General

May 2, 2025 (EIRNS)—For nearly two years, the International Peace Coalition, which was organized to unite peace movements from around the world without regard to ideology, has been holding weekly online conferences with over 55 nations represented and thousands of participants. On May 2, the Coalition celebrated a milestone with its 100th consecutive meeting.

Helga Zepp-LaRouche, Founder of the Schiller Institute, presented a sobering progress report. Despite the growing influence of the Coalition, “We are seeing a very disturbing increase in conflicts.” Though there may be regional causes to these conflicts, the underlying basis is the tension created by the decline of the old, colonial system, and the emergence of the new one. She addressed the new outbreak of hostilities between India and Pakistan, calling for an independent investigation of the terror incident which sparked it. The situation there is escalating. The use of nuclear weapons is being discussed on both sides.

A new deal was announced in Ukraine, where the U.S. can exploit raw materials and some U.S. troops will remain in Ukraine, which may be “not to the liking of the Russians.” Unfortunately, “some crazy Europeans are committed to keep this war going.”

On the trade war front, she warned that tariffs could trigger a default by developing nations and/or collapse of the financial system. President Trump has not thought this through.

Since March 2, Israel has blockaded Gaza, and using food as a weapon of war is a war crime. We have called for an international mobilization to put the LaRouche Oasis Plan on the agenda of a high-level conference which the UN has scheduled on the two state solution, to take place on June 2-4, 2025 in New York. The late Pope Francis called development “the weapon of peace,” making him an implicit supporter of the Oasis Plan.

As important as regional measures may be, we need to end geopolitics for a lasting solution. We need a new paradigm that puts the one humanity first. We continue to call for the Ten Principles of a New International Security and Development Architecture.

Col. Richard H. Black (ret.), former head of the U.S. Army’s Criminal Law Division at the Pentagon and former Virginia State Senator, warned that “during the Biden administration, the U.S. became wildly provocative toward China.” He offered a timeline of provocative acts, such as the visit by Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi and others to Taiwan for the express purpose of provoking China. “Consider the enormity of a possible war with China, and compare that to Vietnam,” said Black. The Vietnam War was costly to the U.S. and ended in defeat. China is 29 times the size of Vietnam, with a vastly larger population and far more advanced technology.

Ambassador Hossein Mousavian, former ambassador from Iran to Germany, described how Iran had endeavored to compromise with the West; they agreed to cooperate with the IAEA, and to export uranium enriched to 60% to Russia, in order to allay fears that they intended to develop nuclear weapons. The Trump administration had made some progress with negotiations, but then the U.S. technical team that was to be sent to Oman was canceled, apparently due to an intervention by Netanyahu, who said that Israel would only accept the “Libya model” (which culminated in the utter destruction of Libya.) U.S. Secretary of State Rubio claims that the only use of uranium enrichment is for bombs, which is a ridiculous untruth. Mousavian offered a long list of states that have enrichment programs but no nuclear weapons.

Ofer Bronchtein, a former advisor of Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, and President of the Paris-based International Peace Forum, is presently an advisor to French President Emmanuel Macron on the Israeli situation. He believes that the French/Saudi initiative for a two-state solution can succeed, and is trying to build a coalition to support it. Zepp-LaRouche asked him to join the mobilization for the Oasis Plan. He replied that Rabin understood the importance of water: “Without water, there won’t be peace.”

International Law Under Threat

Jonathan Kuttab, International Human Rights Lawyer, Executive Director of Friends of Sabeel North America and Co-Founder of Nonviolence International, spoke on the problem of Israel’s “utter impunity of ignoring international law,” no longer even bothering to offer “the excuse of military targets.” More than 230 journalists have been killed by the IDF, more than in any previous conflict. “We now see a deliberate attack on international institutions, on international courts, and on international law itself.” This has implications that go far beyond the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Excerpts were shown of a video interview by EIR’s Gerald Belsky with Maoz Inon, an Israeli peace activist and leader of the peace demo in Jerusalem May 8-9, the People’s Peace Summit. He said that “the only way to change reality is in the field of dream.” We need to shout it, dance it, sing about it, to legitimize the dream. We need diplomacy, dialogue and negotiation. The current wildfires in Israel are a consequence of investment that should have gone into water management being diverted to military use.

LaRouche activist Robert Castle gave a youth outreach report. He has been working with the Jose Vega congressional campaign in the Bronx, intersecting students on the way to classes and “challenging the young citizens of our republic to ask themselves whether they have a moral responsibility to intervene in this crisis.”

Zepp-LaRouche fully agreed with Kutab: it’s not just about Gaza, the larger issue is the non-response of the world community to the Gaza genocide, which can lead to a complete collapse of international law and descent into barbarism. International law did not exist before the Peace of Westphalia, which made it necessary.

Discussion

Zepp-LaRouche answered a question on the India-Pakistan conflict by asking, cui bono? Many nations that aspire to join BRICS have been targeted with economic/financial warfare or violent destabilization.

Kutab was asked, what can civil society do when governments fail to take action? He endorsed BDS, and said we should organize football and cultural organizations (which played a big role in ending apartheid in South Africa.)

A German participant renewed his plea that solar energy be used in place of nuclear energy for the Oasis Plan. He was invited to participate in the upcoming conference, where that topic will be discussed. Co-moderator Dennis Small reminded him that energy flux-density is the metric for evaluating energy sources. Because the Iberian Peninsula went entirely for solar and wind, there was a complete collapse of their energy grid last week.

A question was posed: Was the November 1995 assassination of Rabin the tipping point for the current crisis? Kutab responded, “There’s no question that Rabin himself was trying to deal with that situation in a new way.” But there were problems both before and after Rabin.

Moderator Anastasia Battle reported that there has been an attack on the Freedom Flotilla in international waters, which some IPC participants have been on board the flotilla. We hope for their safety and well-being.

In response to a question from the Chinese Media Group on the trade war, Zepp-LaRouche said, “President Trump is presently vacillating and responding to pressure.” She cited Nicholas of Cusa, who said that if you have a systemic problem, you cannot solve it by addressing side issues. The human creative mind always has the capacity to resolve the problem on a higher level than the level on which the problem arose. In conclusion, she renewed her plea for people to join forces with us in working to put the Oasis Plan and Ten Principles on the agenda for the upcoming conference in June.

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International Peace Coalition 98

by EIR Staff

April 18—The 98th consecutive weekly online meeting of the International Peace Coalition (IPC) commenced with greetings by Helga Zepp-LaRouche, founder of the Schiller Institute, who emphasized that “the situation in Ukraine remains one of utmost volatility.” The likely incoming Chancellor of Germany, Friedrich Merz, has said that he will send Taurus missiles to Ukraine. But the Taurus relies on intelligence from the United States. Will President Donald Trump approve this? And the Taurus must be operated by German soldiers, making Germany a direct party to the war. This situation is fraught with danger. Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev recently said that if the British and French send soldiers, they will come back in coffins. Zepp-LaRouche said that Merz “knows no inkling of a diplomatic solution,” and warned that something is happening in Germany which echoes what happened 80 years ago.

On the positive side, a disaster was averted when Trump refused to give U.S. backing to an Israeli attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities. There also continues to be positive developments in the Global South. China and Brazil agreed to build the Bi-Oceanic Railway across South America. And on April 18, the Valdai Discussion Club hosted an event called “70 Years On: The Legacy of Bandung. An Expert Discussion” which raised the question, “Is Bandung 2.0 possible?” This is in reference to the 1955 Bandung Conference, also known as the Asian-African Conference, held in Bandung, Indonesia, which laid the foundation for the later emergence of the Non-Aligned Movement.

She noted that Presidents Robert Fico of Slovakia and Alexsandar Vučić of Serbia will defy the EU and attend the Victory Day celebration in Russia on May 9. She commented as well that the trade war with China will cause inflation in the U.S. and large layoffs in China, and posed the question, are there people of reason who can step beyond geopolitics?

Seeds Grow Without a Sound

Alex Krainer, a well-known financial advisor and economic analyst, described an ongoing transition in the world economy that many may have missed. It has become very easy for a person in the West, with a few clicks, to order products from China and India. He clarified the controversy over tariffs, using as an example, a pair of Nike shoes that cost $10 to make in China, but retail for $100 in the U.S. A 25% tariff would be applied to the $10 that it costs to make the shoes, not the $100 retail price, adding only $2.50 to the cost of the retailer. For a more extravagant example, he cited a $38,000 handbag that costs $1,000 to make. The trade war has revealed things about the “bling factor.”

Schiller Institute leader Dennis Small cited an article in the Financial Times which asks whether we are now facing the “Trump Shock,” comparing it to the “Nixon Shock” of 1973. Trump’s trade war can ignite the explosion of the bubble of financial aggregates and derivatives which will never be paid. Small compared it to lighting a match in a room full of dynamite; the problem exists “not because of the match, but because of the dynamite.”

A new financial geometry is developing around the BRICS. “We’re seeing physical economic flows in exactly the way that Lyndon LaRouche talked about.” Brazil will gain “great circle” access to trade with China via the proposed Bi-Oceanic Corridor. China vastly outpaces the world in physical output of steel, etc.—but “the real growth area is science and technology.”

IPC coordinator Anastasia Battle presented a report on youth outreach, describing an organizing tour of New York university campuses with congressional candidate Jose Vega and others, and showed a series of photos of booktables and a special invitation to the upcoming international youth meeting April 22 with Helga Zepp-LaRouche.

In response to Krainer’s presentation, Zepp-LaRouche noted that Friedrich Merz says it’s an outrage that every day 400,000 parcels arrive from China. But the Spirit of Bandung is sweeping the Global South, ignored by Western media. Because of the rise of China, the developing nations feel that they are strong enough to end colonialism.

Krainer noted that improved world trade means opportunities for people in the industrial world as well. Merz’s opposition to Chinese imports is leading Europe to “a new Middle Ages.”

Discussion

Steven Starr, one of the nation’s foremost experts on nuclear war, asked Krainer to comment on the role of Wall Street and the City of London in influencing world events. Krainer said that power lies in the central banks, IMF, and the families that control them. For example, in the immediate aftermath of the 2014 Maidan coup, it was the IMF that influenced Kiev to launch an assault against the Donbass region of Eastern Ukraine. Citigroup formed much of former President Barack Obama’s Cabinet.

In response to a question on Iran, Zepp-LaRouche said that the real issue is Israel’s 200-plus nuclear weapons. We need a new security and development architecture which takes into account the security needs of all nations, including Iran. Fortunately, there is some talk of combining the Egyptian peace plan with the LaRouche Oasis Plan.

In response to a question about fascism, she described an in-depth discussion with former U.S. Ambassador Chas Freeman about the emergence of a new fascism. The crux is the image of man; fascists believe that some group of people is superior. They also pursue policies of ruthless austerity.

Relations with Afghanistan

IPC co-moderator Dennis Speed reported, in answer to a question, that Russia has recognized the Taliban. Zepp-LaRouche added that 65,000 Taliban fighters were able to defeat NATO, but they were not ready to govern, and the new government is factionalized on the question of the status of women; you can’t rebuild while also condemning women to outsider status. The Taliban cracked down on opium production, which caused a loss of income for farmers. A proposal was made by former UN leader Pino Arlacchi to aid farmers in transitioning to food production, but it was denied by the UN. Russian recognition is positive, but “it’s only in the baby shoes.”

Jose Vega asked the question: “Did our Founding Fathers believe in ‘America First’?” Speed answered the congressional candidate, saying that people confuse the idea of America with the place of America. If by “America First” you mean the idea, then it applies to the whole world. Zepp-LaRouche’s Ten Principles are close in spirit to the Declaration of Independence, and one should read them to hear the echo of the American Revolution. The Revolutionary War was insufficient to overturn the system of aristocracy and oligarchy. The Constitutional Convention was the key revolution, as well as U.S. Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton’s reports. The people who best understood this assembled in 1955 in Bandung.

Conclusion

Zepp-LaRouche appreciated a comment from one of her countrywomen, who argued against the fatalism of her fellow citizens who quail before the power of the oligarchy, and advocated that “every drop of activism helps.” We must put international pressure on Germany and the EU. Trump should leave NATO; that would be the best thing that could happen. In fact, “we all should leave NATO,” which has “transformed into an extremely aggressive organism.”

If we can avoid extinction in a nuclear winter, then we can disagree on secondary matters. Regardless of one’s ideology, “We have one future, like it or not. … If this present chapter of history goes wrong, we all have none.”