Dear Editor,
Over the last few weeks, Russia launched a devastating attack on Ukraine, causing global uncertainty and the potential for widespread escalation. Not since the most dangerous moments of the Cold War have tensions between the West and Russia been so high. Numerous political commentators are now openly declaring that nuclear war is a real and imminent possibility. It is easy to now jump on the ‘World War III’ bandwagon, and indeed the media know that shocking and dramatic headlines increase their readership and views. Equally, Western media who paint President Putin as a ‘Hitler-esque’ uniquely evil figure know that generating division and outrage also plays in their favour.
What was more difficult, however, was to have predicted such a chain of events a long time ago. To this end, the Worldwide Head of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, the Caliph, His Holiness Mirza Masroor Ahmad, did exactly this. While leading the single largest Muslim community on Earth, he has been warning for over a decade that the threat of a World War between the West and Russia looms on the horizon. He has delivered speeches to the US congress, the EU Parliament, the House of Commons, UNESCO, the parliaments of the Nether-lands, Japan, New Zealand, and many others. He has addressed universities and the common person alike. His message has been consistent for over a decade: War is coming, unless a change is made. In a ‘Peace Symposium’ speech delivered in 2013, speaking to the economic hardship of the Europeans, he said: “We should not sit here and only be concerned at the prospect of becoming involved in wars that are taking place in Asia, but we should also be extremely concerned about the problems on our own doorsteps… ” The next year, tensions erupted in Ukraine over which economic bloc to join.
In an address to British Parliament in London in June 2013, the Caliph again addressed the topic of war by stressing that the world has become a global village, and so a lack of mutual respect and a failure to join together to promote peace will not only harm the local area, city or country, but in fact will ultimately lead to the destruction of the entire world. The signs are that another world war is on the horizon. If a world war breaks out, the Western world will also be deeply affected by its far-reaching and devastating consequences. In a 2015 address at the National Peace Symposium of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, the Caliph specifically mentioned Ukraine as a severe threat to world peace: “…. Then there is the conflict in Ukraine and the global arms race. These are all threats to world peace that are not linked to Islam, but rather have developed as a result of an unquenchable thirst for power, influence and resources.”
In a 2012 letter to President Barack Obama, the Caliph warned: “My request to you, and indeed to all world leaders, is that instead of using force to suppress other nations, use diplomacy, dialogue and wisdom. The major powers of the world, such as the United States, should play their role towards establishing peace.” Even in more recent years, the Caliph highlighted the fact that the world was becoming more and more divided, and yet most were not aware of the potential dangers. With the advent of COVID-19, the Caliph presciently warned in letters to global leaders that economic distress may turn nations to war. A glance at history makes it clear that wars are often sparked by economic pressures and frustrations, as nations seek to unjustly fulfil their vested interests through warfare and violence. If, and when, a Third World War breaks out, it cannot be assumed that Africa will not be drawn into the conflict because the modern world has come to resemble a global village in which each nation and continent is now more connected than ever before.
Sincerely,
Maulana Fahd Peerzada
Missionary of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Jama`at
