Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s announcement that Britain is ‘ready and willing to contribute to security guarantees to Ukraine by putting our own troops on the ground if necessary’, is deeply concerning and should be opposed. Far from offering Ukraine security, such a move would risk an outright confrontation with Russian troops.
His plans for Britain to lead a greater NATO military presence across Europe would be a disaster. The £205bn that Europe has pledged in military aid to Ukraine since 2022 has not kept the Ukrainian people safe and instead contributed to prolonging this terrible conflict and increased the threat of nuclear war.
It is absolutely critical that the Ukraine war is brought to an end. Starmer’s continuing to peddle the dangerous myth that Ukraine will gain NATO membership – and that such membership offers the best security against Russia – is utterly reckless. On the contrary, pushing NATO membership for Ukraine has been a key driver of this conflict. Continuing to do so now will only worsen tensions at a time when a negotiated settlement could be achieved.
But any settlement can only be the first step in reducing tensions in the region. Central to this must also be the withdrawal of both US nuclear weapons from NATO bases across Europe and Russian weapons from Belarus.
Instead of European states pushing for an increasingly militarised region, they should be working with Ukraine and Russia to develop a policy of common security, where all countries’ security needs are acknowledged and respected.
The Ukraine war has been a key driver of the worsening economic crises in Britain and across Europe. With the Bank of England halving Britain’s growth forecast, the government needs to step back from this reckless war-drive. Far from kick-starting economic growth, funnelling billions more into arms companies and nuclear weapons will only further deepen the crisis. As the British government’s own watchdog has concluded that the replacement of Britain’s nuclear weapons system is ‘unachievable’, it is time the government cut its losses and instead directed this into rebuilding crumbling public services and investing in sustainable energy sources.
Image credit: Ministry of Defence / Crown copyright 2024