Peter Mertens' Speech at The Hague en Brussels

I would like to thank the organizers for the invitation.
I have brought eight theses with me.

1.    Anyone who refuses to condemn the United States and Israel has lost all credibility.
 In March 2003, a so-called Coalition of the Willing, led by the United States, launched an illegal war against Iraq. There was no approval from the UN Security Council, and the war was justified with three main arguments: that Iraq possessed weapons of mass destruction, that Iraq posed a threat to global security, and that a regime change would be beneficial for everyone.
None of these three arguments turned out to be true. There were no weapons of mass destruction, there was no real threat, and after the invasion, Iraq was reduced to a breeding ground for the most sectarian violence. The world did not become safer, but more dangerous.
 

What we are seeing today against Iran appears to be a copy of that same approach. The same three arguments are being used again: that Iran is on the verge of acquiring nuclear weapons, that it poses a threat to global security, and that a new puppet regime backed by Washington would be better for all.
This is a textbook Pentagon strategy. Once again, there is no approval from the UN Security Council. That means the actions of the United States and Israel are in violation of international law, and according to international law, constitute an illegal war of aggression.
 

Iran’s nuclear energy facilities are legal and continue to be monitored by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). Iran joined the IAEA in 1958, shortly after the agency was founded, and has since abides by its guidelines for the peaceful use of nuclear energy. Despite heavy pressure from Washington to impose sanctions, the IAEA has never found that Iran violated the rules or possesses nuclear weapons.
 

On Saturday night, Trump sent a message to the world: that it is acceptable to launch an illegal war of aggression, and that it is acceptable to bomb nuclear facilities. Any member of the United Nations that does not strongly condemn these outrageous and illegal acts is giving Trump a blank check to continue.
 

Meanwhile, the hypocrisy meter explodes: the only nuclear-armed power in the region is Israel, which has not signed the Non-Proliferation Treaty and accepts no inspections by international bodies.
At the same time, it is Israel that is committing genocide against the people of Gaza, bombing Lebanon and Yemen, and occupying part of Syria. Yet there are still no sanctions against Israel.
 

On the eve of the NATO summit, one thing is clear: the United States and Israel are bringing only more war and instability. Anyone who refuses to condemn the US and Israel has lost all credibility. It is time for Europe to say no to this madness, instead of following Trump around like a lapdog.

2. The 5% norm is a Trump norm
Starting this year, suddenly everyone began talking about 5 percent.5 percent spending on NATO. That is nowadays a sacred cow, but where does that cow come from? That sacred cow comes from Washington. It was Trump himself who launched that number and wants to impose it on all NATO member states. And suddenly the whole world parrots him: it must and shall be 5 percent.
The question is: why does Trump want that? Firstly: because all that money mainly goes toward the purchase of American weapons.Secondly, and more fundamentally: Trump wants Europe to pay so the US can focus on China.
Trump's best parrot is Marc Rutte, now head of NATO: “We spend more so the US can pivot, for example, to the Indo-Pacific.”
“For example,” says Marc Rutte. No, not “for example” Mr. Rutte. That is not a “for example”, that is what it’s all about. Europeans must spend billions extra so the US can concentrate on its own geopolitical agenda against China in the Indo-Pacific. 
That means: the military encirclement of China.NATO is an instrument of American power politics, and we get to pay the bill.

3. Trump plays Europe and Asia off against each other
And it goes even further. First, Trump convinces Europe to spend 5% of GDP on weapons. Then America tells countries in Asia: look, Europe is doing it, now you too! Former US Deputy Secretary of Defense Elbridge Colby wrote on X: “Asian allies must take Europe as an example. Even Germany is now spending 5% on defense.” 
Dear Australians, New Zealanders, Japanese, and Filipinos: do like Europe and spend 5% too. 
And where will everyone buy those weapons? Oh yes, mainly in the arms industry in the US.
We are simply being deceived while we watch. Europe is being played against Asia. And vice versa. And in the meantime, the American arms industry wins on all sides.

4. The NATO norm is not an obligation
The 2% or 5% norm is not binding at all. The so-called NATO norm has no legal or treaty-based character. It is not binding. You cannot enforce this norm legally.
The norm is a political agreement, not a legal obligation. Member states remain sovereign and decide their own defense policy.
Examples:
*Denmark, Norway, and Spain refused nuclear weapons on their territory.
*France, Germany, and Belgium opposed NATO involvement in the second Gulf War against Iraq.
*Turkey denied US troops access to its territory.
 
In short: even within NATO, countries can follow their own course—if they want to.Spain has already said that it will not accept the 5% norm. Why then should Belgium accept that norm? Why then should a caretaker government in the Netherlands accept that norm?

5. The Trump norm threatens our social security
“There is no money.”
Everyone has heard that, for decades.There is no money to invest in good public transport,no money to invest in childcare or affordable housing,no money to pay people a decent pension,no money…And now suddenly billions of euros are found for armament and war.What a lie.
Just to reach 3.5 percent, Belgium would have to cough up an extra 10 billion euros per year. That is incredible.
The Trump norm is an attack on our social security, and our social achievements, and if we let them be destroyed, Trump has won.
Meanwhile, arms manufacturers have already won and are making phenomenal profits. They even advertise investing in the arms industry as “the best investment ever”, they say.
A system that lets arms investors cash in while retirees can barely get by is decadent. A system that gives more money to tanks than to schools is decadent. 

More money for weapons: not in our name!

6. NATO already spends insane amounts
For the warmongers, it’s never enough. They pretend that NATO countries are poor wretches who barely spend anything on defense.
The opposite is true. The numbers are insane. Truly insane.
In 2024, the 32 NATO countries together spent 1.275 trillion dollars on armament.If the 5% norm is implemented, that amount rises to 2.758 trillion dollars per year—more than double! 
For comparison: that is more than all other countries in the world combined, including China, Russia, India, Israel, Ukraine, and Saudi Arabia. Today, NATO countries spend 12 times more than Russia, and 4.5 times more than China. At 5% it would even be 20 times more. That is not security. 

That is an absurd arms race that will destroy our social achievements and bring the world even closer to a major war.

7. NATO is not a defensive organization—but a war machine
Officially, NATO says it stands for peace. But listen to what Mark Rutte recently said: “NATO is the most powerful military alliance in the history of humanity. More powerful than the Roman Empire. And more powerful than Napoleon’s empire.”
That comparison says it all. The Roman Empire was not a defensive alliance. It was an empire that thrived on conquest and domination. Just like Napoleon, who crowned himself emperor and brought Europe under his influence.
If NATO with 1.275 trillion dollars is truly more powerful than the Roman Empire, then why do we still need to spend more?
Indeed, Rutte almost says it himself—because NATO is not a defense alliance at all, but a tool of world domination, just like the Roman Empire. NATO is a war machine. We owe it nothing.

Not a single cent for their wars!

8. Seize the Moment: believe in our collective power
They want to wear us down with fear and war, and all kinds of technical details about how deep the new American bombs can explode underground. They want us blind to the counter-movement and our own collective power.

We are the forces of peace.We are the people who, with 150,000 in The Hague and 110,000 in Brussels, drew the Red Line against genocide.We are the 6 million Americans who took part in the protests against Trump:“No thrones, no crowns, no kings.”We are the dockworkers of Marseilles who refuse to load warships to Israel.We are the Palestinians around the world.
Dear friends: their world order leads to the abyss.Everyone feels that it is not right that we arm ourselves to the teeth while our trains don’t run, our pensions are cut, and our hospitals lack staff.

Real political courage is not trailing behind Trump like a lapdog.Real political courage is developing a vision of our own:A vision that invests in our industry,A vision that invests in technology and science, in ecological transition,A vision that invests in peace.
Their world order is the order of the past.The peace movement is the power of the future.

Believe in your own strength.
Believe in our collective power.
Believe in socialism.