19th February 2007
Open Letter Mrs. Federal Chancellor and EU Council President, Angela Merkel
http://www.flwi.ugent.be/cie/CIE2/an_merkel.htm#en
Dear Mrs. Federal Chancellor and EU Council President
We, the undersigned of this open letter are turning to you with the urgent request to do anything in your power to prevent a US war against Iran.
Everything points to an impending comprehensive aerial war against Iran waged by the United States of America. Studies of the International Crisis Group show that an attack would not be confined to the destruction of nuclear facilities alone. The aircraft carriers Stennis and Eisenhower have already been stationed in front of Iran’s shores and according to The Guardian of February 10th there is a third aircraft carrier on its way to the Persian Gulf.
Those three aircraft carriers and their formations are equipped with weapons, sufficient to completely wipe out all military and civil infrastructure of Iran, including bridges, highways, power plants, refineries and water supply facilities.
To protect US warships against Iranian missiles, Patriot rockets have been installed in the South of Iraq. With alarming appeals renowned experts such as Sam Gardiner, Seymour Hersh and Daniel Elsberg have been warning for many weeks against a new war of the US-Administration. On February 4th three former commanders of the US military spoke up in the Sunday Times to warn most urgently against the disastrous consequences of an air strike. A similar warning was expressed by former NATO commander-in-chief Wesley Clarke in Munich.
The New York Times of 9th of February is bluntly supplying some pretexts for the attack on Iran by holding Iran responsible for the death of 170 US-soldiers in Iraq. No one less than Zbigniew Brzezinski turned against the distribution of such pretexts.
Early in February he warned President Bush at the US-Senate’s Foreign Affairs Committee not to make up fake evidence for a “defensive” military action against Iran. The situation today reminds us of the false propaganda during the months prior to the Iraq war.
Unfortunately there are no indications that the US-President is working towards a diplomatic solution. He declines the dialogue with Iran in spite of the recommendations of the Baker Commission. His permanent protestations that he would prefer a diplomatic solution just serve to cheating the American people as well as the Europeans. It seems, that within the political leadership of the United States those have succeeded, who are determined to eliminate the regime of the Islamic Republic and want to bomb the Iran back into a completely irrelevant political factor in the region by the destruction not only of its nuclear facilities but also of all its military and relevant economic capacities. If this actually happens, the entire region of the Middle East will tumble into chaos, which will cause a major threat for peace in the world – not to mention the political and economic effects for the world, last not least also for Germany. With his insane war plans the US-President is acting against the majority of the Americans as well as against many of his own party. In our opinion, there is no political and moral legitimacy whatsoever for any further co-operation with Bush in the Iran conflict since any such co-operation would be understood as consenting to his aggression plans.
Dear Mrs. Merkel we ask you to act because danger is looming. Do prevent this war! Otherwise Germany and the European Union could be made responsible for a disaster of unthinkable dimensions.
– Declare an unmistakable refusal to military aggression against Iran in the name of Germany.
– Demand the EU and its member states to express themselves accordingly.
– Speak out in favour of new negotiations with the Iranian leaders without preconditions but on the legal basis of the Non-Proliferation-Treaty.
Stand up for a Conference of Security and Co-operation in the Middle East to begin as early as possible, in order to start the peaceful dialogue in the region. Either there is a common solution for the actual conflicts in the region or there will be a fire storm, chaos and new calamity for the whole of mankind.
Hoping that peace can be secured through the efforts from many sides we remain
Yours sincerely
Hans Christoph Graf von Sponek (former UN-Representative of the project “Oil against food” in the Irak)
Prof. Dr. h.c. Koppe (peace researcher)
Prof. Dr. Ekkehart Krippendorf (political scientist)
Friedrich Schorlemmer (civil rights activist)
Prof. Dr. Oskar Negt (sociologist)
Prof. Dr. Christine Morgenroth (physiotherapist)
Prof. Dr. Peter Grottian (political scientist)
Dr. Gerald Mader (peace researcher)
Prof. Dr. Werner Ruf (political scientist, North Africa expert)
Prof. Dr. Andreas Buro (peace researcher)
Prof. Dr. Mohssen Massarrat (political scientist, Middle East expert)
Dr. Peter Strutynski (peace researcher)
Dr. Angelika Claussen (chairman of German section of IPPNW)
Dr. Ulrich Gottstein (Honorary chairman of IPPNW German Section)
Prof. Dr. Hans-Peter Dürr (nuclear physicist)
Coord. Prof. Dr. Mohssen Massarrat,
Hofbreede 64
49078 Osnabrück
Tel: 0541/442284
Fax: 0541/4430528
e-mail: [email protected]
