positionspolitics.org/praxis is publishing the English translation (by Jon Solomon) and Chinese original of an anti-war statement and petition organized by academics in Taiwan and initiated on March 20, 2023. The core members include FU Daiwie (STS Institute, Yang-Ming Chiao Tung University), LU Chien-Yi (Institute of European and American Studies, Academia Sinica), KUO Li-hsin (College of Communication, Chengchi University) and FENG Chien-san (College of Communication, Chengchi University). In ensuing weeks, the statement created a vigorous public discussion in Taiwan about rejecting both Chinese and American militarism and the petition attracted broader support.

Our Antiwar Statement: Against Arms and For Peace, Climate Justice, and Autonomy

Recently, a slew of antiwar demonstrations has taken place in cities from Washington, D.C. to Europe. Calling for solidarity with their antiwar demands, we also issue our own set of demands:

1. Peace in Ukraine: we call for peace negotiations and the avoidance of conflict escalation.
2. Stop US militarism and economic sanctions.
3. No to the US-PRC war. Taiwan should preserve its autonomy and maintain equidistance from the great powers.
4. The national budget should be used to meet social needs and to mitigate climate change, not for arms and war.

1. Peace in Ukraine: we call for peace negotiations and the avoidance of conflict escalation.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is of course unforgivable. However, the mid-term and long-term factors that stoked the flames of war must be studied, otherwise yet another war that decimates the people could be instigated and ignited at any moment. Warnings from esteemed public sources, from those such as Pope Francis, The New York Times, and former NATO General Secretary G.I.M. Robertson, to those from renowned US academics such as John Mearsheimer, Jeffrey Sachs, and, especially, Noam Chomsky, have all not failed to call into question and castigate the highly provocative military expansion undertaken by the United States and NATO on Russia’s doorstep. At present, this war has already resulted in the death of over 100,000 Ukrainian soldiers and more than 8000 civilians, including children, while forcing 13 million Ukrainians to become refugees.

Peace negotiations are the only way to end war. We call upon NATO member nations to stop using democracy and freedom and the restoration of territorial integrity – ideas that nobody could oppose in principle – as the pretext for escalation, in disregard for the increasing numbers of casualties and displaced persons and, on occasion, even deliberately wrecking the diplomatic efforts of various parties to promote negotiations. 

2. Stop US militarism and economic sanctions.

Under cover provided by lies about “Iraq’s possession of Weapons of Mass Destruction,” the US invasion of that nation resulted in the deaths of 300,000 Iraqi civilians and the displacement of 9.2 million persons. The situation in Afghanistan, Syria, Yemen, and Pakistan is similar to that of Iraq, leading to a total civilian death toll of 6.3 million. Since independence, the United States has seemingly never gone a year without launching or participating in a war. Concerned about the way that the interests of arms manufacturers override national interests, President Dwight D. Eisenhower presciently coined the term, “military-industrial complex.” In the two decades following the beginning of the war in Afghanistan in 2001, the total amount of funds allocated to the US military budget reached $14 trillion, of which between 1/3 and 1/2 of that amount went directly into the pockets of Defense Department contractors. The war in Ukraine is no exception. In that context, the role of the arms industry, commanding formidable resources for lobbying and political contributions, has been especially pertinent. As long as NATO armaments pour into Ukraine, this war will never end. (The figures cited above are taken from the Costs of War project website maintained by a team of researchers at Brown University and from David Vine’s The United States of War).

As concerns economic sanctions, past examples indicate that economic sanctions do not hurt the political and economic elites of the targeted nations. Those who bear the brunt of such sanctions invariably are the innocent civilians, especially women, children, and other minorities.  US sanctions applied in the past have often lacked legitimacy. Those applied against Russia have unleashed a global energy crisis and inflation, exacerbating the already serious famines that afflict the Global South.

3. No to the US-PRC war. Taiwan should preserve its autonomy and maintain equidistance from the great powers.

The United States of America and the People’s Republic of China must resolve their differences through peaceful means. The beautiful land of Taiwan is not available to be rented as their battlefield. We do not welcome the visits of those high-ranking officials who would push Taiwan towards the precipice of war and necessarily sacrifice Taiwan; neither do we support military cooperation that could be manifestly interpreted as a provocation. Taiwan should maintain a position of autonomy, cooperating with other nations in those domains – economy, environment, academic, and cultural – that contribute to the equality, livelihood, and peace of all humanity. Especially, Taiwan should maintain diplomatic relations of equidistance with great powers and maintain the security of both sides of the Taiwan Straits with a firm policy guided by wisdom. Taiwan should not become either a servant or sidekick, nor a “member of the pack,” in the rivalry between US hegemony and PRC “wolf warriors.” We deplore any deliberate actions that use provocation to unleash conflict and we firmly believe that the peace dividend that would accrue from putting an end to provocation is far superior to arms sales, military bases, military threats, or wars.

4. The national budget should be used to meet social needs and to mitigate climate change, not for arms and war

Our planet is currently confronted with multiple crises including energy shortages, inflation, extreme climate events, water shortages, and the disappearance of biodiversity. National budgets should be dedicated to the resolution or mitigation of these crises to improve people’s livelihoods, not wasted on the black hole of an arms race and mutual provocation. It is well known that prior to the advent of the Russo-Ukraine War, the planetary environment had already entered a state of emergency. Due to the machinations of neoliberal elites and corporate politicians, the 1.5C climate goal has evaporated into thin air even as the wealth of the global ruling classes has skyrocketed. Nevertheless, the goal of limiting climate change to a 2C increase is still worth striving for. Sadly, the flames of war stoked by the military-industrial complex have not only dramatically increased carbon emissions, they have also succeeded in reviving the fossil fuel industries that should have been progressively consigned to the recycle bin of history. In a world with over 13,000 nuclear warheads, the impending threat of nuclear annihilation has distracted attention from the gravity of climate change. Once the quiet of death reigns on Earth, where could one possibly look to find the “sovereignty,” “democracy,” and “freedom” promised by politicians who proffer war in their defense? 

We are opposed to Mainland China’s various attempts to diplomatically isolate and militarily threaten Taiwan, yet it is not the vocation of this Statement to repeat the ubiquitous criticisms of “Wolf Warrior China” widely aired in Taiwanese media. We aspire to incite the wisdom of the many multitudes to come up together with a sober, peaceful way for Taiwan to situate itself in the midst of the rivalry between the US and the PRC. We also hope that this Statement will foster within Taiwanese civil society more rational, public discussion and dialogue concerning international politics and the crisis in the Taiwan Straits. We fervently wish that more antiwar statements and actions from a greater variety of perspectives will continue to appear, enabling Taiwanese society to confront and ponder the catastrophe that war brings about.

2023 Taiwan Antiwar Statement Working Group:

Daiwie FU (STS Institute, Yang-Ming Chiao Tung University)

Chien-Yi LU (Institute of European and American Studies, Academia Sinica)

Li-hsin KUO (College of Communication, Chengchi University)

Chien-san FENG (College of Communication, Chengchi University)

References (in Chinese)

傅大為譯(2022/3)〈杭士基談俄國入侵烏克蘭：它的起源、如何應對、與人類歷史的關鍵〉。Truthout . [Translation by Daiwie Fu of Noam Chomsky, “Noam Chomsky: US Military Escalation Against Russia Would Have No Victors,” Truthout March 1, 2022, https://truthout.org/…/noam-chomsky-us-military…/].

汪宏倫(2010)〈值得從杭士基學習的十件事〉。《自由時報》。8月9日。自由副刊。（註：汪教授並不認同這份聲明，亦非反戰聲明工作小組成員） [Wang,

Horng-lun. 2010. “Ten Things Worth Learning from Chomsky.” Liberty Times August 9, 2010].

李行德(編) 〈2010年杭士基訪台專輯〉。台北市：中央研究院。[Lee, Thomas Hun-Tak. 2010. Collected Essays from Chomsky’s 2010 Taiwan Visit. Taipei: Academia Sinica Press].

馮建三(2022)〈不實資訊、廣場事件與戰爭責任：理解烏克蘭〉。《傳播文化與政治》。15期，p.161-201。[Feng, Chien-san. 2022. “Disinformation, Euromaidan, War-and-Accountability: Understanding Ukraine.” Communication, Culture & Politics No. 15, 161 – 201].

Translator of this Antiwar Statement: Jon SOLOMON, Professeur, Université de Lyon.