Bernie Sanders U-turns on Ukraine aid, gets peace activists arrested
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US Senator Bernie Sanders reverses his former advocacy to stop financial support for war and backing of peace talks and negotiations in Ukraine.
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Sen. Bernie Sanders, talks with reporters following his meeting with President Joe Biden at the White House in Washington, Aug. 30, 2023 (AP)
Let us wage a moral and political war against war itself, so that we can cut military spending and use that money for human needs.
- A younger, more revolutionary Bernie Sanders
Bernie Sanders has long been campaigning as the anti-war option in the US Democratic party, one known for its extensive support of military intervention abroad, as well as a "socialist" candidate in the party plagued by liberals.
He famously called for "war on war itself" in 2013 and a "realistic and mutually agreeable resolution" to the Ukraine war in 2022.
"[We] must work hard to achieve a realistic and mutually agreeable solution — one that is acceptable to Ukraine, Russia, and the United States and our European allies. So let's sit down. Let's negotiate. And let's come up with a diplomatic solution," he said last year.
Today, however, Sanders has seemingly moved away from wanting peace in Ukraine, calling for more extensive military aid to Ukraine, possibly caving in to the pro-war lobby in the US, namely backed by the military-industrial complex.
Talking about the stop-gap bill passed by the US Congress to avert a government shutdown, he said he was "delighted" that Congress passed the bill in question, though, at the same time, he did not shy away from saying he "look[ed] forward to seeing Congress provide, in the very near future, financial support for Ukraine."
I look forward to seeing Congress provide, in the very near future, financial support for Ukraine which is valiantly struggling against Russian aggression.
— Bernie Sanders (@SenSanders) October 1, 2023
Weeks before the start of the Ukraine war, Bernie wrote an op-ed for The Guardian calling for the aversion of an "enormously destructive war in Ukraine", demanding a diplomatic solution to the issue.
"No one knows exactly what the human costs of such a war would be. But there are estimates that there could be over 50,000 civilian casualties in Ukraine, and millions of refugees flooding neighboring countries as they flee what could be the worst European conflict since the Second World War," he wrote for the British newspaper. He was not too far off in his predictions, but despite those words becoming reality, the Vermont Senator is now backing the complete opposite of what he was advocating for earlier.
And though Sanders warned in that op-ed of the war spreading into other parts of Europe, he is still backing the provision of military aid to Ukraine, which, in turn, is keeping the ball rolling when it comes to the ongoing, continuously escalating conflict.
He even acknowledged that the conflict at hand is much more sophisticated and complex than it may seem on the surface, saying that doing otherwise would stoke tensions and undermine the ability to reach a peaceful resolution.
CODEPINK condemns Bernie
After talking about his backing of the provision of further aid to Ukraine, CODEPINK — an organization that advocates for peace and human rights, with a focus on numerous significant international issues, such as the Palestinian cause and the Iran nuclear deal, and most recently, the US support of the Ukraine war — came in and lambasted him for his hypocrisy.
this you? https://t.co/BfXQvnrIKW pic.twitter.com/8KzwNjjrnB
— CODEPINK (@codepink) October 1, 2023
After Bernie declared his support for the continuation of the Ukraine war, CODEPINK protestors took to the Capitol in the dozens to protest against his statements outside his office, with one activist reporting that 10 had been arrested as they were holding a sign showing a quote by Bernie saying the US needed diplomatic solutions to the Ukraine war.
🚨 BREAKING: Bernie arrests nearly 10 activists who tried to meet with him to discuss Peace in Ukraine. The police handcuffed activists simply for holding a sign quoting Bernie in 2022 when he said we needed diplomatic solutions. Now he says we need weapons & endless slaughter pic.twitter.com/sGQ7aTBWYd
— Calla (@CallaWalsh) October 4, 2023
The protestors were demanding that he stop supporting the provision of arms to Ukraine and instead "negotiate peace in Ukraine" while also urging peace talks to take place.
GIVE PEACE A CHANCE! 💗
— CODEPINK (@codepink) October 4, 2023
We're in Congress today with activists from across the country pushing for #PeaceInUkraine. pic.twitter.com/RIcLpahHUo
Among the activists arrested was an 89-year-old woman. She called for "stop[ping] the wars and all this military money and weapons going to Ukraine to kill people."
Bernie authorizes the arrest of an 89-year-old peace protestor. For SHAME, Bernie. We need negotiations in Ukraine. cc: @medeabenjamin @SenSanders @tammybaldwin @SenWarren pic.twitter.com/kuh01Q4xRE
— Ann Batiza (@AnnBatiza) October 4, 2023
The U-turn made by Bernie does not set a precedent in the United States, as numerous politicians have made more significant reversals in terms of their decisions throughout history in order to serve their interests while disregarding their previous stances and even campaign promises.
