Statement of the Political Bureau of the CC of the KKE

The clouds of war are gathering.

No involvement! No participation!

1. The capitalist crisis, the difficulties in its management in the European Union -particularly in the Eurozone as well as in the USA-, its consequences even in countries that still have high development rates reinforce the competition, the contradictions and the imperialist aggressiveness in Southeastern Asia, in the Caspian Sea and Central Asia, in Africa and Latin America.

The developments in Eastern Mediterranean and the wider region are particularly dangerous. This fact is shown by the realization of the imperialist plan aiming at the extension of the activity of the big business groups of the EU member- states and the USA in the Middle East, North Africa, the Persian gulf as well as regarding the acquisition of geostrategic advantages in the competition with Russia, China, the alliance of BRICS that threaten the USA’s primacy in the imperialist pyramid.

This situation is combined with the channeling of capital into military conflicts as a means of controlling the capitalist crisis.

The developments are constantly and more persistently showing the relation capitalism-crisis-war.

2. The main objective of each imperialist power is the control and the exploitation of natural resources, oil, natural gas, water, energy pipelines and transport “arteries” in order for the monopolies to increase their profits by acquiring bigger shares in the markets.

This is the underlying goal of the imperialist wars which were launched by the USA, the NATO and the EU -with Great Britain and France at the forefront- in Afghanistan in 2001, in Iraq in 2003 and recently in Libya. These wars were organized and waged by using the pretexts of “combating terrorism”, of “providing humanitarian aid” and other things which are being used today in the preparation of the new imperialist war against Syria and Iran.

3. The military conflict in Syria, which started in March 2011 and has caused the death of thousands of people, is constantly throwing up new elements, developments, which are connected to the foreign intervention in the internal affairs of Syria and the conflict of regional and global imperialist powers under the conditions of the global capitalist crisis.

After the three vetoes over the recent months by Russia and China in the Security Council which in this way prevented the international “legitimization” of the foreign military intervention for the overthrow of the Assad regime, we see the strengthening of the operation of the USA, NATO, Arab League , France as well as of the “regional players” particularly Turkey, Qatar and Saudi Arabia regarding the arming and the more general support of the armed anti-regime forces.

The positions on the “no-fly zones”, the “zones for the protection of the refugees” as well as the recognition of the government of the anti-regime forces are part of the plan to prepare the imperialist attack.

At the same time, the fact that Obama invokes the danger of the Assad regime using weapons of mass destruction (chemical, biological), which the USA regards as a “line in the sand”, prepares the ground for a possible provocation and military intervention, as in the case of Iraq.

In the framework of the planned military intervention, the imperialist powers are concentrating aerial and naval forces in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Persian Gulf.

A basic factor which has hindered and impeded the military intervention of the USA, NATO, EU in Syria up until now, is Russia’s stance in particular which possesses a military base in the Syrian port of Tartus, as well as the stance of China which support the Syrian regime.

The stance of these powers is determined by the major economic, military and political interests in the region of the Eastern Mediterranean, the Persian Gulf, and Central Asia, which are at stake if the regimes in Syria and Iran are overthrown and replaced by political forces which will place obstacles in the cooperation with China-Russia.

The basic supporters of the Syrian government are Iran and Hezbollah. Iran, which is aware that if the Assad government is overthrown the noose will be tightened around it, is already providing political, economic and military support to Syria.

The armed conflict in Syria and the more general confrontation which has already gripped the surrounding regions as is demonstrated by the conflicts in Lebanon as well as in Southeastern Turkey. The situation has been exacerbated by the reactions triggered by the provocational film in the USA, which has insulted the islamists.

The sharpening of the imperialist aggressiveness against Iran has escalated in recent months with the embargo on oil exports and other interventions aimed at overthrowing its leadership.

These interventions and pressure for the delaying and cancellation of Iran’s nuclear programme are combined with the threats and plans of Israel to bomb Iran’s nuclear facilities.

It is becoming even more obvious that a change in Syria, as well as a weakening of Hezbollah in Lebanon, will facilitate the Israeli plans for an attack against Iran, which if the6y are implemented could lead to a generalized war in our region with grave consequences, human losses and material destruction, new waves of refugees and immigrants.

4. The events which began 18 months ago in Syria are rooted in the economic, social and political problems within the country which the working class and other popular strata are experiencing. Problems which have been exacerbated in recent years, due to the political line of capitalist restructurings ( privatizations, the reduction of the labour and popular rights and income)which are promoted in the interests of the domestic bourgeois class so that it can improve its position in the international capitalist market.

At the same time there was the attempt of an imperialist intervention in the internal affairs of Syria by the USA, EU, NATO, Israel, Turkey, Qatar and Saudi Arabia. It has become obvious that the USA, EU, Israel, are interested in destabilization and weakening the balance of forces inside the Syrian bourgeois regime, because its leadership is an ally of forces in Palestine, Lebanon and is opposed to imperialist positions and plans for the region which are being promoted by the USA, NATO and Israel, which is still occupying Palestinian, Syrian and Lebanese territory.

The weakening of the Syrian regime, or even its overthrow, can whet the appetite not only for the imperialist plans to attack Iran but for a new dismemberment of states in the region, for a domino effect of destabilization and bloodshed, something that will bring about new imperialist wars and interventions.

In conclusion we can say that the celebrations of bourgeois and opportunist forces regarding the so-called “Arab Spring” were baseless, underestimated or concealed the imperialist aims of the plans for a “New Middle East”, as well as the objectives of the bourgeois classes of these countries to defuse and manipulate the people’s reactions and to safeguard the perpetuation of the capitalist regimes. This conclusion is borne out by amongst other things the developments in Tunisia and Egypt, which moreover has enhanced its role in the region.

In these conditions the KKE stresses that Syria’s course is an internal matter and our party focuses on the most important element, which at this time is the imperialist war and similar interventions in the region, with Greece’s participation also. Our opposition to a possible imperialist intervention in Syria or a similar attack against Iran does not mean retreating from the critical attitude our party maintains in relation to the bourgeois regimes of these countries.

5. The situation is becoming complicated due to the sharpening of the competition which has been provoked over the hydrocarbons in Cyprus’ EEZ, the exploration for these in the region of Greece, as well as the tension in Israeli-Turkish relations.

Israel is seeking to offset the break down of relations with Turkey through the upgrading its intervention (economic, political, military) in Cyprus and Greece. Its plans were promoted during the summer by the repeated visits of its officials to Greece and Cyprus.

6. Our party states to the working class and the peoples in the region that their interests are identified with the joint anti-imperialist- anti-monopoly struggle, for disengagement from the imperialist organizations, the removal of foreign military bases and nuclear weapons, the return home of military forces from imperialist missions and the integration of this struggle in the struggle for power. It is on this basis that the peoples can live peacefully, creatively and use the natural resources which will become the property of the people for their own benefit and to satisfy their own needs.

Now the struggle to prevent any involvement, any participation of our country in the imperialist wars must be strengthened!

18/9/2012

PB of the CC of the KKE