Opinion Piece-Patriots must say NO to British involvement in Iran

This is a press release received by UNN from the Anti-War Action movement written by co-founder Declan Graves:

There has been a lot of talk about war with Iran lately, mainly started by the assassination of General Qassem Soleimani, commander of the Quds Force and possible heir to the premiership of Iran. Let’s lay out the facts:

• Soleimani was killed in Iraq by a drone strike coordinated by the USA.

• The USA warned the Prime Minister of Iraq minutes before the bombing.

• Iraq denied the US Forces permission to go through with the operation.

• Donald Trump carried out a drone strike anyway, ignoring Iraqi advice.

  

• The British Government was not informed of the bombing beforehand.

• The Royal Navy has commanded two warships to be sent to the Persian Gulf.

• A nuclear submarine has been positioned within striking distance of Iran.

Unfortunately, things are heating up quickly in the region, with the crisis escalating with little to no signs of diplomatic talks. The Iranian government has raised the red flag of doom – a definitive sign of impending war – at the famous Jamkarān Mosque in the city of Qom. A bounty has been placed on the head of the American President; $80,000,000 for his body or the equivalent of $1 for every Iranian citizen.

One thing is for certain: this battle is between the United States of America and the Islamic Republic of Iran. They have engaged in conflict with each other for decades and it is finally reaching a boiling point. Another event that is inevitable is the spilling of British blood on foreign soil if our government decides to help the United States in an offensive war against Iran.

The special relationship between Great Britain and the United States has fostered since World War One. We have fought together on the world stage and kept each other safe. Unfortunately, as the world rapidly changes, Great Britain has lagged behind and can not offer the same sort of security to the United States as it once could. With just a little over 73,000 soldiers in the British Army and not enough money (£42bn) to adequately manage our forces, we are no longer capable of fighting wars in far away places.

Another factor to consider is the moral principle of yet another war in the Middle East. I know deployment is typically called a tour, but really, it’s as if the West is determined to go on a tour throughout the Middle East with their armed forces. In recent decades we have seen the British Army deployed in Libya, Iraq, Afghanistan and Syria. Can we really say it has been worth it? One of those wars was illegal and plenty of our soldiers died fighting to find Weapons of Mass Destruction that simply did not exist. We can not afford to go down this route again.

Many patriots and nationalists alike have been calling for war with Iran. This is not the way to go. The American Army has over 1,000,000 troops (not even counting the reserves) and a defence budget of over $700,000,000,000. A special relationship means both partners involved must understand the strengths and weaknesses of each other. This is one of the occasions where the United States must understand that the United Kingdom is simply not in a position to dedicate itself to a major war with Iran. Iran outnumbers us in military personnel, in ships, in planes, in combat tanks and in our oil supply. As much as I would love for the United Kingdom to be able to prove itself as a strong power capable of going on the attack, I also need to understand that we are not what we once were.

Real patriots care about the wellbeing of our brave men and women that serve on the frontlines. We must not put our soldiers into the crosshairs of the Iranian regime. Real patriots would not want to see even more British blood spilled on foreign soil. We have so many domestic concerns that need taking care of; Brexit, the housing crisis and the underfunded National Health Service just to name a few. Now is the time to focus on our national interests and to make life better at home. We can’t start doing that by sending our sons and daughters to die in the desert.

It’s critical that patriots across the country get in touch with their Member of Parliament and make it clear that they will not tolerate yet another war in the Middle East. Another war would bring millions more refugees into Europe – and the United Kingdom – which would strain our resources even further. It’s time for us as a sovereign nation to look out for ourselves instead of doing the bidding of bankers and other countries!