Anti-war activists, anti-imperialists, and radicals need to be in solidarity with the Ukrainian people, against Russian aggression, while opposing both U.S. and Russian imperialism.

The Ukrainian crisis may be seen as two intersecting and overlapping conflicts. One is the underlying competition between the U.S. imperial state and the Russian imperial state (and the allies of each). The other is between the Russian imperial state and the weaker, oppressed, nation of Ukraine.

The traditions of revolutionary anarchism and left-Marxism have opposed all imperialist states in their inter-imperialist conflict, rejecting all sides. Also they have generally opposed the oppression and exploitation of weaker countries by stronger, imperial, states. The question of “who is the aggressor?” (or “who fired the first shot?”) is not central, compared to the dynamics of oppression and domination.

U.S. and Russian Imperialisms

Both the U.S.A. and Russia are capitalist states which throw their weight around internationally. Together they have 90% of the world’s nuclear bombs—which risks exterminating humanity and other species. They supply a large proportion of the world’s oil and gas, setting the stage for global climate catastrophe. The U.S. is the biggest, wealthiest, state with the biggest armed forces and most foreign bases in the world, even if it is in decline. Russia is much weaker and less economically significant but still a large militarized state. The US state wants to counter its own international decay, especially in comparison to its allies in Europe and to its other main competitor, China. The Russian state, under its authoritarian ruler Vladimir Putin, wants to expand politically, economically, and militarily, to make up for the collapse of the empire of the Soviet Union.

The U.S. laid the basis for the current crisis. In 1991, the U.S. and the Soviet Union agreed to end the Cold War. Russia agreed to let Germany be reunited. The U.S. government promised to not expand NATO’s military alliance further to the east, “not one inch.” However, the U.S. did not keep its promise. It incorporated 14 more countries into NATO, coming up to Russia’s borders. It provided military supplies and bases for these countries, which included Poland. This went along with the eastward expansion of the European Union. (A few far-sighted politicians and military people warned of the dangers of U.S. policy but they were ignored.) The Russians were not directly or immediately threatened, but—by the logic of national states—this inevitably put pressure on them to push back. The expansion of NATO may have been a reason for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine or it may only have served as an excuse—but either way it destabilized the region.

There are many on the left who see the U.S. as the only danger and therefore support any anti-U,S. force, no matter how oppressive or undemocratic (this is “campism”). But U.S. imperialism is not the only imperialism, just as imperialism is not the only capitalist evil (as is demonstrated by the repressive dictatorships among the poorer nations).

In this case, Ukraine has been oppressed by Russia for centuries. It was ruled by the Czarist empire and then by the Stalinist-Communist dictatorship. Now the present authoritarian Russian state wants to dominate it again. Unlike many U.S. leftists, every Ukrainian is aware of this history.

While opposing the imperialism of the various great powers, revolutionary socialists defend the self-determination of oppressed nations. That does not require endorsing the governments or leaderships of these nations. It means being in solidarity with the people (who are mostly workers, peasants, local merchants, and the poor). It means supporting these nations' independence, self-organization, choice of social, economic, and political system, etc. Anarchists may not agree with the political and economic opinions of the majority of the people (who usually want their own national state). But revolutionary libertarian socialists are in solidarity with the people and their right to make their own choices—including their right to learn from their own mistakes.

The United States government makes a big show of supporting Ukraine’s national self-determination. Before the Russian invasion, the U.S. insisted that Ukraine had the right to join NATO. The Russians had asked that the U.S. promise that Ukraine would never join the Western military alliance. In fact it was well-known that Ukraine was not going to be allowed into NATO in any foreseeable future. But the U.S. state insisted piously that it could not provide Russia with a guarantee on this, because every sovereign state had the right to chose whatever alliance it wanted to join. While abstractly true, this assertion by the U.S. deserved a horselaugh. Consider the reaction of the U.S. when Cuba allied with the Soviet Union: boycotts and quarantines, attempts to assassinate President Castro, organizing the Bay of Pigs invasion by Cuban exiles, etc Then when Castro and Russia’s Khrushchev put nuclear-armed missiles in Cuba, the U.S. blockaded the island militarily and risked a nuclear world war. (I am not supporting the reckless decision of the Cuban and Russian states to install these nuclear missiles.)

Imagine today the U.S. reaction if Mexico were to announce a military accord with China, with Chinese missile bases on the U.S. border!

Right now the U.S. is militarily supporting monarchist Saudi Arabia, in its war in Yemen, with horrible consequences for the Yemeni people. And the U.S. is continuing its large-scale support for Israel’s oppression of the Palestinian people, denying them any sort of national self-determination.

The hypocrisy is so obvious that even an intelligent (“Never Trump”) conservative, Bret Stephens, could write:

“Who are we, with our long history of invasions and interventions, to lecture Vladimir Putin about respecting national sovereignty and international law? Who are we, with our domestic record of slavery and discrimination, our foreign record of supporting friendly dictators, … after 198 years of the Monroe Doctrine, to try to stop Russia from delineating its own sphere of influence?” (Stephens 2022; A22)

Being a bourgeois pundit, he concludes that the U.S. should still intervene in the Ukraine vs. Russia conflict, asking, “Who but us?” (The working people of Ukraine and Russia?)

Russian Aggression

The Russian government is more ambiguous in its justification of its war on Ukraine. Vladimir Putin denies that Ukraine is a country or that Ukrainians are a people He has repeatedly asserted that they are merely a part of Russia and always have been. In a conversation with George Wl Bush, he said, “Ukraine is not even a State.” Putin blamed Lenin and the Bolsheviks for regarding the Ukrainians as a people who needed their own republic when the USSR was established. Since, he claims, Ukraine is not a nation, it can have no national self-determination.

Instead, Putin’s regime has worked up a bunch of other reasons to justify its war on the Ukrainians. He claims that their state is Nazi, for example, and promises to "de-nazify" Ukraine. It is true that neo-Nazi and ultra-nationalist far-right trends have grown in Ukraine, feeding off the reaction against Russian imperialism. Ukrainian anarchists and others have opposed them. But such groupings do not, by any means, control the government. They have almost no representatives in parliament and the president, Volodymyr Zelensky, is a Jew. In any case, the cruel dictatorship of Saddam Hussein did not justify the U.S. invasion of Iraq nor the mysogyny of the Taliban the U.S. war on the Afghanistani people.

Putin and his minions have a nerve denouncing supposedly fascist governments. Putin has allied himself with neo-Nazi and far-right forces in Russia and internationally. He has built up an undemocratic ultra-nationalist bourgeois regime, tied to the Russian Orthodox Church. He has whipped up rage against LGBT people as "Western" threats to Russia. In the U.S., Putin and the far-right Donald Trump have long had a lovefest, recently demonstrated in Trump’s praise of Putin’s actions in Ukraine. Who is the fascist? (Further, speaking of mass-murdering totalitarians, any process of Russian “de-Stalinization,” rooting out those who made the Soviet Union so oppressive, would surely include punishment for officers of the KGB police, such as Vladimir Putin!)

Putin also charges that the Ukrainian government has been committing “genocide” against the Russian-speaking minority in eastern Ukraine (the Donbas), which is a lie. For eight years Russian forces have supported two breakaway states in eastern Ukraine, in a secessionist war with the majority of the country. Most of the Russian-speakers there had voted for an independent whole Ukraine in 1991. What they want now, under the conditions of authoritarian pro-Russian rule and civil war is anyone’s guess. The Ukrainian regime has not handled this well, removing Russian from being an official language and not providing autonomy for the eastern Russian-speakers. Whatever the failures of Ukraine in its treatment of its Russian-speakers, they hardly justify Russia invading and taking over the country,

The same point can be made in relation to Putin’s other complaints. The Ukrainian government asked to join NATO (but was rejected). It might someday set up nuclear missiles (but in 1994 it got rid of the nuclear missiles it inherited from the Soviet Union, sending many to Russia). The government is corrupt and undemocratic (this from Putin!). And so on, none of which remotely justifies a Russian invasion.

Some on the libertarian left argue that anarchists do not support national liberation, and therefore should not take sides in the Russian war on the Ukrainians. Some ignorant anarchists think that “national self-determination” was invented by Lenin. Actually it has long been part of the program of bourgeois-democracy and classical liberalism, along with freedom of speech and association, freedom of religion, land to the farmers who use it, the right to bear arms, the election of officials, equality of races, genders, and nationalities, trial by jury, and so on. (The bourgeoisie has always failed to consistently carry out its democratic program.)

The revolutionary anarchist Michael Bakunin wrote, “Nationality, like individuality, is a natural fact. It denotes the inalienable right of individuals, groups, associations, and regions to their own way of life. And this way of life is the product of a long historical development [a confluence of human beings with a common history, language, and a common cultural background]. And this is why I will always champion the cause of oppressed nationalities struggling to liberate themselves….” (Dolgoff, 1980, p. 401) By “nationality...is a natural fact,” he meant, not that nationality is a biological fact, but that it is created mostly by unplanned, unpurposive, social history.

As Peter Kropotkin wrote, “True internationalism will never be obtained except by the independence of each nationality, little or large, compact or disunited--just as [the essence of] anarchy is in the independence of each individual. If we say, no government of man over man, how can [we] permit the government of conquered nationalities by the conquering nationalities?” (quoted in Miller, 1976, p. 231)
The basic principles of the situation should be clear: support for the Ukrainians against the Russian invaders. Oppose both Russian and U.S. imperialism. It is a tactical question to decide how to implement these principles. In Russia there has developed an antiwar movement, whose main demand is peace and the withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukraine. In Ukraine, they certainly want Russian troops to withdraw, but a call for “peace” is probably mistaken. Rather they have to fight against the invaders. In the U.S. radicals should stay clear from endorsing the government’s policies, and should call for the withdrawal and dismemberment of NATO.

However, it would be a mistake to oppose the U.S. sending arms to the Ukrainian army or people. The Ukrainian people are literally under the gun. It is up to them how to fight and from whom to get arms. They should not be criticized for taking weapons from the U..S. or elsewhere—although they should be warned not to trust the U.S. or NATO.

The same point applies to Ukrainian anarchists.Should they form guerrilla groups to resist the Russians? Join various volunteer organizations to aid the fight? Join the official army? These are issues best left to those on the ground, facing the enemy (or enemies). But wherever possible, they should try to promote political independence of the majority of people, the working class and oppressed, from the national state, the capitalist rulers, and U.S. imperialism—and promote a reliance on their own forces.

The U.S. Left

The U.S. Left has fractured over the Ukrainian-Russian war. By and large, most liberals have accepted the administration’s views uncritically. They ignore what the U.S. and NATO have done to prepare the conflict and their hypocrisy in opposing Russian aggression.

Many radicals and far-leftists have been on the side of Russia, finding excuses for the invasion. They have learned so well to oppose U.S. imperialism that they can only see the world through anti-U.S. lenses, ignoring the complexity of reality.They care nothing at all about the self-determination of Ukraine, so long as there is peace between Russia and the U.S. We can expect a similar non-reaction if China were to attack Taiwan—looking at every aspect of the issue except what the people of Taiwan want.

But there is a part of the radical left which opposes both U.S. and Russian imperialisms. Sometimes this minority has little to say about defending Ukrainians. But often it also calls for the self-determination of Ukraine, including its right to self-defense. It looks for splits in ruling classes and those behind them.

Popularly, in Russia there have been demonstrations against the war in over 50 cities so far—bravely done, since so many demonstrators were arrested. Also, the Confederation of Labor of Russia [KTR], with more than 20 unions and about 2 million members, denounced the war and called for a negotiated peace. These reflect discontent among Russia’s working classes and oppressed people, a discontent which may lead anywhere.

The people of Ukraine have risen to the challenge of the invasion, and shown a remarkable degree of courage and determination. Both the official army and the volunteer forces have heroically fought back against better armed and larger military forces How this will play out, cannot be presently known, but the Russians will pay a far greater price than they expected to.

The world is in a dangerous place. The deadly pandemic is far from under control—and there will be more plagues. The international economy, while back from the brink of collapse, remains unstable and vulnerable, with a vast expansion of economic inequality. The global climate continues to come unstuck, devolving toward a climate catastrophe, along with cataclysms in every aspect of the ecology. Despite the end of the Cold War, the great powers have never been able to disarm their nuclear bombs. Political democracy (however limited under capitalist states) has been under attack wherever it exists.

It is in this context that a major imperial state has invaded another, relatively developed, country. This has put the invader, Russia, in confrontation with the U.S.—a confrontation of two nuclear-armed states.

The international capitalist class, with its states and world corporate market, is not capable of maintaining society. It cannot be depended on to keep the peace, provide ecologically balanced prosperity for everyone, and develop a self-governing radically democratic, cooperative society the world around. Working people and the oppressed of all lands must work together and replace these rulers with freedom, equality, and full democracy. This can begin by being in solidarity with the Ukrainians, against both Russian and U.S. imperialism.

References

Dolgoff, Sam (ed. and trans.). (1980). Bakunin on Anarchism. Montreal: Black Rose Books.


Miller, Martin (1976). Kropotkin. Chicago and London: University of Chicago Press.

Stephens, Bret (2/23/2022). “Ukraine and America’s Self-Belief” NY Times. A22.

*written for www.Anarkismo.net

Ο πόλεμος είναι πραγματικά φρικτός, αλλά όπως όλες οι άλλες καπιταλιστικές κρίσεις, περιέχει τη δυνατότητα να πυροδοτήσει τα είδη των κοινωνικών εξεγέρσεων που ανατρέπουν ολόκληρα καθεστώτα. Πριν από έναν αιώνα η Ρωσία συμμετείχε σε έναν καταστροφικό, αιματηρό πόλεμο. Τελείωσε με μια επανάσταση της εργατικής τάξης που σόκαρε ολόκληρο τον κόσμο. Εναπόκειται στη διεθνή εργατική τάξη να διασφαλίσει ότι αυτός ο σημερινός πόλεμος θα τελειώσει με τον ίδιο τρόπο.

Ανακοίνωση Αναρχικών οργανώσεων απο την Αυστραλία για την εισβολή της Ρωσίας στην Ουκρανία

Η πρόσφατη εισβολή της Ρωσίας στην Ουκρανία είναι η προέκταση της ανθρώπινης καταστροφής που ξεκίνησε πριν από πολλά χρόνια – προϊόν πολυετούς πολιτικής δικτατορίας, καπιταλιστικής τρομοκρατίας και γεωπολιτικών ανταγωνισμών. Θα οδηγήσει αναμενόμενα στο θάνατο πολλών αμάχων και στον εκτοπισμό ακόμη περισσότερων.

Ο Πούτιν έχει ακολουθήσει αυτή την επεκτατική πορεία προκειμένου να αποτρέψει την περαιτέρω ενσωμάτωση της Ουκρανίας στο οικονομικό μπλοκ της Ευρωπαϊκής Ένωσης. Η Ευρασιατική Οικονομική Ένωση του, που περιλαμβάνει τη Ρωσία και τους στενούς της συμμάχους, όπως η Λευκορωσία και το Καζακστάν, έχει δημιουργηθεί ως έκφραση των συμφερόντων της αστικής τάξης της χώρας του, η οποία προτιμά να είναι ένα μεγάλο ψάρι σε μια μικρή λίμνη από το να διαπραγματεύεται με την ΕΕ ως τακτικός εταίρος.

Κατά μία έννοια, πρόκειται για μια σύγκρουση μεταξύ δύο ειδών καπιταλιστικής οικονομίας: των πατερναλιστικών, ολιγαρχικών, συχνά κρατικοδίαιτων οικονομιών της Ρωσίας και των γειτόνων της και των σύγχρονων, αγοραίων, υπερ-ανταγωνιστικών οικονομιών των “προηγμένων” κρατών της ΕΕ. Η ενσωμάτωση των κρατών γύρω από τη Ρωσία απειλεί τη σημερινή ρωσική αστική τάξη, επειδή απειλεί την ίδια την ύπαρξή της.

Δεν πιστεύουμε ότι πρόκειται για κάτι τόσο απλό όσο μια σύγκρουση μεταξύ του δυτικού φιλελευθερισμού και της ανατολικής δικτατορίας, όπως κάποιοι υποστηρίζουν. Η αντίθεσή μας στη ρωσική αστική τάξη δεν συνεπάγεται υποστήριξη της δυτικοευρωπαϊκής- όπως δείχνουν περιπτώσεις όπως η Πολωνία και η Ουγγαρία, χώρες μπορούν να εξελιχθούν “δημοκρατικά” προς τον αυταρχισμό υπό την αιγίδα της ΕΕ και του ΝΑΤΟ. Η ανάπτυξη της “Ευρώπης-Φρούριο”, που εμπνέεται σε μεγάλο βαθμό από την Αυστραλία και που κακοποιεί βάναυσα τους μετανάστες με αυξανόμενη βαρβαρότητα, δείχνει επίσης ότι η φιλελεύθερη δημοκρατία και ο αυταρχισμός δεν είναι αντίθετα, αλλά κοινοί εταίροι.

Ο πόλεμος στην Ουκρανία θα έχει παγκόσμιες επιπτώσεις. Δεν θα επηρεάσει μόνο την ΕΕ και τα κράτη της Ευρασίας, αλλά και τις ΗΠΑ, οι οποίες μέσω του ΝΑΤΟ λειτουργούν ως η κύρια στρατιωτική δύναμη της Ευρώπης. Η Ουκρανία είναι επίσης σημαντικός εξαγωγέας αγροτικών προϊόντων, με πολλές χώρες να εξαρτώνται από το σιτάρι που παράγει το εύφορο έδαφός της. Ο Λίβανος, για παράδειγμα, που ήδη βρίσκεται στη δίνη μιας οικονομικής κρίσης, εισάγει το 50% του σιταριού του από την Ουκρανία. Η Λιβύη εισάγει το 43%. Σύμφωνα με την αξία, το 86% των εισαγωγών σιταριού της Αιγύπτου προέρχεται από την Ουκρανία και τη Ρωσία. Οι αποσταθεροποιήσεις σε αυτή την αγορά θα προκαλέσουν αναμφίβολα το είδος των “εξεγέρσεων για το ψωμί” που έχουμε ξαναδεί σε πολλές από αυτές τις χώρες.

Παρά τις διαφορές τους, τόσο η δυτικοευρωπαϊκή όσο και η ρωσική αστική τάξη μοιράζονται ένα βασικό κοινό στοιχείο: την υπεράσπιση της ύπαρξής τους ενάντια στις δικές τους εργατικές τάξεις. Κατά συνέπεια, η κύρια απάντηση σε αυτή την πολεμοκαπηλεία δεν πρέπει να είναι ούτε η απολογία του ρωσικού ιμπεριαλισμού, ούτε η υποστήριξη του ΝΑΤΟ, ούτε καν η “εθνική άμυνα” εντός της Ουκρανίας. Αντίθετα, κάνουμε προσπάθεια να φέρουμε κοντά τους εργαζόμενους πέρα από τα εθνικά σύνορα, υποστηρίζοντας όλες τις μορφές εξέγερσης που αμφισβητούν τα αντίστοιχα συστήματα: ανταρσίες, λιποταξίες, απεργίες, σαμποτάζ, διαδηλώσεις.

Για όσους από εμάς είμαστε στην Αυστραλία, έχουμε κάποια βασικά καθήκοντα:

Να πολεμήσουμε ενάντια στην πολεμοκαπηλεία της δικής μας πλευράς και ενάντια στις υποκριτικές καταδίκες της Ρωσίας από τους ίδιους πολιτικούς που οδήγησαν στις εισβολές στο Ιράκ και το Αφγανιστάν – ειδικότερα, θα πρέπει να κάνουμε ό,τι είναι δυνατόν για να αποτρέψουμε ακόμα περισσότερα έθνη από το να επέμβουν, γεγονός που θα διακινδύνευε την πιθανότητα ο πόλεμος να εξελιχθεί σε μια μεγαλύτερη, ακόμα πιο καταστροφική παγκόσμια σύγκρουση.

Να προβούμε σε ουσιαστικές πράξεις αλληλεγγύης με τις εργατικές τάξεις της Ουκρανίας και της Ρωσίας, που είναι τα κύρια θύματα του πολέμου, και με τους διαδηλωτές που διαμαρτύρονται εναντίον του και στις δύο χώρες,

Να διαδώσουμε πληροφορίες μεταξύ των εδώ εργαζομένων σχετικά με τις συνθήκες εργασίας των εργαζομένων στη Ρωσία και την Ουκρανία και τους τρόπους με τους οποίους αντιστέκονται στην οικονομία του πολέμου και στους περιορισμούς των ελευθεριών που αναπόφευκτα απορρέουν από αυτήν,

Να υποστηρίξουμε την ελεύθερη, ασφαλή ροή των μεταναστών από τη σύγκρουση, απαιτώντας από την Αυστραλία να τερματίσει τις βάναυσες συνοριακές πολιτικές της και να χορηγήσει στους πρόσφυγες μόνιμη προστασία, ανεξάρτητα από το πώς έφτασαν.

Να εργαστούμε, όπως πάντα, για την ένωση των εργαζομένων πέρα από τα εθνικά σύνορα, αγωνιζόμενοι για το μόνο πράγμα που μπορεί να βάλει τέλος σε όλους τους πολέμους: την Κοινωνική Επανάσταση.

Ο πόλεμος είναι πραγματικά φρικτός, αλλά όπως όλες οι άλλες καπιταλιστικές κρίσεις, περιέχει τη δυνατότητα να πυροδοτήσει τα είδη των κοινωνικών εξεγέρσεων που ανατρέπουν ολόκληρα καθεστώτα. Πριν από έναν αιώνα η Ρωσία συμμετείχε σε έναν καταστροφικό, αιματηρό πόλεμο. Τελείωσε με μια επανάσταση της εργατικής τάξης που σόκαρε ολόκληρο τον κόσμο. Εναπόκειται στη διεθνή εργατική τάξη να διασφαλίσει ότι αυτός ο σημερινός πόλεμος θα τελειώσει με τον ίδιο τρόπο.

Η ανακοίνωση υπογράφεται από τις ακόλουθες αναρχικές ομάδες της Αυστραλίας και της Νέας Ζηλανδίας:

Anarchist Communists Meanjin
Black Flag Sydney
Geelong Anarchist Communists
Melbourne Anarchist Communist Group
Red Black Notes

ΚΑΝΕΝΑΣ ΑΛΛΟΣ ΠΟΛΕΜΟΣ ΠΑΡΑ ΜΟΝΟ Ο ΤΑΞΙΚΟΣ ΠΟΛΕΜΟΣ!

Πηγή: Red Black Notes
https://www.redblacknotes.com/2022/02/26/no-war-but-the-class-war/?fbclid=IwAR10L7oYj6OS3dHnOK8AKAjR5gCsyT0mOC6OFv4ExKz1BPchVkm6pt0Zegc

Μετάφραση: Alerta
https://www.alerta.gr/archives/25088

The war is truly horrendous, but like all other capitalist crises, it contains the potential to trigger the kinds of social uprisings that overthrow entire regimes. A century ago Russia participated in a disastrous, bloody war. It ended with a working-class revolution that sent shockwaves across the entire world. It is up to the international working class to make sure that this current war will end in the same way.

Statement on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine

No War but the Class War

Russia’s recent invasion of Ukraine is an extension of the human disaster that began many years ago – a product of years of political dictatorship, capitalist terror and geopolitical rivalries. It will predictably result in the deaths of many civilians, and the displacement of even more.

Putin has taken this expansionist course in order to prevent Ukraine from becoming further integrated into the economic bloc of the European Union. His Eurasian Economic Union, comprising Russia and its close allies like Belarus and Kazakhstan, is set up as an expression of the interests of the bourgeoisie of his own country, which prefers to be a big fish in a small pond than to negotiate with the EU as a regular partner.

In some sense, this is a clash between two kinds of capitalist economy: the paternalistic, oligarchic, often state-driven economies of Russia and its neighbours, and the modern, market-driven, hyper-competitive economies of the “advanced” EU states. The integration of the states around Russia threatens the current Russian bourgeoisie, because it threatens their own existence.

We do not believe this is as simple as a clash between western liberalism and eastern dictatorship, as some would suggest. Our opposition to the Russian bourgeoisie does not entail support for the western European one; as cases like Poland and Hungary show, countries can develop “democratically” towards authoritarianism under the aegis of the EU and NATO. The growth of “fortress Europe”, greatly inspired by Australia, that brutalises migrants with increasing severity, also demonstrates that liberal democracy and authoritarianism are not opposites, but joint partners.

The war in Ukraine will have global repercussions. Not only will it affect the EU and Eurasian states, but also the USA, which serves as Europe’s main military power through NATO. Ukraine is also a major agricultural exporter, with many countries reliant on the wheat produced by its fertile soil. Lebanon, for instance, already in the throes of an economic crisis, imports 50% of its wheat from Ukraine. Libya imports 43%. By value, 86% of Egypt’s wheat imports come from Ukraine and Russia. Destabilisations in this market will undoubtedly trigger the kind of “bread riots” we have seen before in many of these countries.

Despite their differences, both the Western European and Russian bourgeoisies share one essential thing in common: defence of their own existence against their own working classes. Accordingly, the main response to this warmongering should not be either apologia for Russia imperialism or support for NATO, or even “national defence” within Ukraine. Rather, we support a renewed effort to bring together workers across national boundaries, supporting all forms of revolt that challenge their respective systems: mutinies, desertions, strikes, sabotage, demonstrations.

For those of us in Australia, we have some basic tasks:

To fight against the warmongering of our own side, and against the hypocritical condemnations of Russia by the same politicians who drove the invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan – in particular, we should do all that is possible to prevent even more nations from intervening, which would risk the possibility of the war spiralling into a larger, even more disastrous global conflict;
To undertake meaningful acts of solidarity with the working classes of Ukraine and Russia, who are the primary victims of the war, and with protestors against it in both countries;
To spread information among workers here regarding the working conditions of those in Russia and Ukraine, and the ways they fight back against the war economy and the restrictions on liberties that inevitably come from it;
To support the free, safe flow of migrants from the conflict, demanding that Australia end its brutal border policies and grant refugees permanent protection, regardless of how they arrived;

To work, as always, for the union of workers across national boundaries, fighting for the only thing that can put an end to all wars: the social revolution.

The war is truly horrendous, but like all other capitalist crises, it contains the potential to trigger the kinds of social uprisings that overthrow entire regimes. A century ago Russia participated in a disastrous, bloody war. It ended with a working-class revolution that sent shockwaves across the entire world. It is up to the international working class to make sure that this current war will end in the same way.

Signed by the following anarchist groups of Australia and New Zealand:

Anarchist Communists Meanjin
Black Flag Sydney
Geelong Anarchist Communists
Melbourne Anarchist Communist Group
RedBlackNotes

NO WAR BUT THE CLASS WAR!

https://www.redblacknotes.com/2022/02/26/no-war-but-the-class-war/?fbclid=IwAR10L7oYj6OS3dHnOK8AKAjR5gCsyT0mOC6OFv4ExKz1BPchVkm6pt0Zegc

Uma proclamação do presidente russo Vladimir Putin deu luz verde para a invasão militar russa da Ucrânia. Putin afirma que o ato de guerra da Rússia contra a Ucrânia visa apoiar a Crimeia ocupada pela Rússia e as Repúblicas Populares de Donetsk e Lugansk na Ucrânia, que está flertando com a adesão à OTAN por instigação ocidental. Na terça-feira, 22 de fevereiro, a Rússia reconheceu a independência de seus protetorados informais em Donbas, exacerbando as tensões existentes com o eixo Euro-Atlântico que apoia o regime ucraniano.

Não se deve esquecer que uma guerra civil de baixa intensidade está ocorrendo na Ucrânia desde 2014, quando o então governo pró-russo do Presidente Yanukovych foi derrubado por uma “Revolução Laranja” que trouxe ao poder um regime pró-ocidental disposto a se alinhar com o eixo Euro-Atlântico. A Euromaidan, da qual o bloco imperialista Ocidental se beneficiou, tirou a Ucrânia da esfera de influência da Rússia. Também fortaleceu a extrema-direita ucraniana, que ganhou assentos no parlamento e desenvolveu unidades paramilitares que cometeram atrocidades contra pessoas falantes de russo e membros de sindicatos.

A Rússia, por outro lado, não estava preparada desde o início para perder sua posição imperialista na Ucrânia e especialmente na região da Crimeia, sem se importar com a vontade do povo ucraniano. A revolta da Euromaidan pode ter resultado no regime neoconservador com o qual terminou, mas não há ninguém iludido de que recusa a esse regime tenha saído do sentimento “anti-fascista” da Rússia ou de sua “necessidade de proteger os cidadãos russos”. Afinal, o regime autoritário de Putin na Rússia recompensou nazistas e fascistas dentro do país, prendendo e matando antifascistas, enquanto as numerosas intervenções do imperialismo russo em áreas da ex-URSS não precisavam de tal justificativa. A Rússia queria e ainda quer uma coisa: impor seus próprios termos nos antagonismos imperialistas em evolução. Não tolerará o cerco militar a que alega estar sendo submetido pela OTAN, a instalação de armas nucleares à sua porta, a incitação ocidental da Ucrânia para aderir à OTAN, a tentativa de bloqueio energético de seu fornecimento de gás aos países da UE e a redução de seu controle sobre a antiga periferia soviética. Outro fator é o nacionalismo flagrante dentro da classe dominante da Rússia – a Ucrânia é onde está a origem do Estado russo (a Rus’ de Kiev) e a região leste da Ucrânia é habitada por ucranianos russófonos. Para esses oligarcas, ou a Ucrânia não deveria existir, pois eles desejam uma nação russa unificada como dita a doutrina do irredentismo, ou ucranianos (junto aos bielorussos) são vistos como parte da nação russa.

Por outro lado, os EUA e o campo Euro-Atlântico, com destaque para o Reino Unido, estão pressionando em violação aos acordos internacionais para a expansão oriental da OTAN, o exercício de pressão econômica e energética sobre a Rússia em favor do gás natural liquefeito (GLP) dos EUA e o controle da rota comercial ártica, que se abre com o derretimento do gelo devido ao efeito destrutivo do capitalismo sobre o meio ambiente natural e o ecossistema. Tanto a Rússia quanto os EUA estão tentando exportar sua crise interna para o exterior, enquanto tentam provocar mudanças na hierarquia imperialista global.

A Rússia arregimentou cerca de 200.000 tropas na fronteira com a Ucrânia. O exército russo está golpeando todo o território ucraniano com bombardeios. No momento em que escrevemos esta declaração, o exército russo está atacando principalmente da Crimeia, Lugansk e Kharkiv. As primeiras baixas da guerra imperialista são um fato. Já se fala de baixas civis. O governo ucraniano, que, não esqueçamos, é uma amálgama de neoliberais e neoconservadores, declarou lei marcial em todo o país. Ainda estamos no início dos horrores da guerra.

Os únicos perdedores da guerra são a classe trabalhadora mundial, especialmente os proletários da Ucrânia e da Rússia. Eles são os destinados ao papel de bode expiatório dos Estados e dos capitalistas.

A guerra imperialista está sendo travada para a divisão das esferas de influência, das rotas energéticas e do rearranjo do poder geopolítico. Não temos interesse em lutar pelos interesses dos poderosos, pelos interesses do Capital. Além disso, espera-se que a eclosão da guerra traga mais aumentos de preços e inflação tanto na energia quanto nas mercadorias básicas, colocando ainda mais pressão nos bolsos daqueles que já são incapazes de atender suas necessidades básicas. Não devemos esquecer que a guerra é uma solução do capital para superar as crises estruturais de sobreacumulação das quais o capitalismo é periodicamente afligido. A destruição do capital fixo (meios de produção) e variável (força de trabalho) abre o caminho para a reconstrução e o desenvolvimento capitalista.

Nosso dever revolucionário e de classe exige a organização e o fortalecimento do movimento internacionalista, antiguerra e anti-imperialista da classe trabalhadora. A lógica de um imperialismo mais agressivo ou mais progressista é uma lógica que leva à derrota da classe trabalhadora. Não pode haver um caminho imperialista a favor do povo. Os interesses da classe trabalhadora não podem ser identificados com os dos capitalistas e das potências imperialistas. A sabotagem da máquina de guerra, a organização da classe e do movimento antiguerra internacionalista e o fortalecimento das lutas sociais e de classe na direção da revolução social mundial para a construção de uma sociedade comunista libertária são as tarefas urgentes e históricas dos oprimidos e explorados em todos os lugares. Não podemos e não devemos nos contentar com arranjos medíocres e prejudiciais.

Os trabalhadores e trabalhadoras, pessoas desempregadas e jovens não têm motivos para ir à guerra pelos interesses da classe dominante. Estejamos conscientes de nossa posição social e de nossos interesses de classe. Que estes sejam os indicadores de nossa atitude e ação e não a retórica beligerante, ordeira e nacionalista promovida pelos patrões e os meios de propaganda que eles controlam. Não pagaremos a crise do sistema capitalista com nosso sangue. Não saíremos à matança junto aos pobres e miseráveis de outros países. Pelo contrário, é nosso dever bloquear a máquina de guerra e reconstruir as resistências sociais e de classe, com a promoção dos interesses de classe e das necessidades materiais da base social como nosso princípio orientador. Organizar-nos nas formações sociais e de classe da classe trabalhadora, organizando em termos de massa e militância o contra-ataque de nossa classe. Este sistema dá origem às guerras e é responsável pela pobreza, injustiça, exploração e opressão. Portanto, é hora de desafiá-lo de forma organizada e dinâmica, organizando sua destruição em escala internacional.

NÂO À GUERRA QUE NÃO SEJA DE CLASSES!
NEM A OTAN, NEM MOSCOU!
SABOTAGEM DE CLASSE E INTERNACIONALISTA DA MÁQUINA DE GUERRA!
CONTRA O MILITARISMO E A GUERRA: PELA LUTA AUTO-ORGANIZADA E A REVOLUÇÃO SOCIAL!

☆ Alternativa Libertaria (AL/FdCA) – Itália
☆ Anarchist Communist Group (ACG) – Grã Bretanha
☆ Anarchist Federation – Grécia
☆ Aotearoa Workers Solidarity Movement (AWSM) – Aotearoa/Nova Zelândia
☆ Coordenação Anarquista Brasileira (CAB) – Brasil
☆ Federación Anarquista de Rosario (FAR) – Argentina
☆ Federación Anarquista Uruguaya (FAU) – Uruguai
☆ Embat, Organització Libertària de Catalunya – Catalunha, Espanha
☆ Libertäre Aktion (LA) – Suíça
☆ Melbourne Anarchist Communist Group (MACG) – Austrália
☆ Organización Anarquista de Córdoba (OAC) – Argentina
☆ Organización Anarquista de Santa Cruz (OASC) – Argentina
☆ Organización Anarquista de Tucumán (OAT) – Argentina
☆ Organisation Socialiste Libertaire (OSL) – Suíça
☆ Roja y Negra – Anarchist Organisation (Buenos Aires) – Argentina
☆ Tekoşina Anarşist (TA) – Rojava
☆ Union Communiste Libertaire (UCL) – França, Bélgica & Suíça
☆ Vía Libre Grupo Libertario – Colômbia

A proclamation by Russian President, Vladimir Putin, gave the green light for Russia's military invasion of Ukraine. Putin claims that Russia's act of war against Ukraine is aimed at supporting the Russian-occupied Crimea and the Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics in Ukraine, which is flirting with NATO membership at Western instigation. On Tuesday, 22 February, Russia recognised the independence of its informal protectorates in Donbas, exacerbating existing tensions with the Euro-Atlantic axis that supports the Ukrainian regime.

The Russian army is pounding the entire Ukrainian territory with bombardments. The first casualties of the imperialist war are a fact. The only losers from the war are to be the world working class, especially the proletarians of Ukraine and Russia. They are the ones destined to be the cannon fodder of the states and the capitalists.

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