Thousands of people took to the streets in central Berlin against sending ammunition to Ukraine, urging the German government to pave a way for negotiations with President Putin instead of fueling the fire.
Police estimated there were 13,000 people at the uprising for peace, at the Brandenburg Gate, calling on the German government to seek ways for negotiations with Russian President Vladimir Putin, instead of sending more weapons to Ukraine.
Meanwhile, the organizers claimed as many as 50,000 people participated. Similar demonstrations took place in other German cities.
“This is the start of a citizen’s initiative for a strong peace movement in Germany. The demonstrators are united by the fact that they did not feel represented by the government of Olaf Scholz over the decision to provide Ukraine with weapons,” the organizer of the protest said.
The protestors carried banners reading “Stop Putin’s War, Help Ukraine Defend Itself, Stop the Killing, Not My Government, Not My War, Stop NATO.”
The protests come as Berlin along with other Western powers has increased their military supplies to Ukraine over the past months. Olaf Scholz’s administration agreed to send German-made “Leopard II tanks” to Ukraine, aimed at reinforcing Ukrainian forces on the battlefield.
The latest decisions have not only been appreciated by ordinary people in Germany but also sparked massive criticisms. “German had no right to participate in another war after World War II,” a protestor said. He further added, “the real enemy is sitting in London and New York who do not want the ongoing war to end in Ukraine.”
This comes as the United Nations General Assembly passed a resolution in the week, calling on Russia to end the war and withdraw from Ukraine. Furthermore, the majority of European envoys supported Ukraine’s self-defense in the war against Russian aggression.
