UNITE AND RESIST US-LED WARS! REJECT THE LAND FORCES EXPOSITION!
We, members and friends of International League of Peoples’ Struggle (ILPS) Australia stand opposed to the 2026 Land Forces International Land Defence Exposition at the Perth Convention and Exhibition Centre.
We reject the presence of this weapons marketplace within our public spaces. Our civic infrastructure should not be leveraged for war profiteering, foreign military expansionism, and the US-led wars of aggression.
We assert that true security is not forged through the manufacture and trade of lethal armaments, but through justice, peace, solidarity, and the protection of fundamental human rights. Promoting global arms traders and corporate “harm dealers” and allowing them to gather in Perth or any other city directly undermines our shared values of genuine sovereignty, national independence, compromises our peace-loving societies, and binds our peoples to the genocide, displacement, and environmental destruction wrought by imperialist conflict across the globe.
Peace, Justice, and Human Dignity as the Bedrock of Social Life
The well-being and moral foundation of our society rely fundamentally on the protection of human life, community solidarity, and the ethical stewardship of public resources. Public institutions and municipal facilities must serve the common good, advance civic enrichment, and foster social cohesion, not to act as commercial platforms for domestic and international weapons corporations.
We challenge the narrative that military expansion and defence trade shows represent neutral economic development or necessary security measures. Superficial claims of economic growth and technical innovation only serve to obscure the root causes of global instability and the severe human cost borne by civilian populations in regions affected by armed conflict.
Diverting public resources and political backing toward weapons manufacturing and foreign military alliances such as AUKUS, the Force Posture Agreement, and projects like Pax Silica misdirects critical assets away from urgent social priorities, including public housing, healthcare, climate action, and cost-of-living relief for our communities.
A Wider Challenge with Local Impact
The staging of the Land Forces Exposition in Western Australia is not an isolated local event, but part of a broader, systemic drive toward increased regional militarization and war preparation across the Asia-Pacific. As global arms contractors seek new avenues for technology transfers, autonomous hardware deployment, and expanded defence markets under the US-Australia military alliance, our local facilities are being transformed into hubs for global arms negotiation.
Acceptance of these operations normalizes the industrialization of warfare, enables US-led wars of aggression, and embeds our local economy within destructive international conflicts. If left unchallenged, this systemic alignment risks eroding public trust in our civic leadership, weakening our collective moral voice, and fracturing the social cohesion that binds our diverse communities together.
A Call for Unity and Action
We reject the normalization of war profiteering in our civic institutions, and we call upon all community members, workers, and civic leaders to join us in defending our shared values. Moving forward, we commit ourselves to a clear path of collective resistance, principled advocacy, and community empowerment:
Public Opposition and Policy Directives:
We demand that the Western Australian State Government formally withdraw its official agency sponsorship of future Land Forces Expositions through Defence West, call on the Perth Convention and Exhibition Centre board to immediately establish an ethical leasing policy banning weapons trade events, and demand an immediate end to Australia’s participation in US-led wars of aggression, military alliances and war preparations.
Advocacy for Structural Support and Sustainable Resources:
We actively campaign to redirect public funds away from foreign military alliances, AUKUS preparations, and corporate defence subsidies, demanding instead that taxpayer resources be invested in sustainable public infrastructure, essential human services, First Nations justice, and community-led peace initiatives.
Active Community Engagement and Value Reinforcement:
We need to deepen public education, build permanent anti-militarist alliance networks of various sectors, continuously oppose imperialist militarism and interventionism, advance a just and sovereign society, and fight for lasting peace based on principles of mutual respect, non-intervention, and non-aggression.
On the occasion of the International Day of Peace, let us join the National Day of Actions against AUKUS and US-Australia military alliance on 20 September 2026 organised in various cities and town centres.
Let us join the people’s actions on 6 October 2026 to oppose the Land Defence Forces exposition at the Perth Convention and Exhibition Centre.
Signed,
International League of Peoples’ Struggle Australia
Oppose Land Forces Expo 2026!
No to US warmongering and oppose imperialist war preparations!
Cancel AUKUS!
Australia out of the US military alliance!
#ResistUSledWars
#NoToUSAustraliaMilitarism
#CancelAUKUS
#NoToLandForces2026
#NoToLandForcesExpos