Members of NATO are “profiteering” from the killing of people through the supply of weapons to “brutal regimes,” a People Before Profit TD has claimed.
Richard Boyd-Barrett says he’s against the international military alliance “trying to take advantage” of the war in Ukraine and called on NATO to halt the supply of weapons to Israel.
It follows yesterday’s pledge by NATO to provide €40bn in military aid to Ukraine over the next year to help defend itself against Russia.
Deputy Boyd-Barrett said the organisation must stop using Ukraine as a pawn.
“I think it's up to Ukraine to purchase stuff, and I'm not against them purchasing stuff to defend themselves,” he told The Hard Shoulder.
“What I am against is NATO trying to take advantage of the situation in order to expand its areas, boost military spending and escalate the conflict.
“I’m against what both Russia and NATO are doing, and I think we should sort out our problems through non-military means.”
NATO and Israel
The PBP TD said the same is true regarding Israel.
“Why did NATO not say a single word yesterday about the genocide that is taking place in front of the world’s eyes by Israel against the Palestinians?” he said.
“They talk about boosting up the military-industrial complex, increasing arms spending that’s justified on the basis of geopolitical threats and security concerns, but don’t mention what the International Criminal Court believes is possibly a genocide.
“The reason, of course, is that the major states that dominate NATO supply arms to Israel, are allies to Israel, which tells you everything you need to know about NATO.
“NATO members account for 55% of global military expenditure, 17 times more than Russia.”
Dmytrivka village, Kyiv region, Ukraine - April 13, 2022: Destroyed private houses during active hostilities in Ukraine.Security and defence analyst Declan Power said Europe needs to show a “united front” against Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
“It has shown the need for Ireland in particular to take its own defence and security more seriously,” he said.
“We cannot engage in such activities without help from partners and we cannot exist in splendid isolation.
“We already are supporting Ukraine in this war in our own way, and we need to take the time now to think about how to stitch together a bespoke form of defence cooperation with partners that have similar interests to us.
“We need intelligence and expertise, and we can supply a certain level of expertise, given how we know our own backyard, and that can be beneficial to them – it’s a quid pro quo.”
Mr Power added that organisations like NATO and the EU are “flawed in their own way” and “need to be monitored”.
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