In 2019, the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union will negotiate the next Multiannual Financial Framework for 2021 to 2027. The outcome will significantly impact European politics in the next few years.
There is reason to fear that the Parliament and the Member States of the European Union will submit to the pressures of right-wing populist movements and therefore invest even more in border fortifications and military security policy: new multi-billion euro expenditures on common defence projects, more joint military operations and the expansion of border security are planned as of 2021.
The promotion of peace and human rights is in danger of being limited and instrumentalised to control migration. The European Commission’s draft for the financial framework, dated June 2018, earmarks just €1 bn. instead of the previous €2.3 bn. for non-violent conflict transformation.
Why the European Union should not become a military power:
The new European defence fund has a proposed budget of €13 bn. for armaments research and the development of new arms systems. In addition, €6.5 bn. are intended for military mobility, especially for the quick redeployment of troops within Europe. Funding the European defence fund out of the common budget of the EU would bid a final farewell to the European Union as a civil peace project.
The future Community budget would invest ten times as much in armaments than in peacebuilding. There is reason to fear that the fund’s multi-billion euro subsidisation of the arms industry will result in even more arms exports from Europe.
Why the European Union and its Member States should not provide arms to countries that wage war or disregard human rights:
The next Multiannual Financial Framework of the European Union and a new off-budget “European Peace Facility” are designed to fund EU joint military operations and the armament of armed forces in war zones and conflict areas, for example to deter migration. These funding instruments would undermine the European Union’s own regulations regarding arms exports.
The Union’s aim is to promote peace, its values and the well-being of its peoples.
The European Court of Auditors criticised capacity-building programs, for example in Mali or Niger, would show no sustainable results. The publishers of the German peace report 2018 warned these programs would pose considerable risks to human rights. They could lead to greater violence rather than curbing it.
Why the European Union should increase support for non-violent conflict transformation and human rights in the future:
The European Union is one of the world’s most important financial supporters of non-violent conflict transformation and human rights. Many civil society organisations for peace and human rights depend on this support more than ever. The number of violent conflicts has increased in recent years, while human rights and human rights defenders have come under pressure in many countries.
The European Union should not take part in the global armament spiral but pursue its most important goal: “to promote peace, its values and the well-being of its peoples.”
Appeal to the European Parliament SAVE THE EUROPEAN PEACE PROJECT
