The “Stop the War Coalition” movement, portrayed as an anti-war movement engaged in protesting the delivery of heavy weapons to Ukraine, serves the Moscow goal, as we explain below.
Stopping weapons supply to Ukraine would mean not stopping the war but leaving Ukraine defenseless and helping the Russian regime to succeed in its war against Ukraine. As a result of such developments, Russia would occupy and annex all of Ukraine.
As many observers say, these activists’ claims mean “Stop the West from supporting Ukraine” rather than “Stop the war”.
As Stop the War prepares to hold a new event in London dedicated to the Russia-Ukraine war, “Europe for Peace: Stop the War in Ukraine,” we decided to look into who profits from their efforts.
“Stop the War” doesn’t admit that Putin’s regime is solely responsible for war
“Stop the War Coalition” does not blame Putin’s regime for the savage and unjustified invasion of Ukraine, and they argue that NATO expansion contributed to Russia’s attack. Why did Finland’s recent NATO membership not spark a war?
These “peace” activists overlook that Russia is an imperialist state with a violent dictatorship that has invaded a neighboring sovereign country. And the only way forward for the civilized world is to resist Putin’s regime and Russia’s aggressive war.
While Stop the War makes a big deal about its anti-imperialism, it doesn’t stand up to Russia’s terrible imperialist war on Ukraine.
The pseudo-pacifist campaign, coordinated by this organization, organized protests and conferences dedicated to the Russia-Ukraine war.
Why are “Stop the War” demands beneficial to Russia?
The “Stop the War” organization’s main demands are: “Stop sending weapons to Ukraine; immediate ceasefire and peace talks.” The activists, however, do not demand that the Russian military leave Ukraine.
Suppose the West follows through on the StW proposal to cease weapons supply to Ukraine. In that case, it will result in a Russian victory and the subjection of Ukraine to Russian political authority. Such a tragic catastrophe would result in terror under Russian occupation, as we saw in Bucha, Izyum, and other towns where Russia’s invading forces perpetrated war crimes.
Putin would like to use an “immediate ceasefire” to regroup and rearm following recent military defeats. It will also imply the right to use violence, violate internationally recognized borders, and annex sovereign states’ territories, as peace talks would mean that Russian troops would remain in the captured Ukrainian territories.
Putin now has no plans to end his tireless, agonizing war and, according to realistic military assessments, is planning a new conscript recruitment and offensive. In this context, calls for a ceasefire imply Ukrainian defeat and surrender.
Why should Ukrainians “compromise” with Putin by allowing Russia to occupy 20% of their territory? Beginning discussions with Putin’s dictatorship would imply accepting its right to wage colonial war against neighboring countries.
Ukraine has a right to self-determination. They have the right to fight and demand weaponry and financial assistance from the West.
An immediate ceasefire would leave Ukrainians in Melitopol, occupied Kherson, and Luhansk suffering under Russian oppression. And why should they be subject to Russian rule? We must remember what that entails: mass arrests, torture, rape, widespread looting, the destruction of all opposition and elected officials, and the imposition of a foreign police state regime.
Remember that 1,200 civilian dead were uncovered after the Russian retreat from north of Kyiv in April. Over 50,000 apparent war crimes have been investigated by Ukrainian prosecutors.
“Stop the War”: false claims on who started the war
The StW activists, and the useful idiots that help them, make no sense when they argue that NATO caused this war. Putin started this war by invading Ukraine to take more land than he did in 2014. Putin is a kleptocrat and dictatorial imperialist aggressor.
NATO and Russia do not share any similarities. NATO has no forces on the ground. Russian invaders fight the Ukrainian army, which was admitted even by Putin’s buddy, Evgeny Prigozhin, owner of the infamous Wagner group. Some Western countries are assisting a tiny state in preventing it from being overtaken by cruel, aggressive Russian imperialism. Putin and his regime have responsibility for the invasion and its consequences.
The West has no interest in a Russian-Ukrainian war. Why would it require one? War is terrible for business because it causes instability and economic turmoil. The West did not want this war. Putin’s regime intended for this war to conquer all of Ukraine. As a result, during the invasion, Russian troops simultaneously assaulted from the east, north, and south, attempting to capture Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv.
“Stop the War”: silence about Russian war crimes in Ukraine
On the Stop the War website, you will not find information about Putin’s troops’ atrocities, nor will you find solidarity with the courageous anti-war protestors now imprisoned in Russia or with the tens of thousands of Russian refugees who have left to avoid waging Putin’s colonial war.
That is why citizens in the EU and the UK should not support Stop the War demonstrations relating to the Russia-Ukraine war and should reconsider their attitude toward this movement, which has become biased due to a pro-Moscow posture.
Instead, the civilized world should help Ukraine with additional weapons, demand Russian troops withdraw from Ukraine, and denounce Russian war crimes and barbarism against Ukrainians.
“Stop the War”: protests in London
Marking the first year of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, on February 24, the “Stop the war coalition” movement held a demonstration in London, calling for peace in Ukraine and an end to sending more weapons. At the rally held by Stop the War the protesters chanted anti-war slogans while holding banners against sending more weapons to Ukraine and Russia.
Jeremy Corbyn, a former British Labor Party leader, known for pro-Russia rhetoric in the past, and member of parliament, was among the attendees at the anti-war protest.
A pro-Ukraine counter-protesters group led by campaigner Peter Tatchell confronted these activists. Protesters chanted, “arm, arm, arm Ukraine, put an end to Putin’s reign” and “self-defense is no offense”.
Mr Tatchell told the journalists: “We’re here to protest Stop the War over its opposition to Ukraine. Their stance would leave Ukraine defenseless and result in Russia occupying and annexing all of Ukraine.”
“Russia is a fascist, imperialist state, and all progressive people should oppose the Putin regime and Russia’s war of aggression. We should arm Ukraine in the same way that we armed anti-Nazi resistance during the Second World War. This is a war between Ukrainian democracy and Russian fascism”, Mr Tatchell said.
Stop the War Coalition: who are they?
The Stop the War Coalition, informally known simply as Stop the War, is a British group which campaigns against the United Kingdom’s involvement in military conflicts.
It was established on September 21 2001, to campaign against the impending war in Afghanistan. It then campaigned against the imminent invasion of Iraq; the February 15, 2003, protest organized by the Coalition along with the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament.
Since then, the Coalition has opposed sending military aid to Ukraine during the Russian invasion. Critics accuse the group of being more “anti-West than anti-war” and refer to it mockingly as “Stop the West”.
In February 2022, Stop the War released its statement on the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. The report accused the British government of “saber-rattling” over Ukraine. Stop the War stated that NATO should “call a halt to its eastward expansion” and denied that Ukraine had a right to join NATO if it wanted to do so.
Keir Starmer claims that the Stop the War Coalition is a Russian stooge.
The organization has also taken part in protests against the US and its allies’ engagement in the conflicts in Syria and Yemen, as well as against rising tensions of the West with Russia. The Stop the War Coalition was vocal in recent years and expressed its opposition to Russia’s military involvement in Donbas, but it also blamed the West and NATO.
New event by Stop the War Coalition
On April 22, Stop the War Coalition has planned a meeting in London (at 2 pm in Hamilton House – Mander Hall Mabledon Place). The event is entitled “Europe for Peace: Stop the War in Ukraine”. Among the speakers, there are politicians who voiced rhetoric which suited the Kremlin’s agenda.
Clare Daly
Clare Daly is an Irish politician who has been a member of the European Parliament since 2019. Clare Daly is known for her critical statements about Western policy towards Russia and advocating the need for dialogue with Moscow. In 2019, she visited the territories illegally annexed by Russia, namely Crimea, together with other MEPs and spoke out against sanctions against Russia.
On February 24, 2022, she advocated for the prevention of military assistance to Ukraine and blamed both Russia and NATO for the war that Russia started against Ukraine. She was also active in discrediting Ukraine’s leadership, accusing NATO and the United States of escalating the conflict.
Sevim Dağdelen
Sevim Dağdelen is a German politician who is a member of the Bundestag from the Left party. Sevim Dağdelen has some ties to Russia. She has met with representatives of the Russian authorities and spoke out against sanctions against Russia, which, in her opinion, are not an effective tool for resolving international conflicts.
Sevim Dağdelen also participated in events organized by Russian organizations. She published an article stating that the provision of Leopard tanks to Ukraine by NATO countries was a mistake.
Useful idiots or genuine activists?
Given that the war in Ukraine has lasted more than 14 months, it is not unrealistic to expect it to end in some dialogue soon. Negotiations are unavoidable at some point. Russia’s window of opportunity to fulfill its objectives on the battlefield has long passed.
However, until Ukraine receives more and different types of heavy weapons from its Western partners, it will be impossible for Ukrainian forces to undertake large-scale counter-offensives to liberate the rest of their land, as they did so brilliantly in Kharkiv and Kherson in 2022.
In a few months, one or both sides will run out of resources to conduct war, and both countries will be forced to negotiate a ceasefire. However, the Russian leadership continues to deny Ukraine’s right to exist as a sovereign state and wishes to acquire its lands. The Western countries, both leadership and people, are united in their support for Ukraine.
However, Western support for Ukraine has sparked resistance from so-called “anti-war” movements based on “anti-US” sentiments and an anti-Western worldview. Unfortunately, they can organize supporters in the West through targeted media tactics and fear-mongering messages.
Their statements on Ukraine are frequently indistinguishable from those of European far-right groups making a similar case for removing assistance from Ukraine.
Regarding repercussions, their call to “end the war in Ukraine” translates to “stop assisting Ukraine in defending itself.” There is never a moral urgency to their self-proclaimed anti-war attitude as they pass over well-documented Russian atrocities, Putin’s professed intentions in Ukraine, and the colonial nature of the invasion. This leads to only one obvious conclusion: “Stop the War” opposes the side receiving US support, as well as the site opposing the Moscow dictatorship.
So many times, these ‘peace activists’ gain headlines for their efforts that help Russia. They stepped up their efforts just as tougher sanctions were imposed on Russia’s energy sector and additional heavy weapons were sent to Ukraine. Assume that everything was a coincidence and that Russia used them as “useful idiots” to promote its war goal.
While it is impossible to tell whether the StW movement could receive finances or is influenced by Kremlin-linked organizations, we can observe that these demonstrations benefit Russia and are staged precisely when Moscow requires them. And these “anti-war” protesters can’t dispute that they’re ignoring these realities.
Note: A useful idiot is a word used in political jargon to describe someone viewed as propagandizing for a cause, particularly a terrible cause emanating from a malicious source, without fully comprehending the cause’s goals and who is cynically employed by the cause’s leaders.
