In Germany, a sizeable contingent of party members in the left-wing faction of the ruling Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschland (SPD), the so-called “peace phalanx,” has called for an immediate ceasefire in the Russo-Ukraine War, and urged China to play a mediating role in resolving the conflict.
In a letter titled: “The guns must be silent!” some 30 politicians from the SPD’s left-wing faction have urged for a diplomatic offensive to bring the war—which just entered its seventh month—to an end, arguing that a ceasefire is needed “as soon as possible as a starting point for comprehensive peace negotiations,” FOCUS ONLINE reports.
The letter’s signatories, in addition to saying that “Russia’s war of aggression cannot be justified by anything,” sternly warned against taking actions that could result in a further escalation of the war.
Germany and other Western must not “become a party to this war, because this would inevitably mean that the war would escalate into a third—and possibly nuclear—world war,” the group wrote. They said that with each delivery of arms, Western countries must make sure they are not crossing a “red line” that could be seen as entering the war.
For these SPD politicians, “the establishment of no-fly zones, the delivery of battle tanks or fighter jets would certainly exceed this limit.”
“The spiral of escalation must be stopped,” and a fresh attempt at “a global détente policy” is sorely needed, the letter reads.
Signatories also argued that China—and other countries who have so far stayed out of the war—should act as mediators between the two warring parties. They also called on the United Nations to play a larger role in helping to resolve the conflict.
“The war threatens to plunge the world into a recession with rising unemployment. There are already far-reaching effects on everyday life, including here in Germany,” the group wrote, noting that inflation and higher-priced energy have disproportionally affected the country’s lowest earners.
Finally, the group argued in favor of new windfall taxes, calling for “war profiteers must be asked to pay and high incomes must be taxed more heavily”.
The SPD politicians who signed the letter include members of the Bundestag Jan Dieren, Rainer Keller, Tina Rudolph, Carolin Wagner and Jens Peick; MEPS Dietmar Köster, Constanze Krehl and Joachim Schuster; Bremen’s former mayor Carsten Sieling, Bremen’s SPD state chairman Reinhold Wetjen, and Dortmund’s mayor Thomas Westphal; as well as several members of state parliaments.
