlant de la Russie face à l’Ukraine, la chose cruciale à comprendre dans cette lutte obscène entre une puissance impérialiste archaïque et un régime nationaliste archaïque est le caractère dépassé des deux cultures politiques et militaristes : les deux pays ont la conscription et un modèle de formation patriotique militaire au lieu de l’éducation civique. C’est pourquoi les fauteurs de guerre des deux camps se traitent mutuellement de nazis. Mentalement, ils vivent encore dans le monde de la “Grande guerre patriotique” de l’URSS ou du “mouvement de libération de l’Ukraine” et croient que les gens doivent s’unir autour de leur commandant suprême pour écraser leur ennemi existentiel, ces hitlériens ou ce qui ne vaut pas mieux, ces staliniens, dans le rôle desquels ils voient étonnamment un peuple voisin.

Y a-t-il des particularités dans ce conflit dont le public occidental n’est pas ou peu informé ?

Yurii Sheliazhenko: Oui, certainement. La diaspora ukrainienne en Amérique a considérablement augmenté après les deux guerres mondiales. Pendant la guerre froide, les services de renseignement américains et occidentaux ont recruté des agents dans cette diaspora afin d’utiliser les sentiments nationalistes pour inciter au séparatisme en URSS, et certains Ukrainiens de souche sont devenus riches ou ont fait carrière dans la politique et l’armée américaines et canadiennes, de sorte qu’un puissant lobby ukrainien a émergé avec des liens avec l’Ukraine et des ambitions interventionnistes. Lorsque l’URSS est tombée et que l’Ukraine a obtenu son indépendance, la diaspora occidentale a participé activement à la construction de la nation.

Existe-t-il des activités contre la guerre en Russie et si oui, à quoi ressemblent-elles ?

Oleg Bodrov: Des actions anti-guerre ont eu lieu à Saint-Pétersbourg, Moscou et dans des dizaines de grandes villes russes. Plusieurs milliers de personnes sont simplement descendues dans la rue pour exprimer leur désaccord. La catégorie la plus populaire de participants est celle des jeunes. Plus de 7 500 étudiants, membres du personnel et diplômés de la plus ancienne université de Russie, l’université Lomonosov de Moscou, ont signé une pétition contre la guerre. Les étudiants veulent se voir comme faisant partie d’un monde démocratique libre, dont ils pourraient être privés en raison de la politique isolationniste du président. Les autorités affirment que la Russie possède les ressources nécessaires à la vie et des armes atomiques qui les protégeront, même en cas de séparation, du reste du monde. Plus d’un million 220 mille Russes ont signé la pétition “NON A LA GUERRE”. Des petits rassemblements “CONTRE LES ARMES NUCLÉAIRES” et “CONTRE LA GUERRE SANGLANTE” sont organisés quotidiennement à Saint-Pétersbourg et dans d’autres villes russes. Dans le même temps, les employés de l’Institut de l’énergie atomique portant le nom de Kurchatov à Moscou “ont pleinement soutenu la décision du président de la Fédération de Russie de mener une opération militaire spéciale” sur le territoire de l’Ukraine. Et ce n’est pas le seul exemple de soutien à l’agression. Mes collègues du mouvement pour l’environnement et la paix et moi-même sommes convaincus que notre avenir a été détruit en Russie et en Ukraine.

La paix avec la Russie est-elle un sujet de discussion en Ukraine en ce moment ?

Yurii Sheliazhenko: Oui, c’est une question qui se pose, cela ne fait de doute. Le président Zelenskyy a été élu en 2019 grâce à ses promesses d’arrêter la guerre et de négocier la paix, mais il n’a pas tenu ces promesses et a commencé à réprimer les médias et l’opposition pro-russes en Ukraine, mobilisant toute la population pour la guerre avec la Russie. Cela a coïncidé avec l’intensification de l’aide militaire et des exercices nucléaires de l’OTAN. Poutine a lancé ses propres exercices nucléaires et a demandé à l’Occident des garanties de sécurité, en premier lieu le non-alignement de l’Ukraine. Au lieu de donner de telles garanties, l’Occident a soutenu l’opération militaire ukrainienne dans le Donbass, où les violations du cessez-le-feu ont atteint des sommets et où, dans les jours qui ont précédé l’invasion russe, des civils ont été tués et blessés presque tous les jours des deux côtés, dans les zones contrôlées ou non par le gouvernement.

Quelle est l’ampleur de la résistance contre la paix et les actions non-violentes dans votre pays ?

Oleg Bodrov: En Russie, tous les médias démocratiques indépendants ont été fermés et ont cessé de fonctionner. La propagande de la guerre se fait sur toutes les chaînes de la télévision d’État. Facebook et Instagram sont bloqués. Immédiatement après le début de la guerre, de nouvelles lois ont été adoptées contre les fake news et “contre le fait de discréditer les forces armées russes qui mènent une opération spéciale en Ukraine.” Sont considérées comme fake news toutes les opinions exprimées publiquement qui contredisent ce qui est dit dans les médias officiels. Les sanctions prévues vont d’une forte amende de plusieurs dizaines de milliers de roubles à une peine d’emprisonnement pouvant aller jusqu’à 15 ans. Le président a annoncé une lutte contre les “traîtres à la nation” qui entravent la mise en œuvre de ses projets ukrainiens. Le ministère de la Justice de la Fédération de Russie continue d’attribuer le statut d'”agent étranger” aux organisations de défense de l’environnement et des droits de l’homme qui coopèrent avec des partenaires d’autres pays. La peur de la répression devient un facteur important de la vie en Russie.

À quoi ressemble la démocratie en Ukraine ? Y a-t-il des parallèles ?

Yurii Sheliazhenko: Le 24 février 2022, Poutine a commencé son offensive brutale et illégale visant, comme il le dit, à dénazifier et démilitariser l’Ukraine. le résultat, c’est que la Russie et l’Ukraine se militarisent de plus en plus et ressemblent de plus en plus au nazisme, et personne n’est prêt à changer cela. Les autocrates populistes au pouvoir et leurs équipes dans les deux pays profitent de la guerre, leur pouvoir se renforce et les opportunités de gains personnels sont nombreuses. Les faucons russes profitent de l’isolement international de la Russie, car cela signifie une mobilisation militaire et toutes les ressources publiques sont désormais entre leurs mains. En Occident, le complexe de production militaire a corrompu le gouvernement et la société civile, les marchands de mort ont beaucoup profité de l’aide militaire à l’Ukraine : Thales (fournisseur des missiles Javelin à l’Ukraine), Raytheon (fournisseur des missiles Stinger) et Lockheed Martin (distribution des jets) ont connu d’énormes augmentations de leurs profits et de leur valeur boursière. Et ils veulent obtenir davantage de profits en tuant et en détruisant.

Qu’attendez-vous des mouvements pacifistes dans le monde et de toutes les personnes qui aiment la paix ?

Oleg Bodrov: Il est nécessaire que les participants au “Mouvement pour la paix” s’unissent aux écologistes, aux militants des droits de l’homme, aux organisations anti-guerre, anti-nucléaires et autres organisations pacifistes. Les conflits devraient être résolus par des négociations, pas par la guerre. La PAIX est bonne pour nous tous !

Que peut faire un pacifiste pour la paix lorsque son pays est attaqué ?

Yurii Sheliazhenko: Eh bien, tout d’abord, un pacifiste doit rester un pacifiste, continuer à répondre à la violence par des pensées et des actions non violentes. Vous devriez utiliser tous les efforts pour rechercher et soutenir des solutions pacifiques, résister à l’escalade, en prenant soin de la sécurité des autres et de vous-même. Chers amis, merci de vous préoccuper de la situation en Ukraine. Construisons ensemble un monde meilleur, sans armées ni frontières, pour la paix et le bonheur communs de l’humanité.

L’interview a été réalisée (par voie électronique) par Reiner Braun, directeur exécutif du Bureau International de la Paix (IPB).

Interview with Oleg Bodrov and Yurii Sheliazhenko

Can you shortly introduce yourself?

Oleg Bodrov: I am Oleg Bodrov, physicist, ecologist and Chairman of the Public Council of the Southern Shore of the Gulf of Finland, St. Petersburg. Environmental protection, nuclear safety and the promotion of peace have been the main directions of my work for the last 40 years. Today, I feel like a part of Ukraine: my wife is half Ukrainian; her father is from Mariupol. My friends and colleagues are ecologists from Kiev, Kharkiv, Dnipro, Konotop, Lviv. I am a climber, on the ascents I was connected by a safety rope with Anna P. from Kharkov. My father, a participant in the Second World War, was wounded in January 1945 and was treated in a hospital in Dnepropetrovsk.

Yurii Sheliazhenko: My name is Yurii Sheliazhenko, I am a peace researcher, educator and activist from Ukraine. My fields of expertise are conflict management, legal and political theory and history. Furthermore, I am executive secretary of the Ukrainian Pacifist Movement and member of the Board of the European Bureau for Conscientious Objection (EBCO) as well as World BEYOND War (WBW).

Can you please describe how you see the actual situation?

O.B.: The decision on the military operation against Ukraine was made by the President of Russia. At the same time, Russian citizens, judging by independent media reports, believed that war with Ukraine was impossible in principle!

Why did this happen? For the past eight years, anti-Ukrainian propaganda has been broadcast daily on all state channels of Russian television. They talked about the weakness and unpopularity of the presidents of Ukraine, the nationalists blocking rapprochement with Russia, Ukraine’s desire to join the EU and NATO. Ukraine is considered by the President of Russia as a territory historically part of the Russian Empire. The invasion of Ukraine, in addition to the death of thousands of people, has increased global negative risks. Military operations are conducted on the territory with nuclear power plants. The accidental hit of shells into nuclear power plants is more dangerous than the use of atomic weapons.

Y.S.: Illegal invasion of Russia to Ukraine is part of a long history of relations and hostilities between both nations, and also it is part of longstanding global conflict between the West and East. To understand it fully, we should remember colonialism, imperialism, cold war, “neoliberal” hegemony and the rise of wannabe illiberal hegemons.

Talking about Russia versus Ukraine, the crucial thing to understand about this obscene fight between archaic imperialist power and archaic nationalist regime is the outdated character of both political and militarist cultures: both have conscription and a system of military patriotic upbringing instead of civic education. That’s why war mongers on both sides call each other Nazis. Mentally, they still live in the world of USSR’s “Great Patriotic War” or “Ukrainian liberation movement” and believe that people should unite around their supreme commander to crush their existential enemy, these Hitler-ites or no-better Stalinists, in role of which they surprisingly see a neighbour people.

Are there any particularities in this dispute about which the Western public is not or not very well informed?

Y.S.: Yes, certainly. Ukrainian diaspora in America increased significantly after two world wars. U.S. and other Western intelligences during the cold war recruited agents in this diaspora to use nationalist sentiments for inciting separatism in USSR, and some ethnic Ukrainians became rich or made careers in U.S. and Canadian politics and army, in that way powerful Ukrainian lobby emerged with ties to Ukraine and interventionist ambitions. When the USSR fell and Ukraine gained independence, the Western diaspora actively participated in nation-building.

Are there activities against the war in Russia and if so, what do they look like?

O.B.: Anti-war actions were held in St. Petersburg, Moscow, and dozens of major Russian cities. Many thousands of people simply took to the streets to express their disagreement. The most popular category of participants is young people. More than 7,500 students, staff and graduates of Russia’s oldest Lomonosov Moscow University have signed a petition against the war. Students want to see themselves as part of a free democratic world, which they may be deprived of because of the isolationist policies of the president. The authorities claim that Russia has the resources necessary for life and atomic weapons that will protect them, even in conditions of separation, from the rest of the world. More than 1 million 220 thousand Russians signed the petition “NO TO WAR”. Single pickets “AGAINST NUCLEAR WEAPONS” and “AGAINST BLOODY WAR” are held daily in St. Petersburg and other Russian cities. At the same time, employees of the Institute of Atomic Energy named after Kurchatov in Moscow “fully supported the decision of the President of the Russian Federation to conduct a special military operation” on the territory of Ukraine. And this is not the only example of support for aggression. I and my colleagues in the environmental and peace movement are convinced that our future has been broken in Russia and Ukraine.

Is peace with Russia an issue in Ukraine right now?

Y.S.: Yes, this is an issue without any doubts. President Zelenskyy was elected in 2019 because of his promises to stop the war and negotiate peace, but he broke these promises and started to repress pro-Russian media and opposition in Ukraine, mobilizing the whole population to war with Russia. This coincided with NATO’s intensified military aid and nuclear drills. Putin launched his own nuclear drills and asked the West for security guarantees, first of all non-alignment of Ukraine. Instead of giving such guarantees, the West supported Ukraine’s military operation in Donbass where violations of ceasefire peaked and in the days prior to the Russian invasion civilians were killed and wounded almost every day on both sides, on government-controlled and non-government-controlled areas.

How big is the resistance against peace and nonviolent actions in your country?

O.B.: In Russia, all independent democratic media have been closed and ceased to operate. Propaganda of the war is being carried out on all channels of state television. Facebook and Instagram are blocked. Immediately after the start of the war, new laws were adopted against fakes and “against discrediting the Russian armed forces conducting a special operation in Ukraine.” Fakes are any publicly expressed opinions that contradict what is said in the official media. Penalties are provided from a large fine of several tens of thousands of rubles, to imprisonment for up to 15 years. The President announced a fight against “national traitors” who hinder the implementation of his Ukrainian plans. The Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation continues to assign the status of “foreign agent” to environmental and human rights organizations cooperating with partners from other countries. Fear of repression is becoming an important factor of life in Russia.

How does democracy look like in Ukraine? Are they any parallels?

Y.S.: On February 24, 2022 Putin started his brutal and illegal offensive aimed, as he says, at denazification and demilitarization of Ukraine. In result, both Russia and Ukraine seem to become more militarized and more and more resemble Nazis, and nobody is willing to change it. Ruling populist autocrats and their teams in both countries profit from war, their power strengthens and there are many opportunities for personal gain. Russian hawks benefit from international isolation of Russia since it means military mobilization and all public resources are now in their hands. In the West, the military production complex corrupted government and civil society, merchants of death profited a lot from military aid to Ukraine: Thales (supplier of Javelin missiles to Ukraine), Raytheon (supplier of Stinger missiles) and Lockheed Martin (distribution of jets) have experienced enormous increases in profit and stock market value. And they want to gain more profits from killing and destruction.

What do you expect from the peace movements in the world and all peace loving people?

O.B.: It is necessary for the participants of the “Movement for Peace” to unite with environmentalists, human rights activists, anti-war, anti-nuclear and other peace-loving organizations. Conflicts should be resolved through negotiations, not war. PEACE is good for all of us!

What can a pacifist do for peace when his country is attacked?

Y.S.: Well, first of all a pacifist should remain a pacifist, continue to respond to violence with nonviolent thinking and actions. You should use all efforts to seek and support peaceful solutions, resist escalation, taking care about the safety of others and yourself. Dear friends, thank you for caring about the situation in Ukraine. Let’s build together a better world without armies and borders for the common peace and happiness of humankind.

The interview was conducted by Reiner Braun (by electronic means).

IPB Africa webinar report: Russia invades Ukraine. War in Europe and what this could mean for Africa

On March 14, the IPB Africa working group hosted a panel discussion on what the projected impacts of the war in Ukraine will mean for African livelihoods. The three person panel consisted of Reiner Braun, Joseph Gerson and Baroness Dayon Ako-Adounvo. To view the full biographies of the panelists and the original concept note, please visit the archived event page.

The speech by Baroness was exceptionally enlightening and as such can be viewed below. The full recording of the speech can also be viewed below the speech.

RUSSIA INVADES UKRAINE WAR IN EUROPE AND WHAT COULD THIS MEAN FOR AFRICA – by Baroness Dayon Ako-Adounvo.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine’s Donbass region, which transformed into a war on February 24^th, has resulted in global economic and security concerns with severe consequences on the African continent.

In this regard, there are economic opportunities for some oil-exporting countries in the region, especially in terms of natural gas and raw material exports with the sanctions implemented by the United States and European countries against Russia. On the other hand, countries whose industries and agriculture are heavily dependent on oil exports have the potential to enter an economic bottleneck because of the increase in oil and natural gas prices. The same is true for grain trade. The fact that Russia and Ukraine provide 25% of the world’s grain supply may indirectly lead the African continent, as one of its largest customers, into food insecurity.

Russia and Ukraine have major ties with Africa in:

▪︎ Defense & Security

▪︎ Energy

▪︎ Agriculture

▪︎ Education

Energy

Experts warned sternly as Russian missiles hit Ukraine that the impact of the war will reverberate across the continent of Africa. Over the past weeks, fuel prices in Ghana and other African countries have drastically increased. As of March 7th 2022, the price of gasoline in Ghana was 8.62 Ghanaian cedis (GHS) per liter, a 25 percent increase since January 3^rd. Economists have cautioned that the war in Ukraine could further push oil prices up and increase inflation in Africa.

Professor Abdul-Ganiyu Garba of the department of Economics – Ahmadu Bello University in Zaria said “the last time we had a windfall from oil prices related to war was in 1991, during the Gulf War. There is no doubt that this crisis will directly impact the price of crude oil. Africa, like most continents, will need to prepare for higher inflation as the increase in crude oil prices will increase inflation globally and lead to expensive imports. Most African countries have not recovered from the economic impact of the global COVID-19 pandemic, which resulted in the rise of commodity prices due to the disrupted global supply chain. It has been extremely difficult and unbearable for most people living in Africa and in the world at large.

With the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine war, the U.S. and European countries imposed various sanctions against Russia, a country that supplies 40% of the European Union’s natural gas. Countries in the Middle East and Africa are emerging as strong alternatives for Europe as it attempts to diversify its natural gas supply and cut its dependency on Russia. At this point, among African countries, Algeria is a suitable alternative in terms of both its geopolitical position and its large reserves. Additionally, countries like Senegal (where 40 trillion cubic feet of Natural Gas was discovered between 2014 – 2017 with production expected to start later this year), Nigeria (an existing supplier Liquified Natural Gas (LNG) to several European countries) and Tanzania seem to be at an advantage with their natural gas capacity. In this sense, Nigeria, Niger and Algeria, which are on the Trans-Saharan Gas Pipeline route, cooperated in order to increase their natural gas exports to European markets and signed an agreement on Feb. 16. The deal includes a cost of $13 billion to renew the pipelines. Apart from this line, a total of 50 billion cubic meters (bcm) of Algerian natural gas is transported to Europe via the Maghreb-Europe Gas Pipeline and Trans-Mediterranean Natural Gas Pipeline. However, the increase in natural gas and oil prices may result in additional cost for oil-importing African countries that depend on oil and natural gas in agricultural and industrial production.

Agriculture

The Russia-Ukraine War may negatively affect Africa in terms of agricultural production and food security, as both countries are important grain exporters to Africa. African countries imported about $4billion agricultural products from Russia, of which wheat accounted for 90% of these imports. Ukraine exported $2.9 billion worth of agricultural products to Africa in 2020, with wheat representing 48% of the products, and corn at 31%. Furthermore, these two countries have a total share of 26% (Russia 18%, Ukraine 8%) in world wheat exports. While Egypt ranks first in wheat imports, countries such as Libya, Sudan, Nigeria, Tanzania, Algeria, Kenya and South Africa also import wheat from Russia and Ukraine to a large extent. Currently, with the Russian intervention in Ukraine, corn prices have increased by 21%, wheat by 35% and soybeans by 20%, respectively. Nonetheless, in the Sahel region and West Africa alone, 26 million people do not have access to enough food. Therefore, the prolongation of the war and the disruption of agricultural trade can cause prices to rise significantly. The increase in bread prices, especially in Kenya and Sudan, has led to anti-government protests. Undoubtedly, this situation brings food security concerns to the forefront for Africa, which has experienced many food crises in the past.

Defense & Security

The Russian mercenary Wagner Group operates in the Central African Republic, Libya, Mozambique and Mali. Apart from this, Russia has strong trade relations with African economies such as South Africa, Egypt, Nigeria and Sudan. In this context, Russia’s military and economic connections have limited member countries of the African Union from acting in unison against the Russia-Ukraine war. The union’s own legislation emphasizes the inviolability of borders and territorial integrity.

Education

Over 16000 African students studying in Ukraine and Russia were stranded as a result of the war. African countries have evacuated some of these students, many of them remain trapped with limited food, water, and no safe shelter. This has been heartbreaking for families.

Conclusion

The Russia-Ukraine war, which broke out after Russia’s one-sided intervention, is geographically far from the region but still closely concerns the African continent. Many different issues such as food security, agricultural production and the inclusion of countries with natural gas reserves into the geopolitical equation due to the sanctions on Russia, are directly related to Africa. In this context, prolonging the war and continuing to sanction Russia will increase the prices of agricultural products and raw materials, which could expose the African continent to a food security crisis.