The joint struggle of Greek and Turkish communists against imperialist rivalries, nationalism and war was highlighted by Dimitris Koutsoumbas, General Secretary of the Communist Party of Greece (KKE), during an event organized by the Party's Central Committee in Athens on Monday, October 12.
The event, entitled “Greece and Turkey in the Vortex of Imperialist Rivalries: The Way Out for the Peoples,” addressed escalating tensions between the two neighboring countries and the dangerous involvement of their ruling classes in wider imperialist confrontations.
The event, entitled “Greece and Turkey in the Vortex of Imperialist Rivalries: The Way Out for the Peoples,” addressed escalating tensions between the two neighboring countries and the dangerous involvement of their ruling classes in wider imperialist confrontations.
Koutsoumbas stressed that the KKE has developed close relations with the Communist Party of Turkey (TKP), based on proletarian internationalism and the common interests of the working classes on both sides of the Aegean.
He emphasized the importance of the two parties' joint position, reaffirmed in a common statement last month, demanding “no change to borders or the treaties that determine them.”
According to the KKE leader, this position constitutes a decisive response to nationalist forces in both countries that cultivate hostility between the Greek and Turkish peoples while remaining silent about the role of NATO and the powerful capitalist interests driving the confrontation.
Koutsoumbas explained that the common struggle of the KKE and TKP is directed against the bourgeois classes of both countries, their participation in imperialist plans and their involvement in alliances such as NATO and the European Union.
He underlined that the rivalry between Greece and Turkey cannot be separated from the competition for energy resources, transport routes and geopolitical influence in the Eastern Mediterranean. Far from guaranteeing peace, the intervention of NATO, the United States and the EU, he warned, creates the conditions for dangerous compromises, new crises and even military confrontation.
He emphasized the importance of the two parties' joint position, reaffirmed in a common statement last month, demanding “no change to borders or the treaties that determine them.”
According to the KKE leader, this position constitutes a decisive response to nationalist forces in both countries that cultivate hostility between the Greek and Turkish peoples while remaining silent about the role of NATO and the powerful capitalist interests driving the confrontation.
Koutsoumbas explained that the common struggle of the KKE and TKP is directed against the bourgeois classes of both countries, their participation in imperialist plans and their involvement in alliances such as NATO and the European Union.
He underlined that the rivalry between Greece and Turkey cannot be separated from the competition for energy resources, transport routes and geopolitical influence in the Eastern Mediterranean. Far from guaranteeing peace, the intervention of NATO, the United States and the EU, he warned, creates the conditions for dangerous compromises, new crises and even military confrontation.
The cooperation between the Greek and Turkish communists, Koutsoumbas stressed, is not limited to opposing war. It forms part of their common struggle to overthrow capitalism and build socialism.
Only under socialism, he argued, can the wealth of the Aegean and the Eastern Mediterranean cease to be a source of monopoly profits, antagonisms and military conflicts, becoming instead a means of satisfying the needs of the neighboring peoples.
Calling for stronger internationalist cooperation between workers' movements, Koutsoumbas insisted that the peoples must refuse to sacrifice their lives for the interests of their respective ruling classes.
The way forward for the peoples on both shores of the Aegean, he concluded, lies in their common struggle against imperialism, for workers' power, genuine peace and socialism.
Only under socialism, he argued, can the wealth of the Aegean and the Eastern Mediterranean cease to be a source of monopoly profits, antagonisms and military conflicts, becoming instead a means of satisfying the needs of the neighboring peoples.
Calling for stronger internationalist cooperation between workers' movements, Koutsoumbas insisted that the peoples must refuse to sacrifice their lives for the interests of their respective ruling classes.
The way forward for the peoples on both shores of the Aegean, he concluded, lies in their common struggle against imperialism, for workers' power, genuine peace and socialism.
