NATO

Fighting has spread to several countries and the economic war leaves no national economy untouched. The demand for an end to escalations, sanctions and war remains vital, argues David Jamieson

The Russian president’s statement makes clear that we are nearer to great power nuclear confrontation than at any time for generations, writes Chris Nineham

Justice for Chris Kaba, the crisis in our schools, why we need to fight for peace in Ukraine, myths of monarchy, the intensification of climate breakdown, Felixstowe and Liverpool dock strikes and more in this month's Counterfire freesheet

As the war drags on and decisive military victory for either side looks increasingly remote, the movement must renew its call for peace, writes Shadia Edwards-Dashti

To understand the direction of the war, we need to see beyond the battlefield in Ukraine, explains Vladimir Unkovski-Korica

Lindsey German on the case of Christopher Pincher and an ever-encroaching Nato

At Counterfire's Revolution! Festival, Alex Kenny, Phyllis Bennis, Shabbir Lakha and Vijay Prashad discussed the war in Ukraine and the job for anti-imperialists in the west

Nato is responding to the horrific Russian invasion of Ukraine in the most confrontational and provocative way possible, writes Chris Nineham

The second part of Glyn Secker's historical and political analysis of the drivers of the war in Ukraine, Russian imperialism and neo-fascism in Europe

The warmongers gathered in Madrid are ramping up militarism and gearinng up for more war, writes Lindsey German

Glyn Secker provides a detailed historical and political analysis of the drivers of the war in Ukraine, Russian imperialism and neo-fascism in Europe

Lindsey German on the rail strikes, Labour's attack on the unions and a woman's right to choose

Chris Nineham analyses the West’s latest inflammatory moves in the war in Ukraine. 

Chris Nineham describes the immense suffering and misery the Ukraine war is causing and why despite this, Biden and Johnson are pushing for more war

Dragan Plavšić speaks to Russian socialist and anti-war activist Alexei Sakhnin about the war in Ukraine and the opposition to it in Russia

Chris Nineham analyses the causes and consequences of the war in Ukraine and tectonic shifts in global power politics

The expansion of NATO will only escalate a new Cold War, argues Vladimir Unkovski-Korica

Lindsey German on imperialism, democracy and porn in parliament

As Russia’s war in Ukraine moves into its third month, talks of peace and de-escalation are being replaced with signs of greater preparation for war, writes Lindsey German

Starmer's latest conditions on Corbyn's readmission to Labour underline his commitment to making Britain safe for war again, writes Chris Nineham

Anita Zsurzsán explains how far-right Viktor Orbán cynically tapped into opposition to war to keep his regime afloat

There should be a lesson here for the radical left in the region, argues Vladimir Unkovski-Korica

Lindsey German considers the three interconnected flashpoints of modern politics

Given that regime change has been a cornerstone of US foreign policy for decades, Joe Biden's words shouldn't surprise us, argues Chris Nineham

Dragan Plavšić and Anja Ilić discuss the war in Ukraine, its causes and consequences and how socialists should respond

The isolationist pro-Putin politics of the Republican hard right is clashing with an American establishment committed to imperial hegemony, writes John Clarke

The re-militarisation of the West comes with major costs, writes Vladimir Unkovski-Korica

If we want to understand why there is war, we need to look in more than one direction at once, argues Chris Nineham

We should reject any attempt by Western governments to greenwash the rivalry with Russia, argues Elaine Graham-Leigh

Imperialists have no interest in peace, argues Vladimir Unkovski-Korica

Imperial rivalry has led to dangerous and absurd levels of xenophobia, writes John Clarke

If we want to understand why the war is taking place, we need to ignore the propaganda, and consider the geopolitical context, argues Dragan Plavšić

Lindsey German on Ukraine and its continuing fallout   

Russian aggression is real, but so is NATO duplicity in Ukraine, argues John Rees

As the war in Ukraine carries on and Europe rearms, stopping militarisation and immiseration go hand in hand, argues Kevin Ovenden

The war in Ukraine, the cost of living crisis, Nationality and Borders Bill, the emerging global militarism, wins for strikers and more in this month's Counterfire freesheet

Talk of war has returned to the former Yugoslavia, reports Vladimir Unkovski-Korica

Chris Nineham discusses the nature of the war in Ukraine, how we got here and how socialists in the west must respond

The constant talk of war and search for a victory is taking us closer to a nuclear war or accidents, we need to refocus on peace says Kevin Ovenden

A new global militarism is emerging from the war in Ukraine, argues John Rees

Lindsey German on the unfolding Ukrainian crisis  

Chris Nineham argues with Iain Dale on LBC about the realities of Nato and rebuffs the attacks on the anti-war movement

John Rees looks at what’s at stake in the Ukraine

The Stop the War Coalition's statement following the dangerous escalation of the crisis in Ukraine

As the crisis in Ukraine escalates, the anti-war movement must urgently organise to pull our leaders back from the brink, argues Vladimir Unkovski-Korica

Lindsey German on the hawks circling over Ukraine  

Lindsey German on imperial brinkmanship and the anti-war majority

The West’s expansion has brought us to the brink of war, argues Vladimir Unkovski-Korica

Starmer is cosying up to the warmongers while the Prime Minister is risking a catastrophic war in Ukraine to deflect attention from his domestic political problems, argues Sean Ledwith

Following Boris Johnson's visit to Kyiv, Britain and the US continue to ratchet up tensions with Russia despite Ukraine urging calm, writes Terina Hine

The cost of living crisis, institutionally sexist police, the victories for the working class in 1972, stopping war in Ukraine and more in this month's Counterfire Freesheet

Lindsey German on the drums of war beating for Ukraine  

Vladimir Unkovski-Korica explains the newest crisis in the Balkans

The Stop the War Coalition's statement on the disaster unfolding in Afghanistan

Writing for Stop the War, Chris Nineham looks at the disastrous defeat suffered by the US as it finally pulls out of Afghanistan

Britain's encroachment into the Black Sea is a deliberate and dangerous provocation of Russia says Stop the War in a statement

A timeline of events in Ukraine that the media want to ignore shows who's threatening who, writes Chris Nineham

Twenty years of the War on Terror has produced neither security nor stability for the Afghan people and cost countless lives in the process, argues Terina Hine

Scottish politics is at a turning point, argues Vladimir Unkovski-Korica

Anti-war sentiment has already impacted on the incoming Biden administration, but it will have to be mobilised to deliver change, argues Chris Nineham

Boris Johnson has chosen to up defence spending over the necessary measures to protect lives during a pandemic, writes Lindsey German

The US President is hoping that he can broker a Serbia-Kosovo deal ahead of the November elections, writes Vladimir Unkovski-Korica

The wide range of essays in Socialist Register 2020 provide important reflections on the strengths and weaknesses of recent left movements, finds Sean Ledwith

The US policy to counter the growing economic and political strengths of China have taken a dangerous turn, says Chris Nineham

Dragan Plavšić considers what Labour’s foreign policy will look like under Starmer’s leadership

As per the script, Gordon Brown has made an attempt to stamp his forgettable, but pernicious, brand of neoliberalism onto the current crisis, writes Morgan Daniels

Refugees are being used as pawns in a geopolitical chess game, writes Shabbir Lakha

After spending trillions of dollars and killing countless civilians, the US has admitted defeat in Afghanistan, but don't expect any honest accounting, writes Lindsey German

We are now facing another moment of extreme danger which could extend Syria's suffering for years, says Chris Nineham

The leadership contest is likely to be a missed opportunity for making Labour a serious anti-war party, argues Alex Snowdon 

Lindsey German on family values, the perils of Nato and state oppression

Lindsey German on the blunderbuss waiting to happen and national security

Lindsey German on plumbing new depths and solidarising with striking rail workers 

Chris Nineham looks at Nato’s interventionist history and its deranged bid to expand operations to every corner of the world

Ahead of the Nato Summit in London on 3 December, Sweta Choudhury busts the myths that portray Nato as a force for peace

Mass mobilisation against the Trump alliance will give the left a big election boost, argues Chris Nineham

Trump's meddling can be beaten with protest, writes Lindsey German

Corbyn and the British state, CWU and UCU strike ballots, why we say no to Nato and more in this month's Counterfire freesheet

US and British imperialism will never be an ally for the liberation of people anywhere, writes Shabbir Lakha as Erdogan begins bombing northern Syria

By voting to distort history, MEPs are legitimating fascism and imperialism, argues Vladimir Unkovski-Korica

Murad Qureshi is standing to be a Labour candidate for the London Assembly. He sent Counterfire his campaign statement and we are happy to share his reasons for standing.

Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s election victory last Sunday is a sign people in Ukraine want change, but they will not get it from Zelenskiy, argues Vladimir Unkovski-Korica

British judges must not collaborate in America's war crimes, argues Reuben Bard-Rosenberg

Written in June 1999, John Rees explains why the war in the Balkans was not about the plight of refugees but part of Nato’s expansion. It wanted to dominate the Balkans and eastern Europe as well as control the oil rich areas of the Caspian Sea

Written in 2000, Lindsey German analyses the Serbian revolution and NATO's bombing of Yugoslavia which began 20 years ago today

Journalist John Pilger discusses the role of Nato in Europe and US imperialism

Gavin Williamson's latest speech with jingoistic rhetoric and calling for more military spending shows just how out of touch with reality he is, argues Lindsey German

Anti-war campaigners should exploit the cracks in neoconservative foreign policy as the priorities of US imperialism clash with the republican voter base, argues Lindsey German

Despite the disastrous results of post-9/11 wars, Trump continues to lead a belligerent administration that we must resist at home, argues Chris Nineham

Students in Albania are protesting, and the solidarity pouring in from across the Balkans shows the possibility for internationalist alternatives, argues Kevin Ovenden

World War One was a brutal and unnecessary waste of human life and sowed the seeds for the second war, argues Chris Bambery

The Taliban is advancing again, met by escalation from Trump and NATO. Amidst the devastation, our leaders still can't recognise defeat, writes Stop the War's Chris Nineham

The failed referendum in the small Balkan state represents a major upset for the West, argues Vladimir Unkovski-Korica

Far from being an ‘isolationist’, Donald Trump has increased bombings, sanctions and war, argues Lindsey German

The Serbian President’s rhetoric since July 2017 has been suggestive of a compromise deal – but, argues Vladimir Unkovski-Korica, the future is still uncertain  

Libyans are still paying the price with their lives for the 2011 Nato intervention. A stark reminder of why we urgently need an antiwar government argues Eleftheria Kousta

Imran Khan's electoral victory offers Pakistan the potential for a break from neoliberalism and the War on Terror argues Sohaib Khan

The establishment’s response to Trump’s meeting with Putin in Helsinki sounds panic-stricken but is in fact fake and dangerous, argues Vladimir Unkovski-Korica

There is no justification for the obscene levels of military spending across the world says Lindsey German

After Porton Down experts revealed that they can't confirm the origin of the nerve agent, it's clear that the government is trying to manipulate the public argue Johnny Charles and Harry Rogers

The establishment is losing control, but there is a way out for them, if the left lets its guard down, warns John Rees

How Brexit is handled is key to Corbyn being elected, and the success of a radical Labour government

A US army study, 'Is the Next Global Conflict Imminent?', suggests NATO expansion is the key driver of tension with Russia

British government reaction to the attempted murder of double agent Sergei Skripal is rank hypocrisy, argues Vladimir Unkovski-Korica

Macron is at one with Trump in his quest for a return to national ‘greatness’ with his call for compulsory military service argues Susan Ram

Following the success of an anti-war resolution at Young Labour's conference, Johnny Charles reports on how a similar resolution was passed at his CLP

Jeremy Corbyn's long-held views ought to become Labour policy

Labour badly needs to adopt Corbyn's view of war and peace and dump the carbon copy of Tory policies which have served working people so poorly

Jeremy Corbyn's rise has put anti-war politics centre stage. We now have a chance to do things completely differently, argues Chris Nineham 

Putin’s Russia is an authoritarian state, but does it pose the threat that advocates of the NATO alliance often claim? John Rees looks at the profile of Russian military power today.

As pessimism amongst the young spreads, Blair once again intervenes on Brexit and war in the Pacific looms, Lindsey German explains what's at stake

Macron’s lovefest with Trump rests on a raft of converging policies, writes Susan Ram

Theresa May's attempt to look strong and stable in response to the tragedy on Saturday night has failed argues Chris Nineham

It's been a significant week in the murky history of Nato, writes Shabbir Lakha

Corbyn is wrongly labelled a pacifist by the Tories and the media, but his opposition to unnecessary war without end is in stark contrast to Theresa May's endless warmongering

Jeremy Corbyn's wide-ranging speech on the threat of global war is a lesson to us all

Just over a hundred days into office and confrontation with imperial rivals is already brewing, writes Chris Nineham

The manoeuvres in Poland continue Nato‘s expansionist policies in eastern Europe

Donald Trump should have been the dream opponent. A narcissistic blowhard opposed by his own party. He should have been a walk over

Is the stifling pro-western consensus that has dominated Balkan and eastern European politics for the last quarter of a century finally on the wane, asks Dragan Plavšić

As the dust begins to settle on the result of the US presidency, Jonathan Maunders disentangles the reality from the rhetoric in Trump's nascent foreign policy   

Donald Trump's foreign policy intentions are unclear, however, what is, is that we should step up anti-war efforts, argues Chris Nineham

How did America elect its most reactionary President ever, asks John Rees

The duplicity of British politicians condemning Russia in Syria but supporting the Saudi bombing of Yemen is revolting, argues Lindsey German

From its inception to the present, Nato has been intent on pursuing a policy of aggression. Jonathan Maunders explains 

Labour 'rebels' show their true colours by refusing to stop supporting Saudi bombing of Yemen argues Lindsey German

Western demonisation of the former KGB director obscures his real manoeuvrings, observes Chris Bambery 

After Corbyn‘s re-election, we need to build a strong extra-parliamentary force that supports Labour – if it supports them

We republish a chapter by Lindsey German from a new Verso report Corbyn and the Future of Labour

The imperial powers are once again at loggerheads in the Balkans. Dragan Plavsic argues for a decisive response from the left

In a world of increasing conflict, pandering to the right-wing on Trident and Nato is not the way forward, argues Lindsey German

Retreating over foreign policy will allow the right to regroup, argues John Rees

A disastrous summer for the foreign policy establishment should be a golden opportunity for Labour, argues John Rees

It's disturbing that Jeremy Corbyn's comments on foreign policy were in any way controversial says Chris Nineham

This is set to be the start of the biggest Western military operation on Libyan territory since the 2011, alerts Chris Nineham

Alastair Stephens finds lessons for the movement in his analysis of the recent coup attempt in Turkey

MPs voted through a military programme that has no rationale, argues Alex Bennett. The campaign to against renewal must go on

We have got this far by being radical, argues Chris Nineham, and now is not the time to moderate the message

Chris Nineham highlights a worrying foreign policy shift at this year's Nato Summit that needs to be examined

Anti-imperialists must vote leave, argues Sean Ledwith

The government is taking us ever closer to war in Libya, says Chris Nineham

The government wants to fight another war in Libya, and without going to parliament, writes Chris Nineham

Lindsey German argues that supporting weapons of mass destruction would be a disaster for the left

Western governments have ignored the breaches of human rights by the current government of Turkey

Dragan Plavšić examines the drivers behind Nato expansion in the Balkans and the implications for the left in the region

In the wake of the atrocities in the French capital, building an anti-war movement is more necessary than ever, writes Kevin Ovenden

Russian offensive operations in Syria may mark a shift in geopolitics and the global balance of power - and it is a shift into a massively more dangerous world writes

Alastair Stephens

Jeremy Corbyn’s victory is a threat because he stands against the establishment's warmongering and hypocrisy writes Lindsey German

William Blum’s Killing Hopeserves as a formidable compendium of US foreign invasions and interference since 1945, finds Ralph Graham-Leigh

Stop the War has organised an international anti-war conference 'Confronting a World at War' - a crucial chance to discuss how to respond to an increasingly aggressive regime

Chris Nineham reviews Frontline Ukraine: Crisis in the Borderlands by Richard Sakwa

The anti-war movement's prediction that western interventions would set the Middle East on fire, have proved tragically true, but that will not stop politicians fanning the flames

By 2020 Britain's Afghan operation will have cost over £40 billion according to figures compiled by journalist Frank Ledwidge in his book Investment in Blood, yet it is widely regarded as a strategic disaster

Once held up as a model of 'humanitarian intervention' Libya's decent into bloody violence tells a story our rulers would rather we forget argues Kit Klarenberg

John Rees was reporting from Berlin 25 years ago as the demonstrations which brought down the Stalinist dictatorship reached their peak. Here he reflects on the consequences of the fall of the Berlin Wall

How could the litany of failure in Afghanistan possibly have been worth the deaths of hundreds of British and uncounted thousands of Afghan lives?

John Rees of Stop the War Coalition says the Kurds could defeat IS if Turkey allowed the PKK fighters to cross the border with Syria and join the defence of Kobane

David Cameron is due to secretly renew the Mutual Defence Agreement (MDA) on nuclear cooperation between the US and the UK writes Ellen Graubart

John Rees speaking at the 'Support the resistance of Kobane against Isis attacks' protest in London's Parliament Square. Video by Shahrzad Shemirani

Nato member Turkey is effectively allowing Isis to destroy the Kurdish city of Kobane. This press release by Turkish Kurdish organisation Day-Mer, calls for international solidarity and for Turkey to allow Kurdish heavy weapons through to defend the city

Despite the ceasefire the crisis in Ukraine is far from resolved. Feyzi Ismail talks to Russian Marxist and dissident Boris Kagarlitsky about the background to the current situation

It was the prospect of Ukraine being drawn into the western military alliance that triggered conflict in the first place

Lindsey German: as these masters of war meet again, we will make our voices heard to prevent further bloodshed and atrocities in Ukraine and Iraq

Images, videos and tweets from the mobilisation against Nato's war summit in Newport, Wales

Video from a Stop the War Coalition rally on the eve of protests in Newport against the Nato summit, with Boris Kagarlitsky, Sami Ramadani and Lindsey German

James Meadway: we have an opportunity to crack open our captured democracy, undermine Britain's imperial military power and break up the Westminster-City machine. We should seize it with both hands

Lindsey German: this week Nato's political and military elite will descend on Newport to plan more military intervention - creating the greatest threat of another major war since 1945

The deranged expansionist policies of Nato are implicated in the wars in Gaza, Ukraine and Iraq argues Chris Nineham

Lindsey German: What we are seeing in Iraq now is blowback on a major scale, yet many of those responsible are now saying more military intervention will work

Western calls to arm the Kurds and bomb Iraq are both hypocritical and dangerous, argues John Rees

Lindsey German: the Gaza protests, BDS boycotts, the campaign to break the UK government's links with Israel and the anti Nato protests are all connected - we need a joined up opposition

The downing of Flight MH17 has fuelled the dangerous dynamic of global conflict that is leading the world towards the violent chaos we witnessed one hundred years ago writes Matt Carr

To see the extent of David Cameron's hypocrisy, contrast his call for action on the plane shot down in Ukraine to his government's complicity in Israel's brutal assault on Gaza

The new aircraft carriers are designed for large scale war - with Britain acting as the junior partner of the US argues Alastair Stephens

As Western policy unravels across the Middle East, it is more important than ever to expose media complicity in interventions such as in Afghanistan, argues Helen Redmond

Wales could see its biggest protests in a generation as 60 world leaders meet at the Celtic Manor in Newport for the Nato summit on 4-5 September to plan their war on the world

Letter to Guardian calls on the UK government to pull out of joint military exercises on Ukrainian territory in July

Video from a Stop the War meeting on the war in Georgia held in 2008 featuring Russian socialist Boris Kagarlitsky, Kate Hudson, John Rees and Mark Almond

As the United States wakes up to a new world order of intense competition from Russia and China, Chris Nineham looks at the future of Nato

The West's entire Afghan strategy has been thrown into chaos as increasing 'green-on-blue' attacks by members of the Afghan military and police cause Nato to suspend training

The crisis of western intervention in Afghanistan is described by Mitra Qayoom in this transcript of her speech delivered to last weekend’s Stop the War Coalition Conference.