A-Infos (en) Germany, Karlsruhe ANIKA: Actions on the anniversary of the invasion of Russia in Karlsruhe (ca, de, it, pt, tr)[machine translation]

On February 24th, the anniversary of Russia's comprehensive war of aggression 
against Ukraine, we received pictures of a solidarity campaign against the war. 
Activists have hung up banners throughout the city of Karlsruhe. With these they 
show their solidarity with the people in Ukraine and the anti-authoritarian 
activists who are also actively opposed to this war in Russia, Belarus and 
Ukraine. In addition, on the same day, people from the AniKa network took part in 
the two rallies in the city in a critical and partly solidarity manner in order 
to express their perspective there as well. ---- The banners that were hung on 
various bridges showed slogans such as: "No power, no state, no war", "Fight for 
people not for power", "Sabotage war", "Desert instead of marching", "War after 
war ', 'Russian Army out of Ukraine' and 'Putin fuck off'. An activist commented 
on the action: "With the banners we want to draw attention to the deaths in 
Ukraine that have been going on for a year, for which Putin's regime alone is 
responsible. That's why we demand the immediate withdrawal of the Russian army 
with an accompanying ceasefire! Only the Russian government can end this war today!".

In addition to this action, people from the AniKa network took part in the 
rallies on the market square and the Schlossplatz to express their solidarity and 
to critically accompany the rallies. Among other things, flyers were distributed 
there that pointed out the complexity of the war and the problematic attitude of 
parts of the so-called German peace movement in this conflict. An activist said: 
"It was important for us to bring an anti-authoritarian perspective to the events 
and to express our clear stance against Putin's imperialism and his deadly 
nationalist great power fantasies."

Another activist involved summarized the situation as follows: "We are not in the 
mood for war, but we stand in solidarity with all those who oppose the military 
attacks. With all those who sabotage the war machine and refuse to serve in arms. 
And we stand by all those who lose their belongings and those around them, as 
well as those who choose or cannot choose to flee".

People from the AniKa network published the war situation, Putin's goals and the 
problems of the local so-called peace movement in a text on their website: 
anika.noblogs.org/2023/02/23/russian-invasion/

On the anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine

On February 24, 2022, the Russian government launched a full-scale military 
invasion of Ukraine.

The justifications for this war on the part of the Russian government are 
constantly changing. Ukraine must be liberated from Nazis, the oppressed 
population of the Donbas must be liberated, NATO's expansion of its sphere of 
influence is to blame, traditional values must be protected from the bad 
influence of the West, to the point of fantasies of a Greater Russian Empire 
becoming one day oriented towards the borders of the former Soviet Union, 
sometimes goes far beyond that. From nationalism to racism, homophobia to 
imperialist and fascist ideas, almost all inhuman attitudes are served.

Russian military interventions in Ukraine began several years earlier. In 2014, 
Igor Girkin aka Igor Strelkov coordinated military clashes between pro-Russian 
militias in cooperation with regular Russian armed forces and the Ukrainian army. 
In the course of this, Crimea was annexed and the so-called People's Republics of 
Donetsk and Lugansk.

The Russian government under Vladimir Putin propagated the "reconquest" of areas 
in south-eastern Ukraine under the title Novorussia. Novorossiya refers to an 
administrative area during the Russian Empire.

The military interventions in Ukraine should not be viewed in isolation. The 
areas of Abkhazia, South Ossetia and Transnistria, for example, have been 
occupied with similar actions since the 1990s.

The war and the transverse front

Communist's, Russian and Novorussia's flags
Above all, the fight against Nazis and nationalism have emerged as acceptable 
justifications for the Russian invasion of Ukraine. With historical references to 
the fight against German fascism, Putin's regime appears to be building bridges 
to the political left and parts of the peace movement.

In addition, there is a transfigured image of an alleged anti-capitalist East 
facing the evil capitalist West, primarily in the form of the USA and NATO.

Logo Rusich
Russian neo-Nazis were already clearly involved in the alleged liberation of 
Crimea and the so-called People's Republics in 2014. Since the expansion of the 
Russian attack in 2022, a wide variety of military groups related to historical 
National Socialism have also been involved.

All other propagandistic features should at least offend all those who are 
interested in emancipation and human rights.

Above all, these are the ideas of the new-right pioneer Alexander Dugin, who 
describes himself as a National Bolshevik. His ideas of the Great Russian Empire, 
which stretches from Dublin to Vladivostok, are peppered with lots of racism, 
culturalism, homophobia and transphobia.
His relation to the New Right and the Conservative Revolution is not only 
reflected in his theories. He is the one making the practical connections to 
right-wing parties and structures across Europe.

Dugin next to the flag of the national-bolshevik party he founded, which has 
since been banned
There is neither a justification nor a trivialization for this inhumane campaign. 
For years people opposed to fascism and authority have been arrested and abused 
in Russia. Apart from appropriated symbols, the Russian government has no 
connection to anti-capitalist, anti-fascist or emancipatory political approaches. 
However, it shows how tricky cross-front strategies are.

The glorified starting point of the transverse front, which feeds on a false 
anti-capitalist understanding and accompanying anti-Americanism, also means that 
a large part of the so-called peace movement neither clearly emphasizes Russia's 
aggression nor supports those affected in Russia and Ukraine.

The condemnation of the Russian attack only takes place in subordinate clauses 
and as quickly as possible to assign at least a partial blame to the West and to 
place all those who show their solidarity with the defenders in a nationalistic 
corner or as supporters of NATO. Or to put it in the words of the EZLN: "With the 
multinational invasion of Iraq, there were anti-war mobilizations all over the 
world. No one in their right mind would think that to oppose the invasion was to 
side with Saddam Hussein. Now the situation appears to be similar, if not the same."

So it is not surprising that these peace movements did not show themselves on the 
streets when thousands in Russia protested against the war and later against the 
big mobilization and were arrested for it.

Bad times for opponents of the war

These are bad times for opponents of the war and above all for the political 
left. The Russian invasion shows the political complexity. There is no good and 
bad side. However, there is an aggression that must be clearly identified and 
combated.

Every war ends with diplomatic negotiations and peace talks. The attempt to 
sabotage self-defense for the sake of a dictated peace is to be rejected.

With the Budapest Memorandum and the Treaty of Friendship with Russia, Ukraine 
surrendered its nuclear weapons within the meaning of security agreements, and 
Russia recognized the explicit unconditional recognition of the territorial 
integrity and inviolability of Ukraine's borders. With the occupation of Crimea, 
this treaty was broken. Now should a same one ensure long-term peace under the 
cession of territory?

We are not in the mood for war, but we stand in solidarity with all those who 
oppose the military attacks. With all those who sabotage the war machine and 
refuse to serve in arms. And we stand by those who lose their belongings and 
those around them, as well as those who choose or cannot choose to flee.

We demand the immediate withdrawal of the Russian army with an accompanying 
ceasefire! Only the Russian government can end this war today!

https://anika.noblogs.org/2023/02/25/aktionen-zum-jahrestag-der-invasion-russlands-in-karlsruhe/
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