In response to this morning's news, the War Resisters' International
Executive Committee has released the following statement.
As War Resisters' International, we are extremely concerned about the war in Ukraine. War is a crime against humanity!
We call on Russia to immediately cease all attacks and withdraw its troops from the borders with Ukraine.
We call on the people of Luhansk/Lugansk and Donetsk/Donetsk to make it clear to the Russian government that they want to determine their own destiny, not at the price of war.
We call on the Ukrainian government to renounce military resistance and to proclaim civil resistance instead.
We call on the Ukrainian people to refuse all obedience to a possible new government installed by Russia. This is called social defence. If everyone refuses to obey Russia's orders, if Russia occupies Ukraine, it will ultimately not be able to achieve its goals.
We also call on the Russian people and Russian soldiers to refuse all obedience to their government's acts of war, to resist non-violently and to bring about the removal of the Putin regime. This is also part of social defence.
We call on Russia, the UN, the OSCE, NATO and all governments to start negotiations immediately.
We call on NATO members to show moderation in their response to Russian aggression and not to make the Russian people pay for the crimes of their leadership.
We stand in solidarity with the people of Ukraine in these difficult times and we support those resisting war in Ukraine, Russia and elsewhere.
War Resisters' International Executive Committee
War Resisters' International, 5 Caledonian Road, London N1 9DX, Britain
tel +44-20-7278 4040 fax +44-20-7278 0444 email info [at] wri-irg.org
http://facebook.com/warresistersint / http://twitter.com/warresistersint
