supply of weapons to Kyiv held in 70 German cities

Demonstrations against the supply of weapons to Kyiv held in 70 German cities

Demonstrations against the supply of weapons to Kyiv held in 70 German cities

Image of German Leopard 2 tanks. Credit: Wikipedia - By Bundeswehr-Fotos - originally posted to Flickr as Leopard 2 A5, CC BY 2.0,

Marchers took to the streets of 70 German cities to demonstrate against the supply of weapons to Kyiv.

Thousands of people took part in mass demonstrations in 70 German cities today, Saturday, April 8. They were protesting against the constant supply of weapons to Kyiv and called for peace talks to be brokered as soon as possible between Ukraine and Russia.

Today’s marches were held as part of peace marches which are held annually in the country on the eve of Easter, as reported by the DPA news agency.

The largest demonstrations took place in Berlin, Bonn, Bremen, Duisburg, Hannover, Leipzig, Munich and Stuttgart. Demonstrators demanded the speedy holding of peace talks on Ukraine, the cessation of the supply of German weapons to Kyiv and the modernisation program of the Bundeswehr.

According to a spokesperson for Peace Cooperative Network – the organisers of the marches – over 2,000 people took part in Berlin, and around 1,200 gathered in Hannover. In Bonn, the peace action was held under the slogan: ‘Even if Ukraine has the right to defend itself, more heavy weapons are not a solution, but fuel this war’.

Speaking in the city of Leipzig, Thorsten Schleip, one of the organisers of the marches, commented: “For us, an immediate ceasefire and the start of negotiations is the best alternative to further arms exports and escalation, up to an exchange of nuclear strikes”.

On the posters carried by the demonstrators, the image of a German Leopard tank was accompanied by the caption: ‘Put the lion on the chain’.

Berlin’s Wedding district saw the largest crowd. A mobile stage was installed there, from which, before the start of the march, the song ‘Let There Always Be Sunshine’ was performed in Yiddish, Russian and German.

Activists carried posters and banners including the words, ‘Cooperation and friendship with Russia’, ‘Peace – now’, ‘Diplomacy, not weapons’, ‘US and NATO – get out of Ukraine’, ‘Against senseless sanctions, cheap energy – now’, and ‘Tanks never bring peace’. During the procession, the song ‘Katyusha’ was performed in Russian and German.

Further peace marches are planned this weekend in more than 100 German cities, organisers from the Alliance for Peace Initiatives said. Last year, from several hundred to several thousand people gathered in each locality to take part, as reported by tass.ru.

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Written by

Chris King

Originally from Wales, Chris spent years on the Costa del Sol before moving to the Algarve where he is a web reporter for The Euro Weekly News covering international and Spanish national news. Got a news story you want to share? Then get in touch at editorial@euroweeklynews.com

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