Stop Sponsoring And Promoting Unjustified Wars, Terrorism In Africa- President Museveni Tells World Leaders At Russia-Africa Summit
Speaking during the just concluded Russian-African summit on Friday, President Museveni called upon countries, organizations, and people all over the world against a culture of fomenting, sponsoring, and promoting unjustified, opportunistic wars, terrorism, and criminality both on the African continent and in the entire world.
“Those who foment wars on account of ideological issues, are wrong and they are time and opportunity wasters. You cannot win an unjustifiable war and history has proved that. Humanity will overcome it ultimately. Historically the religious wars in Europe and the fight between the feudalists and the emergence of capitalism in Europe are a historic testimony because they were justified and of a right cause; humanity came out victorious beyond all odds,” Museveni said.
Museveni was addressing the first session of the second Russia-Africa summit on Friday in the Russian city of Saint Petersburg noting that fighting an unjust war is a waste of time, noting that even if the perpetrator comes out victorious, the gains of such a war are likely to be very temporary.
“Did the religious wars in Europe impose religious conformity in the World? Did Metternich’s Holy Alliance stop the spread of capitalism and the overthrow of feudalism?”
Museveni, therefore, advised that people in modern times should explore dialogue to solve the existing issues in society instead of always looking at violence as the only way to solve human disagreements.
“The only justified wars are the just wars, like the anti-colonial wars. Wars of hegemony will fail and waste time and opportunity. Dialogue is the correct way.”
He castigated forces in Africa and foreign ones that are in a culture of overthrowing legitimate and democratically elected governments in Africa, the recent one having taken place in Niger, an act he said was shameful in the modern era.
Museveni’s comments on the “unjust wars” come on the backdrop of an ongoing war in Europe between Russia and Ukraine which has killed thousands of people and left many others homeless.
The war that broke out in February 2022 saw Russia invade Ukraine in an escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War which began in 2014.
The war has pitted Russia against Ukraine being supported by the US and its allies under NATO.
Earlier in 2014, Ukraine had become a battleground when Russia annexed Crimea and began arming and abetting separatists in the Donbas region in the country’s southeast.
Russia’s seizure of Crimea was the first time since World War II that a European state annexed the territory of another.
In February 2022, Russia embarked on a full-scale invasion of Ukraine with the aim of toppling the Western-aligned government of Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Russia however insists that the invasion of Ukraine is not a war but rather a special military operation.
At least 62,295 people have been killed during the war, 61,000 others injured, at least 15000 missing, 17 million displaced, and at least 140, 000 buildings damaged since February 2022.
