A large-scale anti-war demonstration took place in Wiesbaden on Saturday, with around 4,000 peace activists from across Germany participating in the march through the city center. The event was organized by the Wiesbaden Peace Alliance, the Peace and Future Workshop and the Peace Initiative “Nie wieder Krieg”.
The demonstration was held in response to the planned deployment of additional US intermediate-range missiles in Germany, which is set to take place in 2026. The missiles are intended to be stationed at the US military base in Wiesbaden and a US command center in the Mainz-Kastel district.
In his opening speech at the Wiesbaden train station, one of the co-founders of the new peace alliance, Jan Menning, emphasized that the alliance was formed in response to the US announcement of the planned deployment in 2024. Menning stated that the alliance aims to combat the stationing of the new US missiles with concerned people from the region and to spark a societal debate about the planned deployment.
Many people are unaware of the planned deployment and its consequences, Menning said. The event also drew attention from local politicians, with the mayor of the Mainz-Kastel district, Hartmut Bohrer, speaking about the devastating effects of war, which he had experienced firsthand during World War II.
The demonstration was also attended by a US peace activist from the “Veterans Against Genocide” group, who apologized for the many wars fought by the US and its military presence in Germany, which is opposed by the gathered peace activists.
Other speakers, including a member of the European Parliament, emphasized the need for a strong democracy and international friendship and warned that the current arms race is a provocation against Russia.
A former UN diplomat, Michael von der Schulenburg, praised the high level of participation in the protests against the new US missiles, saying that the current arms buildup is a provocation against Russia and that the increased military spending is not necessary for defense. He also warned that the EU’s attempts to boycott the peace talks between the US and Russia could lead to a third world war.
The event also drew attention to the planned stationing of the US missiles in Germany, which is in conflict with the peace clause in the Hessian Constitution. The planned deployment was announced by the German government without prior public or parliamentary discussion and no disarmament negotiations or moratorium on the deployment are planned.
The organizers of the event called for the deployment of the US missiles in Germany to be stopped, for the US command center in Mainz-Kastel to be withdrawn and for wars and conflicts to be resolved diplomatically rather than militarily.