Jeremy Corbyn has lost any chance to rise again as a Labor candidate after his attack on NATO, Keir Starmer suggested.
The former party leader was exiled for refusing to withdraw his insistence that the level of anti-Semitism in Labor had been “dramatically overstated” during the years he led it.
But now he has faced current leadership, suggesting that military alliances such as NATO could create a “greater danger” in the world and should eventually be disbanded.
Prior to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, many of his left-wing Labor allies backed a Stop the War coalition statement condemning NATO enlargement as the cause of the conflict.
Mr Corbyn’s Labor membership was restored in 2020, but not the party’s whip – without which he could not run for office in Islington North in the next general election.
Asked about the former NATO leader’s views, Sir Keir told the BBC: “It is very difficult to see how this situation can be resolved now.
“He lost his whip because of his response to the Equality and Human Rights Commission on anti-Semitism, but I said very clearly – the first thing I said – as a party leader was that I would eradicate anti-Semitism with its roots in our party.
I have also made it clear that our position in the Labor Party is not to accept the false equivalence between Russian aggression and NATO action.
Asked if this meant that he was against Mr Corbyn returning as a Labor MP, Sir Keir replied: “I am very clear in my position on these two issues, very clear.
Earlier this month, Mr Corbyn criticized both Boris Johnson and Joe Biden for not doing enough to promote “dialogue and peace” as the war in Ukraine drags on.
Asked if he still believed that NATO should be disbanded, he told Times Radio: “I would like to see a world in which we will eventually begin to disband all military alliances.
“The question must be, what is the best way to achieve peace in the future?” Is it from more unions? Is it from more military accumulation? Or by stopping the war in Ukraine and other wars.
The former leader added: “And ask yourself, do military alliances bring peace? Or are they actually encouraging each other and building on greater danger?
“I do not blame NATO for the fact that Russia invaded Ukraine. What I am saying is to look at things historically and look at the process that could happen at the end of the war in Ukraine.
Mr Corbyn founded the Peace and Justice project, a campaign group that some believe could turn into a political party – a flag under which he can run.
Asked if he could rule it out, he said, “I don’t know what the future holds.”
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