We are concerned that several Western governments, including Germany, are now allowing Ukraine to attack targets on Russian territory with weapons supplied by them.
It is undisputed that Ukraine has the right to self-defense against the Russian war of aggression. According to Article 51 of the UN Charter, this right of self-defense can also include strikes on Russian territory.
As clear as the situation under international law may be, the current debate misses the real issue.
The political debate is all about how the Ukrainian military should wage this war – with which weapons supplied by the West, whether it should also be on Russian territory, etc., and so on.
However, the real question is not how this war should be waged, but how it can be ended. The real task of European politics must be to find a way to peace.
It is directed in particular at the SPD, the party of peace, détente and international solidarity.
The path that Rolf Mützenich has pointed out, namely to reach peace talks via a ceasefire, must now be pursued consistently.
Over the past two years, Chancellor Scholz has repeatedly crossed borders that he previously described as red lines. The Chancellor has been under strong pressure from the public and the opposition.
In view of the danger of further escalation, however, we need a course of prudence and foresight that cannot be upset by public debates and loud individual opinions.
We are living in the most dangerous decade since the end of the Second World War. In large parts of society, the discussion is becoming increasingly militarized.
While some can hardly wait to reintroduce compulsory military service, others are already thinking about how Germany could wage war against Russia and want to mobilize reservists.
All of this is contributing to a self-reinforcing and increasingly unpredictable dynamic.
After two world wars triggered by Germany, the role of the German government and the SPD today must be to prevent a third.
Our constitution gives paramount importance to the imperative of serving peace and outlaws l acts that are suitable and undertaken with the intention of disturbing the peaceful coexistence of peoples as unconstitutional.
Europe has learned the lesson from these world wars that wars will not be prevented by mutual recalcitrance and armament, but only by interlocking and cooperation for common security. This lesson learned must be a model for a global peace project.
The world will not be able to overcome the great challenges of our time if we are not able to work together and cooperate.
We must stop playing with fire, otherwise it threatens to become a nuclear inferno.
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