(Declaration of the Secretariat of the Socialist Left Movement – MES/PSOL)

The escalation of the Russian military invasion in Ukraine already makes evident Vladimir Putin’s real intentions: to promote an imperialist war for the annexation of territories and the re-establishment of a puppet regime of Russia like the one that controlled the country before 2014. Putin does not accept the self-determination of the Ukrainian people and has already publicly declared himself against an independent state, using war to assert his imperialist interests in the region and repeating the same violence applied in the invasion of Georgia and in the collaboration with the repression promoted by the dictatorships of Belarus and Kazakhstan against their own peoples.

This military action responds to the internal needs of Putin, who is facing increasing questioning from the Russian people against his anti-democratic rule and a deep economic and social crisis that increases inequality in the country. Serving the interests of Russian capitalists – who gained their wealth through the mafia privatizations developed after the capitalist restoration – Putin has openly declared himself against Lenin’s position on the self-determination of the then Soviet republics and bases his position on the Grand-Russian chauvinism deeply encouraged by the Tsarist regime and fought by the Bolsheviks.

The maintenance of NATO after the end of the Cold War and its expansion to the East demonstrates the cynical position of US imperialism, which for more than three decades has advanced against the interests of the peoples of Eastern Europe by stimulating arms escalation and war, and for this reason we vehemently defend the end of NATO. However, this situation cannot ignore the fact that today it is Russia that is bombing and invading Ukraine, nor can it serve as a justification for the violence of Russian imperialism against the Ukrainian people. Likewise, nothing can justify the repression and arrests of Russians who are courageously demonstrating for peace in Moscow, St. Petersburg and other cities.

Internationalists around the world must not hesitate at this moment! We must express our solidarity with the Ukrainian people and Russians who are fighting for peace! To materialize this solidarity it is essential to develop a world campaign against the Russian invasion, gathering personalities, parties and social movements that do not accept Putin’s criminal war or the fallacies of NATO and Western imperialism. To this end, we call for the construction of a virtual international act “For the withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukraine!” This call is made especially to the Trotskyist movement, present in numerous processes of struggle in the world and which, as a rule, is in the front line of proletarian internationalism demanding an end to the Russian attack on Ukraine, without ever ceasing to denounce the imperial policy of NATO.

End of the Russian invasion of Ukraine!
Self-determination for the Ukrainian people!
Freedom for Russian pacifists!
Against the disputing imperialisms!
Build an international campaign for peace!