The US-NATO base at Suda is a magnet for war

On 24/10 a meeting of the Prefectural Committee of the KKE was held in Chania, Crete, a few kilometres away from the US-NATO base at Suda on the following theme: “The developments in Syria and the Middle East, the role of the base at Suda and the positions of the KKE.” Elisseos Vagenas, member of the CC and responsible for the International Relations Section of the CC of the KKE, spoke at the meeting. We publish some extracts from his speech.

We communists consider the class struggle to be the motor force of every social development! Nevertheless, we must not forget that the class struggle must be dealt with in a comprehensive way and this can be achieved to the extent which issues of foreign policy, international developments are taken into account; issues which are directly interdependent with the developments inside each country.

Our party organizations must take into account, the international developments and relations as a necessary and stable element of their ideological-political work and mass activity. Today’s timely meeting of Chania’s Prefectural Committee must respond to this task, as well our activity in the following days, by enlightening and clarifying the developments for the people and organizing their struggle.

Of course, our work is not at all easy, as V.I. Lenin, the leader of the October Revolution, the 95^th anniversary of which we will celebrate in a few days on November the 7^th, wrote : “Popular ignorance of foreign policy is incomparably greater than of home policy… Popular deception has become a real art in foreign “affairs”… The poison of deception is spread far and wide by the millions of copies of bourgeois newspaper¹s.”

Today the efforts to make the people stupid have become even more scientific than they were 95 years ago, when Lenin wrote these words. Today, the volume of information and the ideological-political “brainwashing” has become masterly thanks to the cinema, television, the internet. The planning and conduct of the imperialist wars does not include merely the military aspect, the “operational” aspect as military officers say, but many others as well. Amongst them is the aspect of the political-psychological preparation of the people for the participation of the country in such an imperialist war. Older “tools”, such as the invocation of the “fatherland” and its “interests” are used in order to persuade the people of the necessity of supporting the war, as well as newer ones. I will remind you of some of the newer ones:

• “to stop ethnic cleansing” and for allegedly “humanitarian reasons”, (this is what they said to us about the war against Yugoslavia);
• “against terrorism” and “to stop the women wearing the veil” (this is what they said to us in the war in Afghanistan);
• “To stop the use of the Weapons of Mass Destruction” (in the war against Iraq). Indeed, the then minister of PASOK, Mr. Pangalos said something incredible, that we must side with the USA because after the military occupation of Iraq the price of petrol will fall in the so-called “Western World”. Now, of course, we all know what the truth is…

• Or even “in order to support the Arab Spring” (they told us this regarding Libya, and now regarding the bloody developments in Syria).

These are the arguments of the bourgeois governments and media, the NATO and EU staff, which to a great extent are reproduced by various “left” forces, i.e. opportunist forces, amongst the popular strata.

Of course we know now that the imperialists will invoke new imaginative pretexts for interventions and wars in the years to follow. Whoever reads the “New Strategic Concept of NATO” will find various references to allegedly “new” and “asymmetrical threats”, which can now be used as a pretext for the expansion of the activity of NATO, such as: cyber-attacks, piracy, “terrorism”, ballistic and nuclear weapons proliferation, “energy security”, climate change, immigration, water shortages etc.

Our party, both in the case of the wars against Yugoslavia, Afghanistan and Iraq as well as in the recent war against Libya and the one which is being prepared against Syria-Iran, decisively refused to accept the pretexts of the imperialists. We call on the workers not to take the “bait” which the parasites and the capitalists use to drag them into new imperialist wars. But the communists, every consistent anti-imperialist militant, must help so that we can demolish the arguments of the imperialists and the fear they spread, so that to thwart these plans. We must show the real causes of the war.

We should ask ourselves the following: Is it possible the monarchs, the princes of Saudi Arabia and the various emirs to care about democratic rights of the Syrians? Is it possible the US and European imperialists, who have slaughtered so many peoples, to agonize over the alleged “restoration of democracy” in Syria? Is it possible the Turkish leadership, which for 40 years has been occupying 40% of the territory of an independent member-state of the UN, Cyprus, to yearn for the prosperity and peace of the Syrian people?

The developments in the South East Mediterranean are deep, explosive and are forming a very dangerous situation with enormous consequences for the lives of the workers and they are continually and even more persistently posing the relationship capitalism-crisis-war.

On the developments in Syria

Of course, the events which are taking place in Syria have their roots inside the country itself, in the economic, social and political problems which the working class and the other popular strata are experiencing. These are problems that have been sharpening in recent years, due to the policies of privatizations, the reduction of the rights and income of the working class and popular strata, which are being promoted in the interests of the domestic bourgeois class and are aimed at its assimilation in the international capitalist market.

However, there was an almost simultaneous attempt for an imperialist intervention in the internal affairs of Syria by the USA, the EU, NATO, Israel, Turkey, Qatar, Saudi Arabia.

It became apparent that the USA, the EU and Israel were interested in the destabilization and weakening of the Syrian bourgeois regime, which according to the developments opposes the imperialist positions and plans in the region and is an ally of forces in Palestine, Lebanon etc, which are in conflict with the USA, NATO and Israel. We should not forget that today Syrian territory is under foreign (Israeli) occupation.

The weakening of this regime or even its overthrow is connected to the efforts of the USA and the EU to impede the emerging capitalist economies, China and Russia, which maintain close relations with Iran and Syria. In any case it is no coincidence that these 2 countries have already vetoed 3 times the military intervention against Syria in the UN. Such an intervention could whet the appetite of the imperialist plans to attack Iran, under the pretext of its nuclear programme. It may even lead to a new dismemberment of states in the region, and a domino-effect of destabilization and bloodshed, something which will bring new imperialist wars and interventions.

In these conditions our party focuses on the most important element, which at this time is the imperialist war and similar interventions in the region, indeed with Greece’s participation. Our opposition to the imperialist intervention unfolding in Syria or to 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. The developments in Syria are matter for its people. It is they who have the responsibility to decide on their country’s course.

The intentions of the imperialists in general

These developments are related to the general realignments in the region which are linked to the imperialist plan regarding the “New Middle East”, to the changes that are taking place in North Africa and the Middle East, to the attempt to reorganize the bourgeois system so as to correspond to the current needs of the capitalist profitability (…)

This situation unfolds in conditions of a deep synchronized capitalist crisis of capital over-accumulation that seek profitable outlets. It is characterized by the sharpening of the inter-imperialist contradictions, which intensify in conditions of capitalist crisis, over the control of the natural resources and the energy routes and might lead to generalized military conflicts, as the continuation of the imperialist wars which were launched in the previous period by the USA-NATO-EU against Yugoslavia, Afghanistan, Iraq and Libya (…)

The conflict might “embrace” the whole region to a lesser or greater extent (Eastern Mediterranean, Middle East, Northern Africa, Persian Gulf, Balkans and the Caspian Sea).

In addition, it is well-known that the situation of an imperialist war is being utilized to mitigate the consequences of the world capitalist crisis and to channel capital into military conflicts.

The role of Suda

The military bases of NATO in Greece, Turkey as well as these in Middle East play a significant role in the developments that are unfolding in relation to the “operational plans”.

These bases serve as a launching pad for the assaults in their active phase while in the previous period (before, during and afterwards) they are used for the supply, the stationing and generally the support of the military operations.

Without the bases, the operations of the imperialists will face great difficulties, which render their results risky. The US imperialists would have to think twice or even three times about launching their assaults if they had to rely merely on their aircraft, on their strategic bombers, that can fly for many hours, if they did not have the base at Suda and the other bases in the region of Middle East.

It is not a coincidence that Iran, which in this phase supports Syria, stated that an assault against Syria would be an assault against Iran and that in such an instance Iran would attack the US bases in the region. The fire that the imperialists set in the region might spread and this entails great dangers for Greece, for Crete given the involvement of the Greek government ND-PASOK-Democratic Left.

The distance between the Suda base and Iran is 2,000 kilometres (2,500 from Tehran). The range of the Iranian missiles “Sejiil” is 2,500 kilometres. We ask: do the people of Crete deserve to live under this existing threat for the interests of the American and the European monopolies?

Suda is not at all a magnet for foreign transaction, as certain people claim in a distorted way. It is a magnet for war, misery, destruction, bloodshed that will inevitably occur if our people and the people in the region do not rise up.

No to the fear and the lies of submission!

In view of these developments the KKE stresses the need to struggle against the involvement of Greece in the new imperialist war.

We know that forces have been gathering in Suda for months. We see that over recent years, despite the protests of the KKE and the mass organisations, Greece is constantly carrying out military exercises with Israel. Only this week 10 Israeli F16 aircrafts participate in an exercise simulating the assault on the nuclear facilities of Iran in the region of Thessaly.

In view of these developments the working people must not sit on their hands! They must mobilize! They must demand:

that the military base of Suda closes immediately and generally that the airspace, the land and the sea of our country will not be used for the new war; that the military exercises and generally the military cooperation with Israel stop; the non-compliance with the so-called “contractual obligations” in the framework of NATO. At the same time, the struggle for the disengagement from this dangerous organization must be reinforced.

The path of the “left solution” and war

We know that when the KKE criticizes SYRIZA they immediately accuse us of animosity, partiality etc. So we will be as objective as possible. Take into account the following facts:

Is it true that on the eve of the elections in June Mr. Tsipras met with the ambassadors and the diplomats of the 20 strongest capitalist countries? Yes it is. What was discussed there?

The meeting of SYRIZA’s President with the ambassadors of the G20 countries gave us a reminder of the recent past, specifically it reminds us of the former Prime Minister Giorgos Papandreou, who has vanished without trace in recent weeks. The same slogans regarding “a new multi-facetted active peaceful foreign policy”, the same references to “international initiatives for the democratization of the system of international relations” and the need to “upgrade the role of the UN.”And at the same time, no mention of NATO. The lips are sealed! NATO which recently met in Chicago and took new dangerous decisions for the expansion of its activity, for the repression of every force, of every people that seeks to take control of its own future. Mr Tsipras’ silence concerning the continuing intervention against Syria was astounding. No mention, as if plans for a military intervention in the region are not being drawn up. As if the use of US base at Suda is not part of the plans regarding this intervention, and generally the use generally of the ports, the airspace, and the sea of our country. (…)

SYRIZA and its governmental proposal do not provide any way-out, solution to the issues of peace and security!

International experience shows that the forces of the so-called “left” participated actively in the imperialist wars. Such were the governments of France and Italy during the bombing of Yugoslavia by NATO. These countries participated actively! Indeed, these governments included the communist parties of these countries, which today participate along with SYRIZA in the European opportunist formation named “Party of the European Left”.

The EU and the …. Nobel peace prize!

A few days ago the EU was awarded the “Nobel peace prize”. Thousands of working people throughout the world felt disgust about this decision. Our party noted that it is “this prize constitutes horror and decay for those who had been awarded it and those who will be awarded it in the future” reminding the people of the role of the EU in the wars against Yugoslavia as well as in the recent ones.

What is the position of SYRIZA on this? That the EU should not have been awarded the prize because “it was completely absent from the basic flashpoints of tension throughout the world”. What is SYRIZA calling for? The EU to become a “global power” (…) “to prove that it deserves this prize”! Hot air!

We are talking about the EU which was constructed from the beginning as “European Coal and Steel community” (in 1951) and as the European Economic Community (EEC) (in 1957) in order to serve the interests of big capital! In order to make the exploitation of the working people in the EU member-states more effective and for the European monopolies to be able to compete with the monopolies of other powers. The EU is a reactionary construction, a predator, a “wolf” and SYRIZA asks the wolf to wear the sheep’s clothing!

Is it possible for the EU , which with its directives and decisions has butchered the workers’ rights, the salaries , the pensions, which destroyed and destroys the lower and middle urban and rural strata , which has increased unemployment to 1,5 million people, which destroys the future of the vast majority of the youth to follow a peaceful foreign policy?

Lenin wrote “No idea could be more erroneous or harmful than to separate foreign from home policy. The monstrous falsity of this separation becomes even more monstrous in war-time. Yet the bourgeoisie are doing everything possible and impossible to suggest and promote this idea” . We would add that here in Greece the bourgeoisie has been using the opportunists of SYRIZA and in Europe the so called “Party of the European Left” for this goal.

The KKE addresses itself to the country’s working class, to the peoples of our region and stresses that their interests are to be identified with the common anti-imperialist and anti-monopoly struggle, for the disengagement from the imperialist organizations, the withdrawal of the foreign military bases and the nuclear weapons, the return home of military forces which are on imperialist missions, the expression of solidarity with the Palestinian people, which is experiencing Israel’s barbarity, as well as with all the peoples which are struggling and are seeking to chart their own development path. The struggle for these goals today cannot be waged detached from the struggle for power.

¹ The Foreign Policy of the Russian Revolution, V.I. Lenin. Collected Works, Vol. 25, ps 85-87