On February 25, 2023, a demonstration was held in Berlin against the further sending of weapons to Ukraine and for the start of peace negotiations with Russia.
Berlin – At least 13,000 people came to a demonstration in Berlin today against the further sending of weapons to Ukraine and for the start of peace negotiations with Russia. The DPA agency reported on this with reference to the police statement. The organizers of the event speak of up to 50,000 participants.
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Photo gallery: Russian invasion of Ukraine
At the beginning of the demonstration, Sahra Wagenknecht, a politician of the post-communist Left, who convened the rally together with women's rights activist Alica Schwarzer, spoke. Wagenknecht read the so-called Manifesto for Peace, which the two women posted two weeks ago. The text, which has been signed by over 650,000 people, calls on the federal government to focus on peace negotiations instead of sending arms to Ukraine. Berlin was reminded of the first anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, there were about 800 policemen. 10,000 people took part in Friday's demonstration, and except for throwing an egg at the Russian embassy, the event passed without incident, the RBB station reported, citing the police.
The DPA agency also wrote that at today's demonstration in Berlin it was forbidden to have symbols celebrating the war, including military uniforms or the letter Z, which Russia uses as a symbol of its invasion of Ukraine.
According to the police, the event passed without incidents with with the exception of one when protesters tried to oust the editor-in-chief of a right-wing magazine. The event was also attended by some members of the populist and far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party.
Wagenknecht has long been a controversial politician even within her own party. A number of politicians from the post-communist Left distanced themselves from today's event in advance, as did numerous politicians from other parties, including the ruling Social Democracy (SPD), DPA reported. Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) and Finance Minister Christian Lindner (FDP) also made it clear that they do not agree with the Manifesto for Peace petition.
DPA also quoted former Bundeswehr general Erich Vado, who took part in the demonstration and who called to “end war rhetoric in Germany” and start negotiations. “It is naive to believe that Russia can be defeated militarily without nuclear war,” Vad said. According to him, the war of aggression provoked by Russia, which violates international law, has become a “war of attrition” after a year. recognition of the Ukrainian territories, which it annexed in violation of international law, as Russian. Kyiv demands the complete withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukrainian territory, reparations and the prosecution of those responsible for war crimes, DPA recalled.
