It is increasingly clear that the strategy of the ruling class across Europe is to prepare their citizens for outright military conflict.
The distribution of information leaflets to households by a number of Western governments, warning them to prepare for an emergency situation through stockpiling food, water, torches and other items, can only be read in the light of the rising drumbeats of war. The British government’s official warnings have taken on a more explicitly militaristic tone, with the British Army chief Roly Walker declaring that a “frank conversation” needs to be had about preparing for war. But war with whom?
The Twenty Six County government’s cowardly and anti-democratic scrapping of the “triple lock” legislation this week is a further gesture towards the destruction of the long-standing policy of neutrality and the normalisation of war, coming on the back of years of propaganda designed to erode the overwhelming popular consent for peace and military non-alignment. While this concerted propaganda campaign – undertaken through all major media outlets including the national broadcaster – was unsuccessful at shifting the tide of public opinion, the FFG regime, backed by reactionary rump of rural independents that constitutes the present crisis-ridden government, pushed through the measure regardless.
This comes in the context of increasing protests across major European capitals, and increasingly violent counter-protest measures being adopted by sitting governments. The imperialist world order is in crisis – unable to achieve victory in its soon to be reignited war against Iran, nor to push back Russia in Ukraine, and frustrated in its efforts to enact further genocidal violence on the people of Palestine, Lebanon and Syria through its Zionist and Gulf proxies, the violence that once maintained Europe’s colonies is once again turned inwards on its own citizens, revolting against rampant inflation and marked declines in living standards. The calculation by the bourgeoisie seems to be that mobilisation for war is the answer to its current moment of multi-crisis.
What is strikingly clear is that war and preparations for war benefit nobody but the ruling class. The exploitation of public wealth to finance the instruments of war, from bombs and missiles to aircraft carriers to data centres, is the economic engine of the infernal war machine. The pointless deaths of countless innocent lives – deemed expendable by our political “leaders” – is the byproduct.
We firmly reject any and all attempts to drum up consent for war – with Russia, Iran, Lebanon or any other adversary selected by Washington, Brussels or London. We repudiate the lies, falsehoods and fabrications wielded with increasingly absurd self-confidence by the masters of war, as they try to place our populations and our economies on a war footing. We stand in solidarity with all those resisting our common enemy – the imperialist world order – in Gaza, in Tehran, in Havana and in Khartoum. Our struggles for independence and sovereignty are deeply and inextricably linked, and we will continue to resist until our freedoms are secured.
Our revenge will be the laughter of our children.
