Resistance-Manifesto: In Germany &most European countries, forces have gained the upper hand that see the future primarily in a strategy of military confrontation & hundreds of billions in rearmament.

• Wolfgang Lieberknecht

• a few seconds ago

• 7 min read

Peacekeeping in Europe through defence capabilities, arms control and understanding Eighty years after the end of the catastrophic Second World War and liberation from Hitler's fascism, peace is once again under threat in Europe. We are witnessing new forms of violence and violations of humanity: Russia's war against Ukraine, but also the fundamental violation of human rights in the Gaza Strip. The social divide in the world is deepening, both within societies and between them. The man-made crisis of the Earth's ecosystem and climate system, the destruction of food sources and new forms of colonialism for raw materials threaten the peace and security of humankind. Last but not least, nationalists are trying to exploit uncertainties, conflicts and wars for their own shabby interests. We are far from a return to a stable peace and security order in Europe. On the contrary, forces have gained the upper hand in Germany and most European countries that see the future primarily in a strategy of military confrontation and hundreds of billions of euros for rearmament. Peace and security can no longer be achieved with Russia, but must be enforced against Russia. The need for ever more armament and preparation for a supposedly imminent war is invoked instead of linking necessary defence capabilities with arms control and disarmament policies in order to achieve common security and mutual peace. We are convinced that the concept of common security is the only responsible way to prevent war through confrontation and arms build-up, regardless of ideological differences and conflicting interests. The concept of common security also underpinned the treaty agreed in 1987 between US President Ronald Reagan and CPSU General Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev banning all medium-range nuclear weapons, which contributed significantly to the end of the Cold War in Europe and to German reunification. Since the 1960s, the world has been brought to the brink of nuclear disaster more than once. The Cold War was characterised by mutual distrust and military confrontation between the leading powers in East and West. US President John F. Kennedy, 1 ‘Peace is not everything, but without peace, everything is nothing.’ – Willy Brandt SPD peace circles Willy Brandt and other leading politicians of the time drew the right conclusions from the dangerous lack of perspective in this arms race, which had become apparent during the Cuban Missile Crisis. Confrontation and arms build-up were replaced by talks and negotiations on security through cooperation, confidence-building, arms control and disarmament. The signing of the CSCE Helsinki Final Act in 1975 was a high point in this convergence of defence and disarmament policy, which secured peace in Europe for decades and ultimately made German reunification possible. In Helsinki, central principles of European security were agreed upon through more peaceful relations between states: the equality of states regardless of their size, the preservation of the territorial integrity of states, the renunciation of mutual threats of violence, respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms, the renunciation of interference in the internal affairs of states, and the agreement on comprehensive cooperation. Unfortunately, we now live in a different world. The European security order based on the principles of the CSCE Final Act has been increasingly undermined in recent decades, even by the ‘West’, including through NATO's attack on Serbia in 1999, the war in Iraq with a ‘coalition of the willing’ in 2003, the failure to comply with the nuclear disarmament commitments reaffirmed in 1995 in the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, the termination or disregard of important arms control agreements, mostly by the United States, and the completely inadequate implementation of the Minsk agreements after 2014. This historical development shows that What is needed is not unilateral recriminations, but a differentiated analysis of all contributions to the departure from the principles of Helsinki. That is precisely why we must not forget the lessons of history. A return to a policy of pure deterrence without arms control and rearmament would not make Europe safer. Instead, we must work again towards a peace policy with the goal of common security. To many, common security seems illusory today. This is a dangerous fallacy because there is no responsible alternative to such a policy. This path will not be easy. Before genuine confidence-building measures can be taken, small steps are needed: limiting further escalation, protecting minimum humanitarian standards, initial technical cooperation in areas such as disaster control and cyber security, and the cautious resumption of diplomatic contacts. Only when such foundations have been laid can trust grow – and the way be cleared for a new European security architecture. The public debate on security policy must also contribute to this. 2 ‘Peace is not everything, but without peace, everything is nothing.’ – Willy Brandt, SPD peace circles Moreover, Europe is now more than ever called upon to take independent responsibility. Under President Trump, the US is once again pursuing a policy of confrontation, particularly towards China. This increases the risk of further militarisation of international relations. Europe must counter this with an independent, peace-oriented security policy and actively work towards a return to a cooperative security order based on the principles of the 1975 CSCE Final Act. It is clear that a defendable Bundeswehr and a strengthening of Europe's security policy capabilities are necessary. However, this defence capability must be embedded in a strategy of de-escalation and gradual confidence-building, not in a new arms race. In fact, even without US forces, the European member states of NATO alone are clearly superior to Russia in conventional military terms. Military alarm rhetoric and huge rearmament programmes do not create more security for Germany and Europe, but lead to destabilisation and a strengthening of the mutual perception of threat between NATO and Russia. The central elements of a new, sustainable peace and security policy are therefore: • An end to the killing and dying in Ukraine as quickly as possible. To achieve this, we need to intensify the diplomatic efforts of all European states. Support for Ukraine in its claims under international law must be linked to the legitimate interests of all in Europe in security and stability. On this basis, the extremely difficult attempt must be made to resume talks with Russia once the guns fall silent, including on a peace and security order for Europe that is supported and respected by all. • Establishing an independent defence capability for European states, independent of the United States. Stopping an arms race. European security policy must not be based on the principle of rearmament and preparation for war, but must be geared towards effective defence capabilities. We need defensive military equipment that protects without creating additional security risks. • There is no security policy justification for a fixed increase in the defence budget to 3.5 or 5 per cent of gross domestic product over a period of years. We consider it irrational to set a percentage of GDP for military spending. Instead of spending more and more money on armaments, we urgently need more financial resources for investments in poverty reduction, climate protection and the preservation of natural resources, which are 3 ‘Peace is not everything, but without peace, everything is nothing.’ – Willy Brandt SPD peace circles in all federal states People on low incomes are disproportionately affected. • No deployment of new American medium-range missiles in Germany. The deployment of long-range, hypersonic US missile systems in Germany would make our country a prime target for attack. • At the 2026 review conference on the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, the commitment to nuclear disarmament under Article 6 must be renewed and strengthened with binding progress reports and declarations of ‘no first use’ under international law. • At the same time, it is important to press for the renewal of the New Start Treaty on the reduction of strategic weapons, which expires in 2026, and for new negotiations on arms limitation, arms control, confidence-building measures, diplomacy and disarmament in Europe. • Gradual return to détente in relations and cooperation with Russia, taking into account the needs of the Global South, in particular to combat the common threat posed by climate change. • No participation by Germany and the EU in military escalation in South-East Asia.

First signatories Dr Ralf Stegner, Member of the German Bundestag, Dr Rolf Mützenich, Member of the German Bundestag, Dr Norbert Walter-Borjans, former SPD party chairman, Dr hc Gernot Erler, former Minister of State, Prof. Dr Ernst Ulrich von Weizsäcker, Honorary President of the Club of Rome, Dr Nina Scheer, Member of the German Bundestag, Maja Wallstein, Member of the German Bundestag, Sanae Abdi, Member of the German Bundestag, Lothar Binding, Federal Chairman of the SPD 60+ Working Group, Hans Eichel, former President of the Bundesrat, former Federal Minister of Finance, Dr Carsten Sieling, President of the Senate and former Mayor of Bremen Bremen, Prof. Dr. Julian Nida-Rümelin, former Minister of State, Arno Gottschalk, Member of the Berlin City Parliament, Mirjam Golm, Member of the Berlin State Parliament, Matthias Hey, Member of the Thuringian State Parliament, Dunja Wolff, Member of the Berlin State Parliament, Michael Müller, Federal Chairman of the Nature Friends of Germany, former Parliamentary State Secretary, Erik von Malottki, Chair of Democratic Left 21, Deputy Federal Chair of the AfA, Katja Weitzel, Member of the Bavarian State Parliament, Dr Matthias Kollatz, Member of the Berlin State Parliament, former Finance Senator, Friedhelm Hilgers, Federal Executive Committee of SPD AG 60 plus, Dr Theodor Ziegler, 1st Chair of the SPD Baiersbronn, Peter Kox, Deputy Chair of 4 ‘Peace is not everything, but without peace, everything is nothing.’ – Willy Brandt SPD Peace Circles SPD Council Faction Bonn, Martin Schilling, former Chairman of the SPD sub-district Bonn, Heinz Oesterle, State Chairman AG SPD 60 plus Bavaria, Prof. Dr. Renate Meyer-Braun, former member of the State Executive Committee of the Bremen SPD, René Röspel, former Member of the German Parliament, Adi Ostertag, former Member of the German Parliament, Robert Antretter, former Member of the German Parliament, Honorary Member of the Council of Europe and the WEU, Klaus Barthel, former Member of the German Parliament, former AfA Federal Chairman, Sigrid Skarperlis-Sperk, former Member of the German Parliament, Joachim Schuster, former Member of the European Parliament, Prof. Dr. Dietmar Köster, former Member of the European Parliament, Ulrike Neumann, former Member of the Berlin Parliament, Karlheinz Nolte, former Member of the Berlin Parliament Berlin, Bärbel Dieckmann, former Mayor of Bonn, Anke Brunn, former Minister of Science of North Rhine-Westphalia, Gabriele Behler, former Minister of State, Prof. Jochen Dieckmann, former Minister of State, Dr. Wolfgang Lieb, former State Secretary, Dr. Hans Misselwitz, former Parliamentary State Secretary, Christoph Habermann, former State Secretary, Dr. Wilhelm Schäffer, former State Secretary, Prof. Dr. Dieter Schimanke, former State Secretary, Dr. Karlheinz Bentele, former State Secretary, Dr. Karl-Heinz Klär, former State Secretary, Prof. i. R. Dr. Peter Brandt, Entspannungspolitik Jetzt! (Détente Policy Now!), Knut Lambertin, Deputy Chairman of Demokratische Linke 21 (Democratic Left 21), Dr. Uwe Pöhls, Blog der Republik (Blog of the Republic), Herbert Sahlmann, former Ministerial Councillor, Cay Gabbe, former Ministerial Councillor, Dr. Wolfgang Biermann, former employee of Egon Bahr, Prof. Dr. h.c. Cornelia Füllkrug-Weitzel, former President of Bread for the World, Jürgen Zurheide, journalist, Dr. Wolfgang Roters, Martin Schmuck, journalist, Burkhard Zimmermann, Reiner Hammelrath, former association director, Ingrid Hentzschel, Axel Fersen, Bernhard Pollmeyer, former head of department, Michael Pöllath, board member of NaturFreunde, Dr. med. Susanne Zickler, Dr. Petra Frerichs, Hartmut Palmer, journalist, Beenhard Oldigs, Dr. Heinrich Lienker, Dagmar Wenzel, biologist, Dr. Joke Frerichs, Jogi Vormbrock, Meinholde Sollmann, Prof. Dr. Clemens Knobloch, Margret Schmitz, Dr. Paul Hugo Suding, Willi Vogt, trade unionist, Prof. Dr. Andreas Fisahn, Michael Buckup, Democratic Left 21 spokesperson for Bremen/Lower Saxony, Holger Egger, Wilfried Gaum, board member of the ‘Forum for Politics and Culture Hanover’, Wolfgang Wiemer, office manager of SPD chairman Kurt Beck, Dr. Ulrich Brandt, Reinhard Thon, Prof. Dr. Dieter Stammler, Barbara Petersen, Folkert Kiepe, former Deputy German City Council, Hans-Joachim Wunderlich, Rainer Papke, Thomas Albert, former Ministerial Director, Henning von Borstell, Anna von Borstell, Roland Klapprodt, former Secretary of the SPD Party Executive CommitteeD., Hartmut Veitengruber, former ver.di district manager for Lower Bavaria, Ursula Hagen, Dr. Eckehart Hagen, Stefan Bone, conductor, Prof. Dr. Klaus Semlinger, Prof. Dr. Heinz Stapf-Finé, Prof. Dr Gerhard Bosch, Helmut Krings, Eberhard Weber, Heinz Witte, Prof. Volker Riegger, Frank Schmiedchen, Dr Karl Lauschke, Heiko Wessel, Dieter Schormann, Florian Dohmen, Member of the UB Executive Committee Duisburg, Claudia Osten-Bornheim, Hugo Waschkeit, City Councillor Ronnenberg, Prof. Dr Bernhard Nagel, Thomas Hönscheid, Prof. i.R. Dr Dieter Segert, Dr Wolfram Geier, Dr Günter Bonnet, MinDirig a.D., Dr Gerd Pflaumer, Horst Meixner, Dr Steffen Lehndorff, Prof. Dr Christoph Butterwegge, Dr Hans-Jochen Luhmann, Dr Joachim Paul. 5 ‘Peace is not everything, but without peace, everything is nothing.’ – Willy Brandt SPD Peace Circles About the SPD Peace Circles The SPD Peace Circles are an advisory body that meets regularly to discuss issues relating to the SPD's peace policy. The participants come from various circles, associations and working groups, such as the Erhard Eppler Circle, the Willy Brandt Circle, the Johannes Rau Society, SPD 60 plus, Mehr-Diplomatie-wagen, Demokratische Linke 21, Entspannungspolitik Jetzt! (Détente Policy Now!), Naturfreunde (Nature Friends), AK Frieden Bremen and Cologne.