To create world peace and help animals in war zones, we of course have to support a movement that does not make money, by selling arms to countries that are committing genocide.
Many in the media and politics are aghast as to how modern western countries are funding arms that are killing tens of thousands of innocent people and animals.
It’s also odd that in the US, it’s accepted to fund weapons that kill unborn children abroad (in a country that mostly does not agree with abortion – but it’s okay if the unborn children are elsewhere?)
Oxfam writes that the UK supplies millions of pounds worth of arms to Israel, so makes our country complicit in killing civilians.
An immediate ceasefire is never going to happen, when the UK, US and other countries (including ‘neutral’ Switzerland) supply arms. The one country that has not sold weapons for many years is Japan, and yet it has now resumed.
The UK has major business selling arms which increases GDP (a good argument for finding alternatives to economic growth).
Costa Rica is top in the world’s alternative Happiness Index (it got rid of its military decades ago, and uses money spend to protect its rainforests, small businesses and children).
It’s going against humanitarian law to sell arms to a country where they could be used to violate human rights. And this is what is happening now. ‘Arms’ does not just mean guns and ammunition, but also tanks, missiles, combat aircrafts and technology.
In September 2024 (only due to months of campaigns), the UK government acknowledged that the arms were not being used for ‘conventional war’ and announced (some restrictions), but not enough.
Parts are still being sold for fighter jets, which are raining bombs down on civilians.
The International Court of Justice says that funding genocide results in ‘war crimes’ as children are being killed from the bombs, partly funded by UK government.
Of course it’s not just humans. Animals are also starving (and people are having sometimes to eat animal feed). Greenpeace writes that bombs and fuel causes pollution, making the water undrinkable and land not fit enough to grow food.
The United States dominates the arms exporting market, supplying nearly 40% of global weapons. Russia and China are not far behind, with each providing significant military support to various nations. The motivations behind these exports vary.
How Arms Exports Escalate Conflicts
Let’s take a closer look at Yemen and Syria, two countries that have faced immense suffering due to arms exports. In Yemen, a coalition led by Saudi Arabia has received extensive military support from Western nations.
As the conflict has intensified, human suffering has skyrocketed, with millions facing starvation and displacement. In Syria, the conflict is equally complicated.
International Arms Trade Regulations
The Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) aims to establish a global standard for regulating international arms transfers. However, many countries have yet to ratify or implement its measures.
The ethical dilemmas surrounding arms exports cannot be ignored. Many countries that receive arms are known for their poor human rights records. The link between arms sales and civilian casualties is alarming.
Each weapon sold has the potential to contribute to atrocities, raising pressing questions: Should profit take precedence over human lives?
Are We Powerless to Stop Funding Weapons?
The Peace Party has a nice manifesto, but realistically is never going to gain power. The most powerful thing to do right now, is to switch your savings to a green bank account like Triodos, that does not fund weapon sales.
It takes just 10 minutes to switch (you also received a recycled plastic debit card – one member is wildlife presenter Chris Packham, who encourages others to do the same).
Some people go further. In the US, simple living guru Rob Greenfield purposely keeps his income below the threshold to pay tax (giving everything else away). This means he legally does not fund government war, as he does not believe in it.
This is similar to the Peace Tax that Quakers would like. So those of us who don’t agree with arm sales, don’t have our taxes being used to fund weapons.
Campaign Against Arms Trade says the solution is obvious. We have a climate crisis, and could transfer skills of engineers who make arms to build more solar panels and other forms of wildlife-friendly green energy. Good for the planet, and helps to reduce bills.
This would encourage others to do the same (the US is by far the world’s biggest arms producer, yet also mostly still runs on fossil fuels).
Arms sales (however large their effect) only account for less than 2% of exports. And we should be focusing on local food and products anyway, not exports and imports.
The Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND)
CND has been campaigning for years against the selling of arms. As well as asking the government to replace Trident (the current nuclear weapons system) with money to spend on health, homes and education. Most countries don’t have anything similar, and it’s a colossal waste of money (over £200 billion).
This organisation runs much deeper than the protestors you likely imagine in the media, being dragged away by police. It campaigns not just for a global ban on nuclear weapons, but also to end Britain’s participation in the US Missile Defence System.
It’s also not a fan of NATO (due to nuclear polities) and campaigns for world peace in general, always good!
Why against nuclear bombs? Because they could literally wipe all of us out in seconds, they are so dangerous. The UK government began testing its first nuclear bomb back in 1952, just 7 years after the Japanese city of Hiroshima suffered terribly, after the US bombed the city.
This bomb (together with another in Nagasaki) killed around 340,000 people.
