A Statement from IPPNW Canada President on the War in Ukraine
Written by IPPNW Canada President, Dr. Jonathan Down on February 28th, 2022
Today, the people of Ukraine are being murdered and traumatized. Their homes, schools and daycares are being destroyed. Crimes of aggression are being committed in the heart of Europe, and the world struggles to respond in a meaningful way. We at IPPNW Canada join our mother and sister organizations around the world in calling for the immediate end to this naked aggression, wholly initiated by Russia. Our hearts and hopes for peace go out to the Ukrainian people.
The war against Ukraine, like all wars, is a public health disaster. It has the potential to be a global catastrophe. President Putin holds the nuclear sword of Damocles in one hand and the Non-Proliferation Treaty in the other. He is clearly violating the latter. It is a chilling reminder of a global vulnerability that is largely of our own making. Global institutions have failed us and countries have walked away from disarmament Treaties and obligations, further threatening a sustainable future for peace.
In Ukraine, death and destruction are the order of the day. Whereas Covid-19 exposed the cracks in our global health and social care systems, Putin is exposing the fault-lines in our institutions of global governance and collective security.
Neither Ukraine nor the rest of us can afford the luxury of time — we are on the brink of a global humanitarian crisis and the hand of Damocles is shaking.
