How Can We All Live Peacefully in a World with Rising Violence, Militarism and Warmongering?

MILITARISM, 15 Sep 2025

Vijay Mehta – TRANSCEND Media Service

Introduction – The Current Landscape of Global Conflict

9 Sep 2025 – The year 2025 has been marked by unprecedented levels of violence. According to the data collated by Uppsala Conflict Data Programme, last year experienced more conflict than any other year since the end of the War War II, with 61 state-based full blown wars. As a result, according to SIPRI (Stockholm International Peace Research Institute), World military expenditure rose 9.4% to $2718 billion in 2024, the highest ever. The top 5 spenders were US, China, Russia, Germany, and India. The arms industry and trade are at the centre of world economy and structure of power.

In Gaza, the humanitarian crisis has reached catastrophic proportions. In Ukraine, the conflict persists with devastating consequences. These conflicts are not isolated incidents but part of a broader pattern of militarisation and warmongering that threatens global stability. People are being killed senselessly in wars and decrying the principle that all life is sacred and we should try our utmost to save all human beings from suffering and killing as war leads to violence, death, poverty, displacement and destruction.

The interlocking American (and European) electoral and financial systems, which are directly linked with the Western military industrial complex and the privately owned “mainstream” Western media are, as of the 21st century, interconnectedly woven together in a manner that extracts wealth and power from the general population so that an extremely small minority of multi-billionaires can continually increase their profit margins and their influence. The global economy is rigged by the north by buying resources from the south at low prices and selling the finished goods at high prices. I have explained this scenario in detail in my book, “The Economics of Killing – How the West Fuels War and Poverty in the Developing World” (Pluto Press, 2012).

The reality is that a handful of giant corporations, countries and militaries are responsible for the majority of wars and catastrophic risks the world faces today. The intense media coverage of the threat of the chances of a nuclear exchange is at 100% is scaring people without any solid evidence. Fear achieves making people submissive, obedient and making them believe that violence and war is a reasonable choice. By shouting that nuclear war is coming. People suddenly turn to NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organisation) for fake security as they believe use of weapons is a way to peace and power flows through the barrel of a gun. NATO is the world’s largest and most dangerous war and killing machine and have caused at least 35 million deaths since its creation in 1949. NATO’s push for a 5% increase for all its members of military spending shows the height of transatlantic madness, as more military arsenal will lead to more militarism and wars. Only peaceful means lead to peace.

So who benefits from war? Bankers and other elite families like weapon manufacturers by capture and control of such resources including mineral resources such as oil, gas, gold, diamonds etc. These families and corporations operate beyond the rule of law and beyond constraint of any kind.

With all these injustices around us, what is the best way to challenge, overturn and counterbalance a war centred, military spending obsessed neo conservative agenda / system of US and western world?

Solutions

In the peace movement, we are working for a better future. If our aim is true change, we must cultivate a positive vision of the future.

1. Empowering CSOs (Civil Society Organisations) to act as agents of peace and change is essential. Their grassroots connections and deep understanding of local contexts make them invaluable in conflict resolution and peacebuilding efforts.
2. Women and youth are often the most affected by conflicts, yet they are also powerful catalysts for peace. In Sudan, women-led initiatives have been at the forefront of humanitarian responses, despite facing significant challenges. Engaging women and youth in peace processes ensures more inclusive and sustainable outcomes. Their perspectives and experiences bring unique insights that can lead to more effective and lasting peace agreements.
3. Advancements in technology offer new avenues for peacebuilding, providing platforms for dialogue and understanding.
4. Global Peace requires concerted international efforts to resolve long-running disputes by dialogue, diplomacy and cooperation.
5. Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and Arms increases conflicts. Disarmament initiatives are crucial in reducing violence and fostering long-term peace. Efforts must focus on controlling the flow of weapons and promoting disarmament at both national and international levels.
6. Promoting peace through education and cultural exchange can counteract the narratives of hatred and division. Such programs cultivate empathy and understanding, laying the groundwork for peaceful coexistence. Investing in education that promotes critical thinking, tolerance, and global citizenship is essential for building a more peaceful world.

In my book, How Not to Go to War (published by New Internationalist in 2019), I have advocated a radical idea of establishing Departments for Peace in governments around the world, with a Minister for Peace and Disarmament at the Cabinet level who can advocate alternative solutions to war and work for global demilitarisation. The Minister will be responsible for promotion of a Culture of Peace – a multicultural environment in which conflicts can be resolved in a respectful and peaceful way.

Furthermore, I have also promoted that peace must become institutionalised via infrastructures for peace in the same way war has been institutionalised. I have also called for a Peace Industrial Complex sustained by the same combination of public and private enterprise that keeps the Military Industrial Complex going generation after generation, that way we can make the world less violent. As a species, humans are one of the few species who kill their own. All our efforts should be to tame and constrain the human capacity for violence and stop repression, slaughter and war. The belief that might is right is proved wrong time and again by successful application of non-violent actions in many parts of the world.

Conclusion

Problems we face in the peace movement are glaringly obvious. The trap of politics is to make citizens believe that there are not alternatives to armaments, militarism and warfare.  We need new ways to stop wars. Achieving peace in a world rife with violence and militarism is a formidable challenge. However, by empowering civil society, engaging women and youth, leveraging technology, reforming international policies, pursuing disarmament, and promoting education, we can pave the way toward a more peaceful future.

Let us commit to these endeavours, recognizing that peace is not merely the absence of war but the presence of justice, equity, and mutual respect.

Let me give you some comprehensive strategies for building a peaceful world:

1. Engage with policy makers – Member of Parliament / Congressman/woman and acquaint them with ever increasing military budget and ongoing wars, bringing untold suffering and what they intend to do about it.
2. Write to newspaper or give an interview in a TV or Radio Programme. Publish op-eds, letters to editors, social media campaigns to shift public opinions.
3. Hold a meeting like today to spread the word of peace
4. Join a non-violent, civil resistant protest / march showing opposition to wars, military spending, arms trade and gun culture.
5. Become a peace activist and join and support a peace organisation, like Uniting for Peace and lobby for peace policies
6. Expose wars and arms trade profiteers. Shame companies and politicians who benefit from arms trade and killing people.
7. Empower citizens through citizen’s power to come together to do good for less fortunate, for the struggling and for the persecuted.
8. Peace activists should keep exploring the best way to challenge the system and create something new. All big movements started with family, friends and a little group which developed into a movement.
9. Campaign for introducing global citizenship education in schools and colleges, including learning the UN Charter to create politically literate citizens to influence government and community affairs at all levels. Global citizenship prepares citizens to tackle world’s most pressing issues – wars, poverty, climate change, education and health.
10. The UN Charter is the most non-violent and peaceful document and through UN Reforms, we should implement its charter guidelines.

People power works. According to the data collected by political scientist Erica Chenworth – from 1900 – 2006, non-violent campaigns worldwide were twice likely to succeed than violent insurgencies and the trend has increased over the last 50 years. We need to recognise the progress made and redirect our energy to what’s to be done.

Consider what made Gandhi and King extraordinary. Through non-violence, finding new ways, they did not just protest – they transformed their societies, there were a clear before and after effect from their work through mass non-violent action, Gandhi made British control of India politically untenable by launching protests, boycotts and demonstrations. These leaders understood that non-violence must be pro-active, not reactive. Martin Luther King Jr. led the Civil Rights Movement through nonviolent protest to fight racial segregation and injustice. He organised peaceful marches, boycotts (like the Montgomery Bus Boycott). His efforts helped bring about key changes, including the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

Presently, US President Donald Trump, is a controversial figure. On one hand he persuaded the NATO countries to increase their military spending budget to 5% from 2% and also bombed Iran. On the other hand, he’s working hard as unifier and peace maker with authentic desire to bring peace and save lives in the various war torn regions of the world.

There are positive things happening around the world. We are more and more living in a multipolar world. With the emergence of BRICS, (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa), the decline of US Dollar and domination, and the China’s Road and Belt trade initiative, a counter-weight to hegemony of the US, Europe and their militaristic agenda. Some of the major decisions of the 21^st century will be taken by BRICS and its members working towards global peace, security and development. The US and European hegemony and its outdated thinking is out of steps with the changing world.

Achieving peace is kind of endless passing of torch and an unfinished march that started long time ago that each generation joins and continue in its own way keeping the hope and light alive. Let thousands of ideas bloom for a better world. We create change action by action, step by step.

Anyone with conscience cannot be a mere spectator. Taking action and keeping eyes fixed on the goal is urgent. Just remember, in history, bad people get exposed, evil empires do eventually fall, concentration camps can be freed, and defenceless populations filled with hope and resilience, do find a way to protect themselves and world around us.

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Vijay Mehta is an author and peace activist. He is chair of Uniting for Peace, founding trustee of Fortune Forum charity, and board member of GAMIP-Global Alliance for Ministries and Infrastructures for Peace. His books include: The Economics of Killing (Pluto Press, 2012); Peace Beyond Borders (New Internationalist, 2016; and the most recent How Not To Go To War (New Internationalist, 2019) where he proposes that in countries and communities, in governments, private institutions and media, Peace Departments and Peace Centres be established to report on and promote peace.

This article originally appeared on Transcend Media Service (TMS) on 15 Sep 2025.

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