17-12-2016 – As we go to press, the Russian and Syrian armed forces are on the verge of the complete liberation of Aleppo from being held hostage by Western backed mercenaries. This is after five years of arguably the most criminal war waged against a sovereign country in modern history. It is an open secret that the governments of the United States, France, the United Kingdom, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Qatar have armed, funded, trained and in some cases directed tens of thousands of barbarous mercenaries from over 80 different non-Syrian countries, and let them loose. In this historically unprecedented crime, they have been backed by the governments of Australia, Canada, Denmark, Israel and others. The leader of this Empire is centred in Washington, yet as we saw in September this year, and by its own admission, Canberra is a willing partner.[1]
Countless corporate media outlets, from CNN and ABC in the US, to the BBC in the UK, to France 24, and including the ABC and SBS in Australia, have played an ignominious role in reproducing pro-war “news” and continue to do so, even as we potentially see the end of the war on Syria in sight. This litany of lies about the war has confused many of those who opposed the war on Iraq in 2003, and has seemingly fooled a whole swathe of parties which claim to be “socialist”. Some in the Refugee Action Collective have also taken the bait. In the Western corporate media narrative, unspeakably barbaric Western backed mercenaries are called “activists” or “rebels”. The legitimate Syrian government is referred to as a “regime”. The slaughter of innocents by ISIS and Al Qaeda groups, which frequently change their names, is blamed on Russia, without a shred of evidence.
The liberation of Aleppo from ISIS and Al Qaeda should be compared to the liberation of Saigon in 1975. In fact, Syria is arguably the first major defeat for US imperialism since their defeat in Vietnam. For the US Empire, it wasn’t supposed to be this way. It was supposed to be yet another textbook case of the US arming death squads and overthrowing the state which they viewed as too independent from Washington. After Libya, the US elite perhaps believed that no one would stand in their way. In Syria, however, other powers saw that the endless US game of regime change would soon enough target them if they did not act. Russia was the most aware of this and acted accordingly. Iran joined them, and China at least gave some support in the United Nations. As Syrian Presidential and Media Advisor Dr. Bouthaina Shabaan commented, the liberation of Aleppo from US backed Al Qaeda groups will not only turn the face of the war, but change the balance of power regionally and internationally. Russia and China now lead the international scene, not the United States.[2]
Consider the position of the US ruling class at this moment. The virtually limitless propaganda about a supposed “Syrian revolution”, led by “moderates”, has been exposed for all to see. No matter which way they attempt to spin it, the whole world can simply do their own research to discover that it is the US ruling class which long ago had designs on regime change in Syria, long before 2011. The whole world can do their own research and without much difficulty, establish that it was the US Empire and their allies, which armed, funded, and in some cases fought alongside,[3] the very ISIS groups they claimed to be fighting against. The whole world can also see who was really serious in ridding the world of the scourge of ISIS, and who by far did the most about it – the Russian government. At the request of the Syrian government, Russia intervened on September 30, 2015, and decisively turned the proxy war against the US Empire. For this service to humanity, Russia has been demonised and subjected to propaganda that makes the original Cold War seem like child’s play. In fact, some sections of the US ruling class were willing to go to war with Russia over Syria. If Hilary Clinton had won the US presidential election, a third world war was a definite possibility. It could still be, despite US President elect Donald Trump potentially being able to pull the US back from a full scale war, at least with Russia.
A few short years ago, ISIS was the hot issue of the day. It allegedly threatened all of humanity with imminent destruction and “we” .i.e. Western governments, had to go to war to “protect” us from ISIS. At the same time, working people the world over had to accept the shredding of even nominal democratic rights, such as the right to not have your communication with others spied upon. In France the right to public assembly to protest against draconian labour law changes was all but abolished. Now, where is the threat from ISIS? Working people the world over can see that it is no longer there, and, regardless of your political opinion of the Russian government, it was largely Russia which eliminated ISIS. Can the US use the ISIS bogey again? Will the people of the world believe it a second time? To ask this question is to answer it.
We can be sure, however, that the US Empire will again attempt, in some form, to at least manufacture a confrontation, if not a major war, with those who they see as standing in their way. This is not primarily a result of recklessness, though there is plenty of that. Ultimately it is produced by the world capitalist economies’ prolonged economic decline, if not outright recession. Working people have an acute need obviously to avoid a catastrophic war, but also for decent paying jobs, reliable public services, and a climate which does not threaten them. Only with a socialist system will the possibility of addressing these serious social problems present themselves. To lead a struggle for this society as well as an end to imperialist wars, working people need their own party. VICTORY TO SYRIA!
—————————————————————————————————————————————-
Workers League
PO Box 66 Nundah QLD 4012
E: workersleague@redfireonline.com
[1] https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/australian-jets-participated-massacre-syrian-soldiers-deir-ezzor/ (17-12-16)
[2] http://sana.sy/en/?p=96389 (17-12-16)
[3] https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2016/aug/09/pictures-appear-to-show-british-special-forces-on-syrian-front-line (17-12-16)
Red Fire 