No Combat Drones for Bundeswehr – No Drone War from Germany
On occasion of the Global Action Day against using drones for surveillance and killing, which is joined by DIE LINKE members and officials, Tobias Pflüger, vice chair and Christine Buchholz, member of the executive board of DIE LINKE declare:
The Action Day against drones is held internationally. With many actions, DIE LINKE takes part in the Action Day nationwide under the motto “Dragons instead of Drones”. DIE LINKE asks the Federal Government to renounce the building, export and purchaising of combat drones. This technology is inseperably linked to the rebuilding of the Bundeswehr to an intervention army in international missions.
Minister of Defence, Ursula von der Leyen, wants to provide the Bundeswehr with combat drones. As a first step air vehicles should be leased from Israel or the US “on demand”. In the medium-term it will be about developing one’s own model fit for action with other European partners, presumably France, according to von der Leyen. Tobias Pflüger comments: “DIE LINKE opposes drones used in war, for surveillance, and oppression. In addition to all the other desasters in her jurisdiction Mrs von der Leyen is thus also preparing for becoming the drone minister.”
Military combat and espionage drones play an ever more important role in those wars the US army leads with her allies in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Jemen or Somalia. The US military facilites in Ramstein and the AFRICOM in Stuttgart are directly involved in the US drone war. Christine Buchholz: “We ask for a termination of the use of US bases for the drone war.” In this asymetric conflict no regular army having an effective air defence at its command faces the US army; only rebels operating with light weapons at the ground. Entering this technogogy also fuels a development at the end of which could emerge autonomously acting killer drones.
The Federal Government wants Germany, together with European partners, to enter this race for ever more effective combat drones to (co-)lead asymetric wars at different places of the world independent of US technology. She thus fuels the international armaments spiral against which people and initiatives in many countries are opposing.
More info here: www.drohnen-kampagne.de