Upgrade | Over 11,000 signatures against the arms industry in Leipzig

The Anthem-type weapons are said to be significantly cheaper than the US Tomahawks. They should carry explosive charges of 200 kilograms and can be used for precision strikes far behind enemy lines. According to the company, the systems manufactured in Leipzig are intended for European customers. It was recently announced that we have received our first major order from Denmark. The contracts with the Ministry of Defense have been signed. Quantities and delivery dates were not mentioned for security reasons.

In addition, a fundamental decision is needed on the establishment of defense companies. Leipzig cannot “at the same time be proud of the Peaceful Revolution and act as if it were a trivial matter when the city is increasingly becoming part of military production structures and logistics and the Central German military cluster,” emphasizes the “Leipzig remains peaceful!” initiative. It was co-founded by Harald Bretschneider, pioneer of the church peace movement in the GDR and initiator of the “swords into plowshares” symbol, as well as by Saxony's former interior minister Horst Rasch and the former district administrator Gerhard Gey (both CDU). The initiative had already started a petition against the militarization of Leipzig-Halle Airport in 2020.

"Anyone who brings arms production to a big city must not act as if it were just an arbitrary company setting up shop in order to strengthen the economy."

However, Mayor Burkhard Jung (SPD) rejected such a fundamental decision at a city council meeting this week. Rather, one will “decide for each individual case” whether inquiries from companies in the “defense industry” will be positively accompanied. There are a larger number of these, as Economic Mayor Clemens Schülke (CDU) informed. According to him, there were 17 inquiries, five of which were still “active”.

In addition to Covenant, another company called Falk Defense has already set up shop in Leipzig. It wants to produce rockets with a range of up to 100 kilometers. The company has moved into a hall and an office and currently employs ten people who are working on developing a prototype. At the same time, a production location is already being sought in the Leipzig region.

Parts of the city council see things significantly differently. The Left has submitted an urgent motion calling for defense companies to be prevented from establishing themselves “in the entire city area”. To this end, the administration should “exploit all legally available means.” Municipal land should not be made available. At the council meeting, the BSW reiterated the call for a “moratorium” on settlement decisions. City councilor Thomas Kachel reminded that a new mayor will be elected in February. The “new administration” may have a different attitude towards the defense industry in Leipzig.

The initiators of the petition are skeptical about this. They believe it is a given that “the government and the arms lobby are pushing forward the development of the Central German military cluster” and are calling for an honest debate. There is also support for such demands on the streets. Only in the past few days have there been renewed calls for demonstrations from an alliance “No Rocket Factory!” and the Leipzig Solidarity Network.

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