This statement was originally published by Friends of the Earth International.
Friends of the Earth International condemns United States-led imperialism, including military aggression against Iran, Venezuela, Lebanon, the illegal blockade of Cuba and the Israeli-US-led ongoing and devastating genocide against Palestine. As violence and suffering escalate across the globe, the human and environmental costs of US imperialism are being felt worldwide. The only answer is an end to imperialism and all systems of oppression and to build a Peoples’ Internationalist Solidarity for environmental, social, gender and racial justice.
Friends of the Earth International is the world’s largest grassroots environmental federation, with more than 70 national member groups and millions of members and supporters worldwide. Our vision is of a peaceful and sustainable world in which societies live in harmony with nature, where people live in dignity and fulfilment, equity is realised, and human and peoples’ rights are upheld.
The US and Israel’s illegal and escalating attacks on sovereign nations and peoples are a flagrant violation of the fundamental principle of national sovereignty and the Peoples’ right to self-determination. They violate international law and the principles enshrined in the United Nations Charter, which explicitly prohibits the use or threat of force against the political independence of states and demands the peaceful resolution of conflict. There is extensive, credible documentation of alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity by the US and Israel.
This capitalist imperialist aggression has a long history. From the British Empire to US-promoted coups against democratically elected governments, peoples movements in the Global South have long resisted oppression. What we face today is part of that same history. From Iraq to Palestine, Haiti to Venezuela, this pattern is historical and deeply entrenched: repression against elected governments and peoples movements, economic warfare using sanctions, tariffs and control of global financial institutions such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, and military invasions on the pretext of “delivering democracy.” All to maintain a world order where a US-led imperial alliance can maintain global control of resources and the world economy. A world order which maintains the impunity and profits of billionaires and corporations while the peoples of the world pay the price.
The US-Israeli war on Iran has triggered the worst energy crisis in modern history, with the world’s poorest hit hardest, including in access to food and energy. Meanwhile, the more than two-year genocide against the Palestinian peoples has created an entirely avoidable humanitarian disaster. The historical sanctions against Iran, Venezuela and Cuba and ongoing oil blockade of Cuba, are causing untold suffering, cutting access to energy for hospitals, schools and millions of homes. All this has had a devastating impact, particularly on the most historically marginalised peoples, including women, black communities, the LGBTQI+ community, Indigenous Peoples, children and youth.
The current re-emergence of imperialist aggression is an existential threat. The human costs are immeasurable, with the loss of the lives of thousands, especially children. The impact on the social and environmental fabric, such as pollution of soil, land, air, water and ecosystems, will be felt for generations. It will prolong the life of fossil fuels and profits for fossil fuel corporations, condemning us to a permanent climate crisis. It attempts to lock in control of critical minerals for military and artificial intelligence, and to maintain the current inequity in consumption of energy and resources in the future green transition. It diverts trillions of public finance into war while millions struggle to access basic health, housing or food.
Friends of the Earth International condemns imperialism and calls for peace. We commit our organisation to action, guided by the following principles and demands:
End imperialist aggression and work for peace. A permanent end to the war on Iran, the genocide in Palestine and a diplomatic resolution to all conflicts. War is not inevitable. The vast majority of people do not support the war on Iran nor the genocide against the Palestinian people, or other military conflicts. Governments must listen to the people, not Washington, choose diplomacy and call for an end to wars, for demilitarisation and for the pursuit of a political agenda based on a ‘culture of peace’. We demand that all financial resources allocated to wars and the war industry be redirected to the transformation and repair of this world.
Uphold international law and Peoples’ multilateralism. We need an international framework that respects the sovereignty of states and the self-determination of peoples. Putting peoples’ and human rights as well as environmental, social, gender and racial justice at its centre. The United Nations system is heavily undermined, and the erosion of multilateralism poses a grave threat to the rights of peoples everywhere.
Friends of the Earth International calls on all States to cease and refrain from any conduct that may render them complicit in the wars and serious violations of international law perpetrated by the United States and Israel. In particular, we urge governments to end the transfer of arms, military and dual‑use equipment, logistical and intelligence support, financial flows, and diplomatic or political cover that enable or facilitate grave breaches of international humanitarian law and fundamental human rights. [1]
Dismantle imperialism as a system of oppression. As an environmental and social justice organisation, we work against all systems of oppression. Imperialism is deeply linked to colonialism, racism, patriarchy and environmental injustice, and we are committed to challenging and dismantling it.
Defend democracy from the far right. The most serious attacks on human and peoples’ rights are being led by a global coalition of far-right actors who continue to beat the drum for war. We commit to challenging this divisive agenda in the streets, parliaments, hearts and minds across the globe.
Dismantle corporate power, impunity and resource grabbing. Resource control and corporate influence drive imperialist aggression. The US-led imperial alliance is backed by powerful corporations, using tariffs and bilateral deals to bully Global South countries. US imperialism in oil and critical minerals reflects a relentless campaign of geopolitical coercion that is destroying ecosystems and threatening life itself.
Friends of the Earth International urges countries to adopt and enforce clear laws and binding regulations to ensure that companies headquartered or operating within their territories are not complicit in international crimes or in conflict with international human rights law and international humanitarian law and hold them legally accountable, ensuring effective access to justice and remedies for affected peoples.
Friends of the Earth International’s more than 70 national member groups and millions of members and supporters worldwide stand for environmental and social justice. That means advocating for peace and opposing imperialism. In the face of global crises, these connections are more necessary and more urgent than ever. To achieve deep and lasting change for our planet and peoples we need to change the system, dismantle all forms of oppression and exploitation and build internationalist solidarity.
[1] Articles on Responsibility of States for Internationally Wrongful Acts (ARSIWA), as adopted by the International Law Commission in 2001 and commended by the United Nations General Assembly in Resolution 56/83 of 12 December 2001. Article 16 of the ARSIWA, a State which aids or assists another State in the commission of an internationally wrongful act bears international responsibility where it does so with knowledge of the circumstances of that act and where the act would be internationally wrongful if committed by that State itself; in light of extensive, credible documentation of alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity, continued support risks engaging such responsibility.
