The recent Russian invasion of Ukraine has ignited the long-standing imperial antagonisms between the United States and NATO on the one-side and Russia on the other. Central Ohio Revolutionary Socialists calls on all progressive and socialist forces to forge unity behind a set of principles for the reconstruction of the anti-war movement in our country and the formation of anti-imperialist coalitions. We have drafted this short statement of stances on the Ukraine crisis to help begin this process. If you agree with these principles and would like to organize with the coalition, please email CorsRev@protonmail.com to sign below.
We recognize unequivocally that the Russian military action now underway in Ukraine is an act of imperialist aggression seeking to undermine the sovereignty of the Ukrainian nation. We condemn all military actions taken by the Russian government on Ukrainian soil (along with the breakaway republics of Donetsk and Luhansk). While the Russian government claims their targets are purely military and fascist paramilitaries (such as the infamous Azov battalion), we recognize that their actions will necessarily bring undue and unacceptable suffering to the Ukrainian civilians who get caught in the crossfire.
We recognize that NATO's primary purpose is to uphold Western imperialism and neoliberal hegemony. The actions taken by NATO played no small role in escalating the conflict in Ukraine. Any military intervention on the part of NATO can only serve their own imperialist interests and result in a further escalation of tensions and loss of life. Russia and NATO have identical, purely imperialist, interests in Ukraine. The Ukrainian people deserve peace and self-determination, not subservience to foreign capital in exchange for defense from Russia. “Lesser” measures such as sanctions too must be opposed – the Russian capitalists responsible for the invasion will come out unscathed while the Russian workers face the brunt of them.
We recognize that imperialist wars are an injustice to the people of all nations. The governments of the world act purely in the interests of their nations' ruling classes, and demand that the workers commit atrocities against each other to secure profit and power for the rich. We call for international solidarity between the workers of all nations to oppose imperialist wars. The Russian people must fight their government to end the war, and we must support them as they face brutal police suppression. So too must we oppose the intervention of our own imperialist governments, and support the Ukrainian people in their resistance. Our internationalist duty is to do as thousands of Russians are doing and oppose the United States militarist ambitions.
We must demand to the governments of the world that they open their borders and coffers to those Ukrainians forced to flee their homes in the wake of conflict. We understand that the struggle of Ukrainian people against imperialism is deeply connected to struggles against imperialism in the Middle East and beyond. As such, we also oppose all xenophobia and anti-immigrant sentiment in Europe.