European security

The EU, not Nato, has brought peace to our continent

The Brexiteers claim that it is NATO that has kept us safe in Europe. But a military alliance, whose driving message is that to avoid war we must prepare for war, and requires all members to spend 2 per cent of their GDP on weapons, cannot be regarded as an instrument of peace. This alliance is a relic of the Cold War that should have been dismantled decades ago. From a Quaker perspective NATO, particularly when it acts as a cheerleader for the arms trade, might be seen as a cause of war rather than keeper of the peace.