Inter-imperialist Conflicts in the Middle East

Since the exploration of oil, the Middle East has become an indispensable region for inter-imperialist competition. This inter-imperialist competition began during WWI with the definition of artificial borders which served the French and English influence through the Sykes Picot Agreement (May 16th 1916). Ever since, the region has been since then subject to American, German, French, and English imperialism, as well as Soviet social imperialism, and, since the fall of the Soviet Union, Russian imperialism. It is the leading territory which American imperialism has been trying to restructure since the collapse of the Soviet Union and the revisionist block in order to establish its worldwide authority. The Iraq Wars, however, which ended in US defeat, led to the emergence of various dynamics in the Middle East. One cannot separate the imperialist competition between countries like the US, France, England, Germany, Russia and China that has been ongoing since the exploration of oil, the resulting local conflicts and collisions, the struggle for hegemony, and the interests of monopoly capital. The intervention in Syria is but a consequence of this politics and competition.

The alignments in the region were reorganized through the intervention in Syria: on the one hand, there are imperialist powers such as the US, England, France, Germany and their lackey regimes such as Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Jordan; on the other hand, the other imperialist block led by Russia and obviously supported by the Chinese imperialists, which includes such countries as Iran and Syria. The only country that resides between these blocks is Iraq. Since it is governed by Shias, its heart is on Iran’s side. Yet it is de facto under American control.

The Middle East is useful not only in terms of its resources, but also strategically indispensable for imperialist powers.

At the same time, the Middle East is a region of rising struggle for dignity, democracy and freedom against capitalist plunder, repression, and exploitation. The popular uprisings that started at the end of 2010 and have been breaking through since then in different forms and dimensions have shown, despite their spontaneist character and failure in terms of ultimate goals, that imperialist powers are not capable of controlling everything. From North Africa to the Middle East, the Arab people have been rebelling against imperialism’s imposition of neoliberal policies, unemployment, insult and degradation under a “clash of the civilizations” rubric. These revolts were both against the local fascist, reactionary sovereigns, and against imperialism. The Zine El Abidine Ben Ali dictatorship in Tunasia and the Hosni Mubarak dictatorship in Egypt have been overthrown. However, the dynamics that overthrew these dictatorships were unable to establish new governments reflecting their own will and demands. The intervention of imperialist powers and the fact that the revolutionary subject in these countries were meagre transformed the fight for power into a competition between different cliques of the bourgeoisie.

Collaborator local states and imperialist powers continue to provoke ethnic and religious conflicts for the sake of competition among themselves. One can see this clearly in the Middle East: on the one side, there is the US, EU (particularly England, France, and Germany), Israel, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Jordan, Egypt as countries, and Hamas, Al-Nusra, Al-Qaeda, ISIS, and the Free Syrian Army as organisations. On the other side, one sees Russia, China (in a concealed way), Iran, the Syrian and Iraqi central governments, and Hezbollah in Lebanon. The first side constitutes the Sunni Block, while the second stands for the Shia Block. One can say that the clash of interests particularly between imperialist and local countries on the Sunni side continue in such a fashion.

The Role of Kurdish Dynamics in the Middle East

Popular uprisings labelled the “Arab Spring” by the bourgeoisie spread quickly throughout the Middle East. The rebellion against Assad in Syria turned in a very short time to a struggle for power among reactionary forces. While the Assad Regime and fundamentalist fascist gangs were slaughtering each other, resulting in the deaths of hundreds of thousands, along with the forced emigration of millions, an unforeseen governance was established by the Kurds and other national and religious groups (Assyrians, Armenians, Arabs, Turkmens). These groups, following the “Third Way”, established their autonomous governments in Rojava (Northern Syria) in the Jazira, Kobanê, and Afrin Cantons.

Just as it once was in Afghanistan, the growth and expanding power of religious fascist powers (Al-Qaeda, Al-Nusra, and finally, ISIS) that were initially formed by imperialist powers to fight as their proxies in the region, trained and equipped by their collaborators such as Turkey and Saudi Arabia, changed the power relations and alignments, albeit temporarily. The fight against ISIS, which controls a considerable part of Syria, occupied Mosul, almost reaching Arbil and Baghdad, and finally initiated an attack on Kobanê, has gained a new and important dimension. This fight against the murderous ISIS, which has been undertaken primarily by Kurds in the field, has been supported by the imperialist coalition led by the US through air strikes for tactical reasons. Similarly, Iran, Iraq, and Syria have been actively taking part in the fight against ISIS.

The Rojava Revolution is for All People of the World

In this complex system, the Rojava Revolution and the resistance of Kobanê has been a model of struggle against imperialism for all people of the world. False perceptions and prejudices have been utilised in an attempt to reduce and confine to a narrow region. However, the revolution has already passed beyond the borders of the Middle East, and has significant implications for the entire world.

They have tried to overwhelm and reverse the revolution and the established self-government, and thereby the right and will of the Kurds and other ethnic groups living in the region to self-determination. In fact, not only in Rojava, but from Tunisia to the Middle East, in Egypt, Yemen, Palestina, and Syria, internal and external interventions were utilised for suppression. The Kobanê resistance is a response to this intervention. Only after the struggle was appropriated and internationalized through the dauntless will of the fighters were Western imperialists forced to revise their stance against ISIS. The US-led imperialist powers bombed ISIS positions as a result of this tactical overlap. It is obvious, however, that the imperialist powers will keep trying to abort the revolution.

The fight for the liberation of Kobanê and the victory won shows that the solidarity with powers fighting for freedom and democracy in the Middle East – especially Rojava – went beyond the limits of verbal propaganda. The practical solidarity has a meaning, namely that those who show solidarity have to internalize this struggle. Our party …. has shown that it grasps the Revolution of Rojava as its own revolution, and acts accordingly. We have fought side by side with militias of the YPG and HPG in defence of Shengal against the genocide initiated by ISIS; we have been actively fighting in the resistance of Kobanê and for building the revolution. MLCP has given eight martyrs for the Rojava Revolution and the Resistance of Kobanê: comrades Serkan Tosun, Paramaz Kızılbaş, Sarya Özgür, Oğuz Saruhan, Emre Aslan, Ivana Hoffmann, Coşkun Ince and Erkan Altun fell in their fight, and many of our comrades have been wounded.

Palestine is not Separate from Rojava

The imperialist repression and plunder renders the struggles of oppressed nations, people, workers and labourers similar to each other, and collectivizes them in the Middle East, just as anywhere else. In one region of the Middle East, Rojava is the resistance of the Kurds, while in another region the resistance is that of the Palestinian people, who have been struggling for their freedom for decades. In the 1960s, the Palestinian resistance was at the centre of political and military international solidarity, and revolutionaries all over the world were in support of the Palestinian struggle. Similarly, people and revolutionaries all over the world were on the streets to show their solidarity with Kobanê on November 1st, “The day of Solidarity with Kobanê”. And the international brigade is emerging and growing within the resistance of Kobanê. Palestine and Rojava represent the will and struggle of the oppressed people of the Middle East in resistance. Our mission is to strengthen this resistance and help it to spread all over the Middle East.

We Can and Should Determine Our Own Future

The Rojava Revolution is a revolution of the people. It stands for the achievement of freedom and the right to self-determination. The resistance of Kobanê shows how this revolution will be sustained. In other words, the Kobanê Revolution and the resistance of Kobanê cannot be deepened and expanded without self-defence. This idea underlies the practice of every revolution. The Rojava Revolution, and the practices of self-defense and self-determination are the latest points the revolution of Kurdistan reached, and represent a model for the entire Middle East.

Moreover, the Rojava Revolution and the resistance of Kobanê has shown that international solidarity has to go and has gone beyond the limits of organizing protests, against the counterrevolutionary assaults of imperialist and reactionary forces. International solidarity emerged in flesh and blood in the Rojava Revolution and the resistance of Kobanê.

The Rojava Revolution has once again shown that revolutions cannot be learnt from books, and that every single revolution has its peculiar conditions and practices. Moreover, it has shown how revolutionary forces can make use of the conflicts between ruling cliques of the world, which has revealed itself as “The Third Way” in Rojava. Such a way might well be possible in any country in the Middle East, or currently in Ukraine.

The Rojava Revolution and the ongoing clashes between reactionary forces in the Middle East broaden the stage for regional revolution. It is inevitable that revolutionary and progressive forces unite in the struggle against counterrevolutionary forces. Our party has recognized this development and taken active initiative to build the Coordination of Anti-Imperialist Struggle in the Middle East, and made steps for organizing regionally. The crucial point today is to carry this struggle forward. The current conditions are appropriate more than ever. The class struggle in the Middle East imposes the common and united struggle on a regional scale of the revolutionary and communist parties. Our people demand this revolutionary intervention from us.

The Rojava Revolution is calling all progressive, revolutionary, and communist forces of the world to support the revolution actively. Every contribution to the revolution beyond verbal solidarity is crucial, and an embodiment of international solidarity and a direct sign of internalization of the revolution. In this sense, the call of the ....... to international revolutionary parties and forces for the “International Brigade” and the “Brigades of Workers” to rebuild Kobanê is of great importance.

As progressive, anti-imperialist, revolutionary, and communist forces of the Middle East, we have to come together in our struggle for freedom and democracy, with a vision of socialism against the plundering, exploitative imperialist forces and their collaborators that plunge our region into a blood bath; and we have to develop the common means and methods of struggle on a regional scale for this end.