Hundreds of protesters are set to demonstrate in Washington, the District of Columbia, ahead of the NATO summit, according to US media.
Protesters gather around the Washington Convention Centre ahead of the NATO summit, which will take place in Washington for the first time in 25 years. The protest comes from the Resist NATO coalition, which includes organisations such as the International League of Peoples Struggle, the Resist US-Led War Movement and BAYAN-USA.
Protesters have already started arriving in the District on Friday evening, 5 June, causing the police to prepare for any unrest. The D.C. police chief said that the police will facilitate First Amendment activities and free speech, but will not tolerate any violence.
As senior NATO figures praise the organisation’s work around the world, protesters call it a destructive and destabilising force that negatively impacts the US military, climate and other issues. NATO is gearing up to celebrate its 75th anniversary. According to NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, the summit has a clear agenda.
Comments of those participating in the protest:
- Retired US Army Colonel and former US diplomat Ann Wright, who resigned 21 years ago to protest the Iraq war, said the following: “We do need defense, but we don’t need super defense, which is what this is all about. It’s we the veterans who see what our military does and are suffering from it, actually. The level of PTSD and suicides is horrendous because war does that to people. So, we as veterans say no more war. (…) We are peaceful people, we don’t riot. We protest. The things that get out of hand are our US militaries and our US politicians who send our US militaries into places they shouldn’t be. That’s what’s really getting out of hand.”
- David Swanson, the Executive Director of World Beyond War, stated that NATO’s activities are precisely the reason why Russia is building up its military capabilities: “The response of more NATO is a vicious cycle that gets more Russian militarism, and more NATO militarism, and more Russian militarism. We need to pursue a different path.”
- Ben Zinevich, a member of the Party for Socialism and Liberation, which is also participating in the protests on Sunday, said: “The United States should not expect it will be able to assemble its NATO junior partners in Washington without resistance from the people. Not when US weaponry is flooding Ukraine and prolonging a war that could have been avoided with Russia. Not when Washington and NATO partners continue to supply the means for the state of Israel to conduct its genocidal war on Israel.”
- Resist NATO coalition organisers said: “NATO’s 75th summit is occurring during Russia’s counter-aggression strategy against US-NATO military escalation and NATO territorial expansion, which has enabled NATO to call on its members to provide billions in weapons and military aid. The summit is also occurring when NATO is building military partnerships with Indo-Pacific countries to counter the influence of China. Protesters will demand that resources be allocated away from militarism and into economic, housing, health, education, and climate initiatives.”
Earlier, the US, Japan and South Korea concluded their largest-ever three-day military exercises, which North Korea condemned, calling them provocative. The protests also came on top of the Protest came after numerous protests in San Diego and Hawaii against the biennial RIMPAC war games, including the mobilisation of hundreds of people in San Diego last Sunday.
