Foreign and Defence Ministers’ Meeting must condemn illegal war – Peace Action Wellington

New Zealand’s Foreign Minister Winston Peters and Defence Minister
Judith Collins will land in Canberra for the third iteration of the
Australia and New Zealand Foreign and Defence Ministers’ Meeting
(ANZMIN) this week.

“Winston Peters and Judith Collins along with Australia’s Foreign
Minister Penny Wong and Defence Minister Richard Marles must take the
opportunity to condemn the US and Israeli for the illegal war on Iran
that was launched two weeks ago,” said Valerie Morse of Peace Action
Wellington.

“These Ministers must issue clear statements that neither will provide
any assistance to the US and Israeli war. There should be sanctions
imposed, while military deployments and training alongside the US should
be cancelled. Anything less than that is a capitulation to two genocidal
criminals.”

“So far, both the NZ government and Australian government appear to be
singing from the same song sheet of talking points, claiming that it is
up to the US and Israel to make their case. That is completely cowardice
and complicity. These Ministers need to start being honest about what
this war is about: an aggressive war for power and regional supremacy
waged by two nuclear weapons states against a non-nuclear power during
ongoing negotiations. The mask has well and truly been ripped off US and
Israeli claims of any moral legitimacy whatsoever. These are rogue
states and should be treated like the pariah that they are.”

“People across the globe are already utterly revolted by Israel’s
relentless assault on the people of Gaza in its two plus year long
genocide. Now, Israel’s leader Binyamin Netanyahu has convinced US
President Trump to wage war on Iran – that has resulted in countries
across the region being bombed and mass death. It has set us on a path
to world war three as there is no end in sight.”