UCP of Georgia, Declaration of CC of UCP of Georgia about the latest war

[IndianaGreen]

UCP of Georgia, Declaration of CC of UCP of Georgia about the latest war
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From: Unified Communist Party of Georgia, Tuesday, August 26, 2008

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Declaration of the Central Committee of Unified Communist Party of Georgia and Georgian Peace Committee

Once more Georgia was launched into a situation of chaos and bloodshed. A new fratricidal war exploded with renewed strength on Georgian soil.

To our great disappointment, the alerts of the Unified Communist Party of Georgia, of Georgian Peace Committee and of progressive personalities of Georgia on the pernicious
character of the militarization of the country and on the danger of a pro-fascist and nationalist policy had no effect.

The authorities of Georgia once again organized a bloody war, feeling the support of some western countries and of regional and international organizations. It will take
decades to cleanse the shame poured by the current holders of the power over the Georgian people.

The Georgian army--armed and trained by U.S. instructors and using also U.S. armaments--subjected the city of Tskhinvali to a barbaric destruction. The bombings killed
Ossetian civilians, our brothers and sisters, children, women and elderly people. Over 2,000 inhabitants of Tskhinvali and of its surroundings died.

Hundreds of civilians of Georgian nationality also died, both in the conflict zone as well as on the entire territory of Georgia.

http://www.solidnet.org/cgi-bin/agent?news/041georgia26aug08.doc

[Bob Dobbs]

1. Freedom for the pipeline!!

That's why we are there. It's hardly out of our commitment to the PEOPLE of Georgia.

See: IRAQ

[IndianaGreen]

2. Additonal statements from CP of Greece and Canada on Caucasus

CP of Greece, Statement of the PB on the Caucasus Crisis
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From: Communist Party of Greece, Thursday, August 28, 2008
http://inter.kke.gr
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Statement of the Political Bureau of KKE on the
international developments and the crisis in Caucasus

1. The bloody war in South Ossetia was launched at the
request of the US and NATO by the government of Georgia
that they control, taking advantage of the well known
contradictions between Georgia and Russia. It was one more
episode in the "series" of terror caused by the
intensification of the contradictions between the
imperialist powers in a wide region, extending from North
Africa to the Arctic and from the Balkans to the Caucasus
and the Caspian Sea .

The competitions between USA, EU, Russia as well as other
regional powers in the imperialist "pyramid " are unfolding
with the goal of increasing the superprofits of the
monopolies through the control of wealth resources, energy
pipelines, markets and spheres of influence

Thus, a dangerous conflict over the so Called "Big Middle
East" is being escalating. These developments are related
to the occupation of Iraq and Afghanistan , but also to the
preparations of war against Iran, and may result in domino
effects affecting our region, even our country.

EU and most of its member-states, which are also members of
NATO, on the one hand cooperate with the US , and on the
other they compete for the sharing of the loot. They even
try to hold the "reins" in a series of regions as it was
demonstrated by the active interference of France and
Germany in the Caucasus crisis At the same time, the
contradictions within the EU concerning the stance towards
Russia grow stronger.

2. The other political forces of our country, which
celebrated the overthrow of socialism in Europe and the
dissolution of the USSR, have been proven false. That
development caused only pain, blood and suffering for tens
of millions of workers living in the territories of the
former USSR. It has also brought a general setback in the
life and the rights of millions of workers all over the
world. The road to the restoration of capitalism, to the
integration of these countries in the global capitalist
economy, was paved by the corpses of the international
conflicts, caused by the imperialist powers which compete
for the control of the region's wealth and the increase of
the exploitation of workers.

The uneven development of capitalism has led, over the last
years, to the emergence and strengthening of new global
economic forces, with high economic growth rates, such as
Russia , China , India and Brazil . These forces claim a
share of the world market and they cause serious
reshufflings at the global imperialist "chessboard". Their
economic growth is inevitably followed by the increase of
their political and military power. It leads to the
intensification of the competition with the currently
leading powers such as the US and EU and to the formation
of new "axes" and "anti-axes".

3. The US tries to maintain its hegemonic position, both
generally and in relation to Russia specifically. Through
the deployment of the so-called "antimissile shield" in
Poland and Czech Republic they aim at overturning the
current nuclear balance of forces with Russia. This move
will inevitably bring an answer by Russia. It will escalate
the armaments race with negative consequences for the
people. At the same time the USA promotes the
militarization of space, the further expansion of NATO
towards the Balkans and countries of the former USSR and
the installation of a new network of military bases in
order to surround and weaken Russia.

The workers in our country should not have any illusions
about the role of today's Russia as it has a distinctly
different class and social content from the USSR. Today's
capitalist Russia, as well as the EU, can neither become a
"counterweight" to the USA nor a factor of international
balance and security as they are both made of the same
"material", the "material" of the harsh class exploitation
and injustice, of the dominance of capital and of the
oppression of workers. The ruling class of Russia collides
with the US and EU imperialists only in order to defend the
interests of its own monopolies. At the same time is
willing to accommodate with the USA and the EU for the
further exploitation of the workers, the deprivation of
their gains and the restriction of their social and
political rights.

4. Greece gets engaged more and more in this knot of
constantly intensifying contradictions. The Greek
bourgeoisie, whose interests are now expressed by the
government of ND, on the one hand utilizes all the benefits
of the passage of Russian oil and gas through Greece, on
the other hand is actively participating in the imperialist
campaigns in Afghanistan, the Balkans, the Persian Gulf and
elsewhere as an active member of NATO and EU and an ally of
the US. ND and PASOK are trying to trap the people by
promoting the notion of "security" that is allegedly
provided by the country's ?participation in the plans of
the EU and NATO. The other political parties, namely SYN
and LAOS, have a similar stance, as they promote the need
to support the EU imperialist bloc
.
The workers should have no trust for the "safety" that is
supposedly offered by NATO and EU; it has been proven fake.
The experience so far demonstrates that these organizations
not only don't offer "safety", but they are factors of
destabilization, continuous ordeal of the peoples! The
participation of our country in the adventurous
Euro-atlantic imperialist plans can lead to serious mishaps
for the workers, the youth and the popular strata in
Greece.
The vague declarations of the bourgeois forces about
"peace", "negotiations" and "reasonability" are used to
throw dust in people's eyes in order for the imperialist
blocs to impose their interests.
5. It is imperative to put now an end to passiveness and
waiting. The peoples must lead their own way, by forming
the real counterweight to imperialism in every country. KKE
calls upon the working class, the small and medium scale
farmers, the self-employed, the youth, the
anti-imperialist, peace-loving forces of our people:

- To support the policy which voices a clear NO to the
imperialist choices and commitments, the warmongering
plans, to the imperialist organizations, the military bases
and paves the way of peace, prosperity, cooperation of the
people, of socialism.

- To back the policies and struggles of KKE:
? Against NATO and its new expansion
? Against the "anti-missile shield"
? No engagement of Greece in the imperialist wars and
operations, against no people around the world.
? Against the participation in the so-called "peacekeeping
missions" (no matter how they will be called in the future)
in Caucasus or elsewhere in the world.
? Not to comply with any obligations deriving from the
participation in NATO and the EU that engage our country
militarily directly or indirectly.
? To shut down now the military base in Souda bay
? To bring back home all the Greek troops that are outside
of our borders
? No foreign troops in Afghanistan , Iraq , Balkan
countries or elsewhere.

The situation will sharpen as long as inter-imperialist
competitions and interests exist. The hopes of the people
for a peaceful and safe world are intrinsically linked
with the with the struggle for the overthrow of the
imperialist plans, the disengagement from the imperialist
bonds, from the imperialist unions like NATO and EU, with
the building of a society free from exploitation of man by
man.

The Politburo of the CC of KKE
Athens, August 25 2008






*End*

CP of Canada, On the US/NATO aggression in the Caucasus
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From: Communist Party of Canada, Sunday, August 17, 2008
http://www.communist-party.ca
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On the US/NATO aggression in the Caucasus

The outbreak of a deadly armed conflict in the Caucasus is
not only a humanitarian disaster which has already cost
some 2,000 lives, but poses a very real threat of wider
wars in the region. Imperialism's preparations and
aggressions in Georgia are sparks that can eventually
ignite a much larger conflagration, demanding the sharpest
condemnation of the international labour movement and all
peace and anti-imperialist forces.

Unhindered by a strong socialist bloc of countries,
imperialist countries led by the US in the NATO military
alliance are using Georgia to prepare future aggressions,
in violation of the basic principles of international law
such as those in the United Nations Charter.

The Communist Party of Canada condemns the Georgian
invasion on August 7, including bombing raids on
residential areas, hospitals, and schools in the South
Ossetian capital of Tskhinvali, as an unprovoked assault
which plunged the Caucasus into war. We give full support
to calls from many countries for the complete withdrawal of
Georgian forces from South Ossetia as a first step towards
a peaceful solution to this conflict, which must not be
allowed to expand into all-out confrontation in the Middle
East and Central Asia.

We also note that contrary to claims by much of the western
media and by the Bush regime, this is not a case of
"Russian aggression." The source of rising tensions in the
Caucasus is not the presence of Russian troops, which
entered South Ossetia in the early 1990s as peacekeepers
after Georgia attempted to forcibly annex the area, driving
much of the population across the border into North
Ossetia, which remained within Russia.

The real origin of this conflict lies in the US/NATO
imperialist policies of expansionism. For decades, starting
with the Cold War, the US has sought to place a military
ring around its rival, undermining allies of the Soviet
Union and later Russia, and imposing so-called
"pro-Western" regimes which allow US bases on their soil
and rely heavily on US military cooperation and support.
Recalling the Nazi invasion which cost their country over
twenty million lives, Russia strongly opposes such
imperialist encirclement.

This is the case with Georgia, which became a U.S. client
state at the time of the illegal NATO war against
Yugoslavia in 1999. Israel, the main U.S. ally in the
region, has also forged close political and economic links
with the Georgian government. The high level of
US/NATO/Israeli/Georgian military integration makes it
clear that the August 7 aggression must have been known in
advance and approved by the Bush and Olmert governments.
Bolstering this view is the decision on August 9 by the
United States to provide military transport aircraft to fly
many of Georgia's 2,000-strong troop contingent out of Iraq
to join the fighting at home.

The imperialist drive to plunder oil and other vital
resources is a key factor in destabilization of the region.
Notably, the Baku-Tblisi-Ceyhan pipeline brings oil and gas
through Georgia to the Eastern Mediterranean, including a
large part of Israel's oil imports from Azerbaijan.
Controlled by British Petroleum and built with US support,
the BTC pipeline is a vital piece of the military-political
bloc including Azerbaijan, Georgia, Turkey and Israel,
which the US considers a vital counter-balance against the
influence of Russia and China in the region.

In the wake of the US/UK war against Iraq and the
continuing efforts by the occupation forces to turn over
Iraq's vast oil wealth to the transnational corporations,
nobody should underestimate the desire of the ultra-right
clique around Bush, Cheney and other Republican hawks to
use events in the Middle East and Central Asia to further
this strategic push. Seen in this context, Georgia's
aggression against South Ossetia, which quickly met
powerful Russian resistance, may have been a provocation to
create better conditions for expansion of the US/ NATO
military presence in the area.

The Caucasus war could also influence the US presidential
election, by tilting voter support towards Republican
candidate John McCain. It is not a stretch to wonder if
these events may be intended to help lay the groundwork for
a US strike against Iran, with the long-range goal of
imperialist seizure of that country's oil reserves. Such an
attack would unleash a war of unforeseeable dimensions,
costing millions of lives and spreading far beyond the
borders of the Middle East.

In pursuit of its aim of global hegemony, imperialism is
playing with fire, and Georgia's latest aggression is part
of this wider pattern. The Communist Party of Canada urges
full support for international attempts to contain and
extinguish this conflict, and for an end to all imperialist
meddling in the Caucasus.

Issued by the Central Executive Committee

Communist Party of Canada

August 14, 2008


*End*

[IndianaGreen]

3. And CPUSA statement on the Georgia situation

CPUSA Statement:

An August surprise: Russia-Georgia conflict explodes on world scene

The U.S.-backed militarization of the Caucasus in the former Soviet Union
exploded on the night of Aug. 7.

Under cover of darkness and as the world watched the Olympics, the government of
right-wing Georgian President
Saakashvili ordered an all-out military attack on Tskhinvali, the capital of
South Ossetia.

The aerial bombardments by U.S. and NATO-supplied planes and the ground
attacks against the city’s Russian inhabitants continued until almost
all the homes, hospitals and the university were destroyed and 2,000
unarmed civilians were lying dead in their homes and in the streets,
Russia’s government charged.

The Associated Press reported “the air and artillery bombardment left
the Ossetian capital without water, food, electricity and gas. Horrified
civilians crawled out of basements into the streets as the fighting
eased to find their city destroyed.” The Deseret Morning News, Salt Lake
City, reported that 34,000 civilian survivors fled from South Ossetia to
safety in Russia.

Russia responded with overwhelming force, sending airplanes, tanks,
armored vehicles and thousands of ground troops into the autonomous
region (called “breakaway” in U.S. media), resulting in dozens of
civilians killed and scores of displaced people. But the actions forced
the Georgian military to withdraw from South Ossetia and the Russians
declared a cease-fire.

South Ossetia is a small area on the border between Georgia and Russia
where most residents are either Russian or members of non-Georgian
ethnic groups. During the Soviet era it was an autonomous area in the
Soviet Union. After Georgia became independent in 1990, it claimed South
Ossetia. The population opposed this claim and with Russian support,
Georgia granted South Ossetia autonomy. It has functioned as a de facto
independent country ever since.

In 2006 an internationally sponsored referendum was held in South
Ossetia (Germany, Poland, Austria and Sweden were the sponsors).
Ninety-nine percent of the vote backed full independence from Georgia
with a ninety-five percent turnout of the voting-age population.

Peacekeepers from Russia commissioned by the Organization for Security
and Cooperation in Europe have been stationed in South Ossetia since
then. The peacekeepers were among the first to be killed when Georgia
invaded South Ossetia last week.

Since 2004, Georgia’s right-wing government has developed close ties to
the Bush administration and has applied for membership in both the
European Union and NATO.
Georgia has the third largest number of troops in Iraq (2,000) after the
U.S. and Britain.
Last month, the U.S. military held a joint war game “training exercise”
in Georgia with the Georgian military. The Pentagon admits that it left
“military advisors” in Georgia after the exercise.

It’s important to note that Russian oil pipelines go through the Ossetia
region from central Russia to the Black Sea, transporting the black gold
to European markets. There have long been aspirations to use the
Caucasus region as a steppingstone to grab the world’s largest supply of
oil and natural gas — from Nazi Germany’s unsuccessful drive to the
Caucasus to more present-day oil corporations and other capitalists’
interests. Other geopolitical strategies are at work as well. Russia has
said it would never tolerate a NATO country on its borders and is
fighting the attempts by the Pentagon to put missile bases in Poland and
the Czech Republic. A NATO country in the Caucasus could also be used to
launch attacks on Iran.

There are also those who are fearful of recent security and other
agreements between Russia and China. (See related story on page 7.)

And then, there is the use of international conflicts to influence the
U.S. elections.
Invoking his Russo-phobia, McCain ranted and raved in an Iowa speech
that “we should immediately call a meeting of the North Atlantic Council
(sic) to assess Georgia’s security and review measures NATO can take to
contribute to stabilizing this very dangerous situation.”

Then McCain — as always undeterred by reality — demanded, “The U.S.
should immediately convene an emergency session of the United Nations
Security Council to call on Russia to reverse course.”

The reality is Russia, before it deployed its military, did exactly
that. Russia convened an emergency session of the UN Security Council,
calling on both South Ossetians and Georgians to immediately cease
hostilities, return to the negotiating table and renounce the use of
force. However, the U.S. opposed the resolution, objecting to the call
to “renounce the use of force.”

McCain has other motives for his one-sided stance. His top foreign
policy advisor, Randy Scheunemann, has a long financial relationship
with Saakashvili and lobbies for him in the United States. In 2005,
McCain introduced a Senate resolution essentially calling for official
attachment of South Ossetia to Georgia which was posted on that
country’s worldwide website. Georgia hired Scheunemann to lobby for its
entrance into NATO and McCain soon thereafter endorsed the idea. In a
speech given in Germany in 2006, McCain said of the Georgian government:
“The country has implemented far-reaching political, economic, and
military reforms and should enter NATO. Georgia is America’s best friend
and Russian peacekeepers should be thrown out.” Interestingly enough,
Saakashvili was criticized by the White House just a year ago for
cracking down on political dissidents.

However, the Georgian government has been unable to quash all of its
political opposition. On Aug. 12, the Peace Committee of Georgia issued
a statement condemning the attack on South Ossetia and mourning the loss
of life of Ossetians, Russians and Georgians.