Swindon Stop the War Coalition statement - Michael Wills resigns

It is welcome that following Michael Wills' resignation from the government he will be campaigning against the Common Agricultural Policy and for Trade Justice. However, we shouldn't forget that Michael Wills was an enthusiastic supporter of war on Iraq, perhaps because he didn't notice that Tony Blair's pants were on fire?

The policies that the Bush government promotes in the IMF, World Bank and trade organisations through the WTO are designed to foster and increase injustice, in the direct interests of US big-business. The so-called "War on Terror" is not separate to these policies but an integral part of the strategy for a "New American Century". By supporting the US war drive our MPs are supporting the policies that undermine social justice.

One important issue is control of oil. Michael Wills claims that the anti-war movement is naïve to raise oil as a motivation for war (because for example in 1991 the total foreign income for US ill companies was "only" $281 billion, whereas military expenditure was around $100 billion more than that). However, the issue is not the profits made by selling oil, but the ability to control how much oil is produced, and therefore the price of oil. The USA's major trading rivals, Europe and Japan, are more dependent on Gulf oil than the USA. Control of Iraq's oil gives the USA a dramatically increased bargaining hand at G8, WTO, etc. Previously the USA has controlled oil prices through its alliance with the despotic Saud family in Arabia (the Eisenhower doctrine), but Saudi Arabia is looking less and less stable and they needed a new mechanism.

The second issue is the ability to force countries in the South to accept America's agenda of privatisation and deregulation - for example to force through agreements like TRIPS and GATS at the World Trade Organisation (WTO). The war has shown how America uses both the carrot and the stick, As George W Bush says, "Either you are with us or you are with the terrorists". Turkey has been hugely punished by the withdrawal billions of dollars of aid for refusing to participate in the Blitzkrieg on Iraq. The Chavez government in Venezuela is being destabilised because it is trying to assert some economic independence. The "War on Terror" will make it harder for governments of poor countries to oppose US policies, for example on privatising services and intellectual copyright.

Thirdly, the insecurity in the world economy created by the war has led to increased flows of foreign capital into the USA: despite low profit rates in that country it is seen as a safer place to invest. (See M Wolf, Financial Times, 19 Feb 2003) "The US current account deficit is 50% bigger than its defence spending... Indirectly the rest of the world pays for the exercise of US power". In turn the increased flow of Direct Foreign Investment (DFI) into the USA further strengthens the bargaining power of the USA in the WTO, IMF, etc. War is good for business.

It is not clear what the personal motivation was for Wills and Drown to support the imperial conquest of Iraq, and restoration of direct colonial rule. However the war is part of an American strategy to keep the poor poor, and make the powerful even richer. We hope that our MPs learn the lesson of the Iraq and Afghan wars, and that they will oppose the extension of the "war on terror" to Iran, Syria, or wherever Bush decides next.

Andy Newman
Secretary Swindon Stop the War Coalition
PO Box 1177, Swindon, SN1 4XB
http://freespace.virgin.net/swindon.stopwar/