Putin's war will change many things. There is a certain militaristic euphoria in the West. A🧵of pacifist reflection: 👇
1/10 Ukraine has been calling for weapons to defend itself. Overcoming initial reluctance, European countries are now offering them.
2/10 Arming Ukraine could slow down the Russian offensive and force negotiations. A fundamental goal. But it can also unleash more forceful Russian military action, and a war spiral of unpredictable consequences. A big dilemma.
3/10 There is only one step between sending weapons and direct intervention. A step that was necessary in Sarajevo. But that has been a disaster in Syria. Another dilemma.
4/10 These dilemmas cannot be answered in absolute binary terms: always yes or always no.
5/10 From a pacifist point of view, we must understand that NATO will not disappear in the short term. Neither will the armies. Nonviolent civil resistance is certainly more powerful than weapons. But the conditions for putting it in action are not always given.
6/10 Those who critique pacifism must admit that the arms race does not contribute to security. Transferring weapons can be counterproductive (Afghanistan). Democracy cannot be imposed with weapons (Iraq, Libya). We sell weapons to authoritarian governments (Saudi Arabia).
7/10 When war breaks out we are late. We need to prevent wars from breaking out. We can do much more to prevent further wars.
8/10 Europe needs a new security architecture. Not because Putin demands it. But to prevent "new Putins"; to be consistent with "other Putins"; and to adapt to the global challenges of human security in an interdependent world.
9/10 The doctrine of "common security" must be the frame of reference and this requires new proposals. Proposals from different perspectives that allow, eventually, a new commitment to disarmament, both nuclear and conventional.
10/10 #StopPutin #StopWars.
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