On this International Day of Peace, we welcome the adoption by the United Nations General Assembly of a resolution calling for an end to the Israeli occupation of Palestine within the next 12 months. The resolution was the first put forward for debate and vote by the Palestinian delegation to the UN. It followed the landmark ruling of the International Court of Justice on July 19 that Israel‘s occupation of the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, is illegal and must end as soon as possible. 

Its passage by an overwhelming majority is a clear indication of the willingness of the majority of nation states to move away from endorsing the ongoing genocide, settler colonialism, ethnic cleansing and apartheid. We urge people of conscience to protest against those governments that opposed this historic resolution.

Europe continues to militarise

The official consensus in the European Union is moving dangerously towards further militarisation. In recent weeks, the European Commission has pushed for a ‘European Defence Union’, including a proposal by Poland and Greece for a European air defence shield – while MEPs have voted for deeper military strikes in Russia, reaffirmed a position to commit a certain minimum of gross domestic product to military spending for Ukraine, and extended sanctions against Chinese individuals and entities.

A new Non-Aligned Movement 

DiEM25 has previously called on the governments of the world’s leading powers to initiate a parallel Peace Process to achieve a just resolution of wars. We have further called upon democrats across the world to “join forces in a New Non-Aligned Movement” to oppose the division of the world into competing blocs. We have also proposed mechanisms to decouple NATO from European security and defence structures, including: 

• Narrowing down the mission of the European External Action Service (EEAS) to strictly diplomatic means;
• Ending formal cooperation of EEAS with NATO, including terminating dual EEAS/NATO command and communication structures; 
• Strengthening arms control protocols in Europe, starting with the adoption of the Treaty on Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons across the continent; and
• Managing conflicts through a reformed United Nations (UN) and transferring planning and control of existing European military and civilian missions to the UN.

On UN International Day of Peace, let’s join the billions of voices demanding that those who promote and enable genocide and war be stopped and held accountable.  Join us to support those efforts.

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