Dr Strangelove tells us to be ready – weekly briefing

‘Prepare for war in 1000 days’. That’s the message from the Defence Secretary Wes Streeting. Although his statements are increasingly both preposterous and pompous, they are also dangerous. Part of a softening up process, this proclamation aims to make increased arms spending, possible conscription, food shortages and rationing, and authoritarian controls, acceptable to the mass of the population, who at present generally view war in an unfavourable light.

This comes on top of the government’s ‘Be Ready’ campaign, which urges households to stockpile non-perishable foods, water, blankets and radios to protect against a cyber-attack or a severe weather incident.

Streeting, writing in the military’s paper of choice The Sunday Telegraph, claims that ‘our adversaries’ are increasing their capacity to wage war:

It’s worth unpacking this a bit. First there’s the threat of ‘our adversaries’ – specifically Russia and Iran, although China is supposedly lurking in the wings.

Is Russia in a place to launch an attack on Britain? It has been fighting in Ukraine for nearly 5 years without achieving major success, although it is weakening Ukraine’s resilience through air attacks. It is certainly not in a position to launch another major military offensive across Europe, and any idea of invasion or direct war with Britain is fanciful – except for its one trump card which is its nuclear weapons. Such a war would be one of annihilation on both sides.

It can of course launch cyber-attacks, engage in espionage and try to destabilise its enemies – and it regards Britain as an enemy given its close involvement in Nato’s proxy war over Ukraine. It is disingenuous if not downright dishonest not to admit that Britain and its allies will be carrying out similar operations against its designated enemies. These include the blowing up of the Nord Stream gas pipeline from Russia to Germany at the beginning of the Ukraine war, blamed (illogically) on Russia but now the subject of a court case in Germany involving a Ukrainian army officer who the prosecution said acted under orders of its government.

In a world where wars are escalating, and arms spending is at record levels across the globe, none of this should surprise us. But we must reject the logic of our rulers, which is to foment wars and arm themselves to the teeth, and expect us to pay for it both financially and in human terms.

The wars we are now witnessing have all been deliberate decisions to escalate. The war on terror launched against Afghanistan and Iraq was a war of choice by George Bush and Tony Blair. It led to the deaths of an estimated 4.7 million people and helped create new waves of opposition which are then designated as threats. The same situation exists over Palestine, where decades of repression and forced displacement has led to resistance, and where the western powers are very much implicated in Israel’s actions.

Putin’s invasion of Ukraine was totally unjustified. However the conflict began long before 2022, and Russia’s fear of Nato expansion eastwards, right up to its own borders, was clearly a factor in the conflict, as was the possibility of ending Ukraine’s neutrality, or it joining the EU and Nato. The Nato powers want to defeat Russia and are prepared to do so at the expense of Ukrainian and Russian lives.

We are expected to pay for their wars, and this is what Streeting and Healey have in mind for us. Yet there are other major threats. When we are told to stockpile for a cyber-attack or weather event, this is a tacit admission that the government itself is not prepared for any of these threats. They will not invest to protect our cyber security, nor will they confront the water and energy companies who refuse to ensure our basic needs are supplied.

Despite the extreme weather events witnessed in recent months, the government is refusing to bring in measures to deal with climate change – and has agreed to allow the Jackdaw gas site to go ahead in the North Sea. The appeals to resilience and the need to stockpile also ignores the huge housing crisis for working-class people – where do you put your 15 litres of water and bags of flour? Or the millions who need foodbanks to survive?

Former army chief General Sir Patrick Saunders, also in the Telegraph, argues to build bunkers and invest in air defence because, ‘The world has become as dangerous, if not more dangerous, than it was in the Cold War’. If this is so it is the responsibility of successive governments and their failed wars, their arms race, support for Israel, and refusal to seek any peaceful alternatives or to provide aid to help prevent wars.

The Dad’s Army proposals coming from government may make some people more amenable to militarism. But it is the Doctor Strangelove drive to war that we need to oppose.

The French protesters took to the streets of its major cities in a huge show of strength at the weekend. This was a major act of defiance since the president, Emmanuel Macron, had forbidden such protests. The police and authorities – in a pattern we are long familiar with – imposed a route in a less favourable place.

But the pictures tell a story: huge crowds marching peacefully, refusing to accept they could not protest over the cost of living and other demands, and demanding control of the streets. This is a magnificent response to the vicious repression – 70,000 police and some military mobilised against them on Saturday – and a strong intervention into the politics of the election period.

Marine Le Pen is favourite to win the presidency spring and has declared herself with the forces of law and order. So this is also a protest against the far right. Macron is preparing the way for Le Pen. La France Insoumise and its leader Jean-Luc Mélenchon have shown a lot of courage in leading and supporting these protests. week there is a general strike in France.

The stakes couldn’t be higher. Solidarity.

This week: In London, protests over Netanyahu’s continued genocidal attacks against the Palestinians in the West Bank, and over austerity on the eve of the Budget . Then I’m off to Newcastle and Glasgow as part of Stop the War’s international speaking tour . Other meetings this week are in Brighton and Liverpool. Try to get to one if you can.

The ongoing genocide in Gaza, Starmer’s austerity and the danger of a resurgent far right demonstrate the urgent need for socialist organisation and ideas. Counterfire has been central to the Palestine revolt and we are committed to building mass, united movements of resistance. Become a member today and join the fightback.

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