As the war in Ukraine threatens to unleash a new world war, the peace movement is rising to the occasion to provide an alternative.

In this month’s CPNN, we carry articles from the peace movements in the United States, Italy, France, England and Germany, as well as information about the remnants of peace movements in Ukraine and Russia.

In the United States and Canada antiwar actions were held in more than 70 areas at the end of October.  The actions took place in answer to a call from the United National Antiwar Coalition (UNAC), and were joined by a coalition of antiwar groups from Canada and also by some European countries. The actions filled a void during the pre-election campaigns in the United States because the Ukraine War was not debated by the candidates of either political party. The UNAC demands are “Stop Washington’s war moves toward Russia and China; Stop endless wars: Iraq, Syria, Somalia, Palestine, everywhere.”

In Rome, Italy, 30,000 people took part in a demonstration demanding negotiations for peace in the Ukraine. It was organized by the trade unions CGIL, CISL and UIL, ARCI, ACLI, ANP, together with the community of Sant’Egidio, the association Libera, Emergency, Sbilanciamoci and the Aoi. Reduce military spending in favor of investments for poverty, ecological transition and decent work, guarantee shared security, which “does not come from weapons that only cause suffering to the populations”: these were some of the demands raised by the stage.

150 activists from 62 of the 101 departments in France were delegates to the congress of Mouvement de la Paix that met in November in the City Hall of Tours. The Congress was also attended by activists from 14 other countries and representatives of national organizations such as Arac, CGT, Free Thought, ACCA, Teachers for Peace, Pugwash, Initiative for Nuclear Disarmament (IDN), Afcdrp, International Feminist Initiative, Europ Ecology The Greens (EELV), Pcf, Pax Christi, Ccfd, Solidarity peoples, Acat, France Kurdistan, Christian migrants, peace educators, international handicap, family planning. An appeal from the Congress calls for national days of action on December 13-14, for a Christmas ceasefire in the Ukraine, and for a world mobilization against all wars on 24 February 2023.

In Germany, after a two-year break, the nationwide Peace Council 2022 will take place as a face-to-face event on December 10th and 11th. This meeting comes at a time when: the Ukraine war is escalating into an open proxy war between NATO and Russia; humanity is threatened by nuclear self-destruction; the EU economic war is leading to massive social protests; open debate is restricted on these topics; and there is a great need for discussion within the peace movement.

In England, the first ever trade union conference of the Stop the War movement will take place on 21 January. The call says “It’s vital that we connect the struggles of the anti-war and labour movements and make the call to ‘cut warfare not welfare’ at this crucial time. We stand alongside our teachers, nurses, firefighters, lecturers and all those who refuse to see their living standards eroded to pay for the misery of war.”

In the Ukraine, the small, but persistent, peace movement, from which we published an anti-war manifesto earlier this year, continues to send its message of peace to Western activists, including an eloquent letter that was read to the meeting of Mouvement de la Paix mentioned above.

As for a peace movement in Russia, the thousands, even millions, of voices that we published earlier this year in CPNN, have mostly been silenced by Russian authorities. However, some Russian anti-war activists have fled to other countries and continue to publish. A good example is Meduza which recently published an article describing the reactions of Russian mothers against the war in Ukraine. They were excluded from the meeting that Putin held with mothers of Russian soldiers.

Looking into the future, let’s support the call of Mouvement de la Paix for a Christmas ceasefire and world mobilization on February 2023. In the Ukraine, all sides of the war are suffering and need a ceasefire. And in the rest of the world where over 100 armed conflicts are continuing, the people long for peace.

Speaking at the United Nations at the opening of the Tenth Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (10th NPT Review), Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned that humanity is “just one misunderstanding, one miscalculation away from nuclear annihilation.” “The risks of proliferation are growing and guardrails to prevent escalation are weakening.   And crises — with nuclear undertones — are festering, From the Middle East and the Korean Peninsula to the invasion of Ukraine by Russia, and to many other factors around the world.” 

A few days later Guterres went to Hiroshima where he spoke at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Ceremony, marking the anniversary of the atomic bombing, the most horrendous terrorist act in human history. At his press conference, he stated that the world is in danger of forgetting the lessons forged in this city 77 years ago.  He added that it is unacceptable for states in possession of nuclear weapons to admit the possibility of nuclear war.  He stressed that we must use every avenue of dialogue, diplomacy and negotiation to ease tensions and eliminate the nuclear threat.

Hiroshima Mayor Kazumi Matsui, speaking at the ceremony, said, “I call on the leaders of the nuclear-weapon states to visit the atomic-bombed cities where they can personally encounter the consequences of using nuclear weapons and strengthen their will to take these steps. I want them to understand that the only sure way to protect the lives and property of their people is to eliminate nuclear weapons.”

Speaking 3 days later at the anniversary of the atomic bombing of Nagasaki, Tomihisa Taue, the mayor of that city said: “In January this year, the leaders of the United States, Russia, the United Kingdom, France and China released a joint statement affirming that ‘a nuclear war cannot be won and must never be fought.’ However, the very next month Russia invaded Ukraine. Threats of using nuclear weapons have been made, sending shivers throughout the globe. . . . Instead of waging war, mankind should foster “a ‘culture of peace’ that spreads trust, respects others and seeks resolutions through dialogue.”

Mayor Tomihisa Taue then traveled to the United Nations where he addressed the meetings of the 10th NPT Review, recalling “the hibakusha’s long-standing call for the abolition of nuclear weapons—which has resonated throughout the world, raising awareness of their inhumanity. Nevertheless, decades of such effort can be undone if just one nuclear-weapon state decides to use all of its power to tyrannize other states.” He urged the attendees to fulfill the nuclear disarmament obligations as stipulated in Article VI of the NPT, as well as to propose concrete strategies to ensure progress in nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation measures. He also expressed the determination of Mayors for Peace, to continue striving for a world without nuclear weapons. He closed his statement by imparting a message: May Nagasaki be the last wartime atomic bombing site.

The messages from Hiroshima and Nagasaki were echoed around the world. In Winchester, United Kingdom, the mayor presided over an event to commemorate the bombings, saying, “I share the spirit of my fellow Mayor of Nagasaki, who stated, ‘I hereby declare to do the utmost to realise the abolition of nuclear weapons and everlasting world peace’.” And in Nagpur, India, more than 5000 people visited the event No More Hiroshima: No More Nagasaki.

The 10th NPT Review ended at the United Nations in New York without even reaching a joint statement, let alone taking any concrete steps towards nuclear disarmament. However, in reporting the results, the peace organization Unfold Zero, stated that some of the issues mentioned at the conference, such as nuclear risk reduction, non-use of nuclear weapons in armed conflict, the adoption of no-first-use policies and negative security assurances, will be raised in other forums. “We encourage you to stay tuned and engaged in this.”

More than ever, we need a global movement for nuclear disarmament!

Two sets of events this month promise progress towards a culture of peace.

In Colombia, the newly-elected President Gustavo Petro promises to re-invigorate the peace process, while at the same time the Colombian Truth Commission has published its long-awaited report.

The election of Petro is the first time in the history of Colombia that a left-wing candidate has been elected President. Petro based his candidature on the promise to complete the peace process by making peace with the ELN guerillas, and to ensure the safety of community leaders and former FARC guerillas. This will not be easy since during the administration of the outgoing President Duque 4,930 leaders were assassinated.

The Colombian Truth Commission has been working since 2018 to clarify the violations that occurred during the armed conflict and to contribute to uniting Colombian society so it can advance towards the construction of a future of peace for all. As expressed by newly-elected President Petro, “The truth cannot be a space for revenge.”

Also in June, two important international meetings took place in the struggle to abolish nuclear weapons.

On 9-10 June scholars and experts met in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, to discuss the importance, challenge and prospects for Nuclear-weapon-free zones (NWFZ). The participants congratulated Mongolia on the 30th year of its unprecedented initiative to establish a single-State NWFZ.

More than half of the world is now covered by Nuclear-weapon-free zones, as shown in the world map published with the article from Mongolia.

Then on 21-23 June, the historic first Meeting of States Parties to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons met in Vienna and adopted a political declaration and practical action plan that set the course for the implementation of the Treaty and progress towards its goal of the total elimination of nuclear weapons.

CPNN readers may recall that the Treaty was was adopted by a majority of States (122) at the UN on July 7, 2017 (See CPNN bulletin for August 2017) and it entered into force on January 22, 2021 (see CPNN bulletin for February 2021).

The urgency of these initiatives was underlined in the most recent report from SIPRI, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. Of the total inventory of an estimated 12 705 nuclear warheads at the start of 2022, about 9440 were in military stockpiles for potential use. Of those, an estimated 3732 warheads were deployed with missiles and aircraft, and around 2000—nearly all of which belonged to Russia or the USA—were kept in a state of high operational alert. SIPRI adds that nuclear arsenals are expected to grow over the coming decade.

The war in Ukraine runs the risk of escalating into a nuclear war. Speaking at the meeting in Vienna, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said, “The once unthinkable prospect of nuclear conflict is now back within the realm of possibility.

Cities have no use for nuclear weapons. Hence the United States Conference of Mayors has called on the U.S. and the other nuclear-armed states to commit to a process leading to the adoption no later than 2030 of a timebound plan for the global elimination of nuclear weapons by 2045. The European Chapter of Mayors for Peace expressed their solidarity with Ukrainian cities and called for a long-term vision of international security that overcomes nuclear deterrence. They attended and supported the Meeting of States Parties to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapon in Vienna that is mentioned above. Activists in a number of European cities mounted actions to support that meeting.

We conclude with homage to the great peace activist Bruce Kent who passed away at the age of 93 last month in England. One of his last acts was to join a small CND delegation delivering a letter to the Russian Embassy in London, which said: “For the sake of Ukrainian children taking shelter from Russian missiles; for the sake of all those who will die if the situation escalates and for the sake of the millions of us who will perish if the heightened risk of nuclear war turns into a nuclear conflict, we urge your government to halt the attacks, withdraw the troops and withdraw the nuclear threats.”