Thousands rally in France, Germany against US-led NATO's involvement in Ukraine war

The chorus against the US-led NATO military alliance's involvement in the Ukraine war is growing louder with tens of thousands of people staging massive protest rallies in France, Germany and other European countries.

Protesters marched through the French capital Paris on Sunday, carrying banners that read "Leave NATO" and "For Peace" as they demanded an immediate halt to arms deliveries to Kiev and peace talks to end the war that is now into its second year. 

Florian Philippot, one of the rally's organizers, ripped apart a printed EU flag in front of a large crowd and urged France to leave the military alliance.

"I am in favor of France leaving NATO and NATO being dissolved; the machine should have disappeared with the cold war; It is a war machine," he was quoted as saying in an interview, as quoted by Ruptly.

He also slammed the European countries for being subservient to the United States, which continues to be the largest supplier of arms to Ukraine. 

Philippot accused the US of "blowing up Nord Stream" and denounced German and French diplomats of "not saying a word" about it.

"But it is an act of war. It is a declaration of war, of course. We touch a strategic asset, an energy asset that affects our countries and economies, and we say nothing? We are totally submissive. It is a shame," he hastened to add, referring to an investigation by renowned American journalist Seymour Hersh.

In a detailed report published in his blog earlier this month, Hersh, citing his own investigation into the September sabotage, claimed that the bombing of the Nord Stream underwater gas pipelines in the Baltic Sea was ordered by the White House and carried out by the CIA with the help of the US Navy.

He later noted that US President Joe Biden ordered the destruction of the Nord Stream pipelines in order to make sure Germany could not alter its position on sanctions against Russia and weapons shipments to Ukraine.

Two of the pipelines, known collectively as Nord Stream 1, had been providing Germany and much of Western Europe with cheap Russian natural gas for more than a decade. A second pair of pipelines, known as Nord Stream 2, had been built but were not yet operational.

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Germans to US: 'Nobody needs friends like you'

Also in Germany, thousands of protesters marched to the US airbase in Ramstein to denounce Washington's role in fanning the flames of war in Ukraine.

Nearly 2,500 demonstrators took part in the protest dubbed "Ami go home". They carried banners, reading "No weapons to conflict zones", "Sovereignty and negotiations instead of vassalage", and '"Creating peace without weapons".

The protesters also called for an immediate end to weapons deliveries to Kiev and for the lifting of sanctions against Russia.

"From Ramstein, the Americans wage wars all over the world. This is also where the Ukraine war is decisively managed," a protester said during the rally.

On Saturday, a large gathering of people held a demonstration in central London, calling for peace in Ukraine and an end to weapons shipments. 

Organized by the Stop the War Coalition at Portland Place in Central London, the protesters chanted anti-war slogans, while holding banners against sending more arms to Ukraine. The protesters later marched toward Trafalgar square.

Russia launched its military operation in Ukraine on February 24, 2022, blaming NATO's eastward expansion for the war that completed a year last week. 

Russia views the NATO alliance’s efforts to make Ukraine a member and to deploy missiles close to its borders as a direct threat to its territory.

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