arms trade

Andrew Smith of Campaign Against Arms Trade (CAAT) in the UK reflects on new research that shows a shift in priorities from militarism to green energy would create a safer, better world and hundreds of thousands of new jobs.

Imagine if the government put peace and social justice ahead of militarism and war? What would happen if the level of resources currently being put into promoting military might were used to make the world a better place?

Wendela de Vries describes the action Stop Wapenhandel took against the presence of Dutch companies at the IDEX arms fair.

On Monday 13th April, groups across the world took action on military spending. The Global Day of Action on Military Spending (GDAMS) is now in it's fifth year, and WRI affiliates took action to highlight the huge amounts of money that are wasted on military expenditure across the globe.

In Finland, two WRI affiliates came together to display a banner reading "If we had $1.8 trillion, we'd would #movethemoney to education, renewable energy, healthcare" in multiple languages. Members of South Korean group World Without War are currently touring Europe, met with members of AKL (the Union of Conscientious Objectors), and took part in the action.

By Who Profits

Daekwang Chemical (hereafter DK) is the largest manufacturer of tear gas products in South Korea. DK was founded 2001 and initially its major area of business was sales of fireworks products. Before DK focused on tear gas business, the company’s sales volume was relatively small. Annual sales volume of DK recorded around USD 1 million.

European arms are present in wars and human rights abuses worldwide. Whilst Europe pleads for peace and civilisation, European arms are changing hands in the Middle East.
This is not surprising. Our arms export rules aren't watertight at all.
I stop the arms trade .eu gets the arms dealers out of anonymity and intervenes in the places where we can stop the arms trade.

War Profiteers' News, November 2014: Special Gender Issue, No. 43

by Julie L. Arostegui, J.D.

There is no doubt that the group commonly known as the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) must be stopped. The brutal tactics of this violent, extremist, archaic group that aims to establish a seventh century style Islamist caliphate have been made clear to the world: beheadings of civilians, mass executions, killings, and abductions of non-Muslims and ethnic and religious minorities. Especially disturbing is the horrifying sexual violence that is being committed against women and children as a tactic of war. United Nations officials have condemned the “barbaric acts” of sexual violence and “savage rapes” that ISIS has perpetrated on minorities in areas under its control.

4 September 2014

We, the undersigned, call on members of the Intergovernmental Authority on Development
(IGAD) to immediately impose a comprehensive arms embargo on South Sudan. We also call on
IGAD to issue a communiqué requesting the United Nations (UN) Security Council to adopt a
resolution imposing a comprehensive international arms embargo.

Press Statement by the spokesperson of the campaign Action outcry - Stop the arms trade!

The campaign "Action outcry - Stop the arms trade" criticized the decision made by the Federal Government, to upgrade the weapons of Kurdish fighters in northern Iraq with German war weapons. The campaign spokesmen Jürgen Grässlin and Paul Russmann spoke emphatically of "the disastrous consequences of the pending arms transfers".

"German arms supplies to the Kurdish peshmerga are false and fatal in their effect. Whoever supplies weapons to a war party, is adding fuel to the fire of war" said Jürgen Grässlin, national spokesman of the German Peace Society - United War Resisters (DFG-VK) and for the campaign 'Action outcry - Stop the arms trade"!

Elbit Systems is one of the world's largest defence electronics manufacturers and integrators. Established in 1967, and based in Haifa, Israel, Elbit employs 11,000 people worldwide. It supplies the military, navy and air force in the occupation of Palestine, and has profited greatly from Israel's numerous attacks and assaults on the Palestinian and Lebanese people.

By Wendela de Vries

“Secure societies – Protecting freedom and security of Europe and its citizens.”

Last year, the powerful DG Trade and Enterprise of the European Commission published a study on the European arms industry. The 'strategy for a stronger and more competitive European defence industry' stresses the need for a strong European arms industry, not only to provide security but first and foremost because the Commission considers the arms industry a great technological innovator and employment generator. According to the Commission, military research should be stimulated with EU money, and export regulation (“unnecessary red tape”) should be kept to a minimum. There was even the proposal to use the Commission as 'launching costumer' for new military products. When reading this Communication one can only conclude that the lobby of the European defence industry – by organisations like AeroSpace and Defence Industries Association of Europe - has been very effective.

The last fortnight has seen growing protests against the companies arming the Israeli military, in particular the company Elbit Systems. “This is part of a growing direct action campaign against corporations that are profiteering from making machineries of death”, said the Melbourne Palestine Action Group, who occupied their factory in Melbourne. In Britain, the London Palestine Action Group occupied Elbit's factory in Birmingham. In the US groups stopped the Israeli ship Zim Haifa from unloading goods at the Oakland port.  WRI has signed up to the European Network Against Arms Trade statement calling upon the European Union to end its military support for Israel. Have a look at Sahar Vardi's article on resisting militarism within Israel here and WRI's statement on the assault on Gaza.

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