THE BLUE PLANET: War or Peace?

By Inuwa Waya 

During the 20th Century, human life lost its value  as a result of  the barbarism that accompanied the first and the second World wars. The war machines invented for the protection of mankind were ruthlessly unleashed against the human race. The inability of the League of Nations to prevent the appalling crimes led to the emergence of the United Nations at the end of the second World war in 1945. Since than, the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) has been working  to enforce international peace and security without success. On the 13th June, 2025, Israel began a massive military operation against Iran. The operation according to the Jewish state was aimed at  degrading the ability of the Iranian State to develop nuclear weapons. The Israel claim that Iran is developing nuclear weapons was refuted by Rafael Grossi, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency ( IAEA). The Iranian nuclear programme according to Tehran is for civilian purposes. Under Operation True Promise, Iran rains down missiles and drones against  Israel’s  critical military targets. Since than, Iran and Israel has been trading air attacks. The international community is  helplessly watching . Donald Trump, a long time ally of Benjamin Netanyahu  had stated that the United States of America will decide whether to join Israel in attacking Iran within the next two weeks. The American President had taken this latitude to allow diplomacy to work and to also convince his make America great again (MAGA) movement to agree for the Americans to take part in the fight. A window of international diplomacy was opened with the Iranian foreign Minister  Abbas Agharachi having his first  meeting with the European Union delegation led by the foreign ministers of France, Britain, Germany and the EU foreign policy chief. During the meeting which was held in Geneva, the Swiss Capital,  Iran reiterated it's position that the Country can not negotiate  their  civilian nuclear programme while Israel’s   aggression against their nation is ongoing. The stakes are high and the atmosphere is palpable. America and the European Union are supporting Israel in its aggression against Iran. Even without participating in combat operation, the Americans are already helping Israel with Iron Dome, Arrow and  David's sling  to defend itself against the Iranian drones and missiles. China, Russia and other Countries from the global South faulted Israel for what they regarded as a unilateral and unprovoked aggression against a member of the United Nations. According to them, such action is against the International Law and Order. The same position was taken by the Muslim Countries under the Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC). If Israel refuse to stop the attack, and the Americans decided to join the fight   at the expiration of the two weeks period,  the situation will deteriorate further  and even become more complicated. Iran had already warned the United States not to participate in the conflict. The Islamic Republic also sent messages across to all the Countries in the region where America has its military bases not to allow their territory to be a launching pad by the Americans. In simple terms,  Iran is sending signal that if America join the fight, all the American military bases in Qatar, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Iraq, are legitimate targets for the Iranian Armed forces. That also means the Iranian allies ( both state and non state actors) in the region would assist Iran in this regard. The Houthis in Yemen,Hamas in Gaza, Hesbollah in Lebanon and the Iraq Shia militia  are all affiliated to Iran. The Strait of Hormuz is within easy reach for Iran and the Houthis. Under pressure, both of them can block that shipping route. That will impact negatively on International Shipping and would block  20% of the World crude oil supply. The global economy will definitely be affected. Before we move out of the Middle East, we should note that Israel is already fighting with  Hesbollah, Houthis and Hamas. In Gaza alone, nearly 56,000 people were killed by Israel. In Syria, Israel’s rain of missiles are  dropping on daily basis ostensibly to protect the Druze tribe. The Jewish state had also made incursion into the Syrian territory and established a military base around the Golan Heights. Elsewhere in Europe, the war between Russia and Ukraine has become protracted. The conflict is adversely affecting the World economy. To stop the war, Russia insisted that Ukraine must recognise the newly redesign borders and abandon their desire to join NATO. Ukraine and its main supporters the EU, refused to accept those conditions. The war is still going on.  There are other worrisome conflicts that are equally threatening  World peace in Africa, Asia and Latin America. 

As mentioned earlier, UNSC is finding it difficult to enforce peace and security at the global stage. The five permanent members are polarised along unipolar and multipolar beliefs. The undemocratic nature of the veto power neutralises any position the non permanent members would take. 

Be that as it may and whether America decide to join Israel in its war with Iran or not, the World is in a delicate balance. If the World powers want a better and safer World as they always say, they must collectively match words with actions. International Law and Order must be respected by all Countries irrespective of their military or economic power. The United Nations, especially its Security Council, must be reformed to make it more democratic as regards to the exercise of veto power. These two are sine qua non for peace and security to flourish in our mother earth.