On 24 February 2025, the full scale invasion of Ukraine by Russia enters its fourth year. Russia is performing a genocidal war against the Ukrainian population, trying to claim as much territory as possible. After three years of war, there is a devastating situation with thousands of dead and injured, millions displaced or living under Russian occupation, hundreds of destroyed Ukrainian cities, huge regions of polluted and mined land.
Since the beginning, Russia had launched a propaganda campaign inside and outside the country to promote and justify this war. The Russian state is mobilising people from the indigenous population in the eastern Russia and is contracting mercenaries in various countries, such as Nepal, India, Yemen. North Korea is now officialy part of Russian war effort in Ukraine.
We are in deep grief of all the death and devastation. We are in solidarity with the people in Ukraine, with our friends and comrades. And we truly want this war to end!
Pacifism
Since the beginning of the full scale invasion a lot of people have been calling for peace and continue to do so, especially during election times. But who are these people, calling for peace out of their comfortable position in Germany? What does this mean? At whose expense these people are demanding for “peace”?
Pacifism is a mindset, which opposes violence, war and militarism. People call Ukraine to surrender. For them, the right to self-defense does not exist, there is no right to defend freedom and self-determination. Most of the people taking this stance, are people who are not affected by the war. A lot of people who call for peace care less for the people in Ukraine than for their own well-being.
Pacifism ranges from anarchists to fascists, from left to right. In its current election campaign, AfD presents itself as pacifist in the question of the Russian war in Ukraine. At the same time, they call for more and more violence against migrants at the borders and further militarization of Germany. They do have a positive affiliation with Putin and Russia because they share the same conservative ideas about family, gender, nation and culture.
Others, like Sahra Wagenknecht, are calling for peace, naming NATO, US and the West the initiators of this war, while keeping strong ties with Putin. They are asking for peace under Russian conditions.
And there are also people who also identify NATO, US and the West as the main reason for this war, but don’t like Putin. A lot of leftists and anarchists argue with some general abstract – and quite naive – understanding of pacifism. This, in our view doesn’t work politically. Every war is different and needs a different approach and we can’t tell the people, getting attacked how to react while we can’t offer anything. In many discussions people in Ukraine are not even considered a subject in the war question.
The price for indecisiveness
The other side of the political response in Germany to the war came from the established parties. We all still remember these shamefull 5000 helmets sent to Ukraine by the German state. The initial step wasn’t to support Ukraine in its effort to defend itself, but the increase of the military budget – the biggest militarist spending in Germany for decades! They seized the opportunity for a multi-billion military build-up to strengthen Germany’s position of power in Europe. Further steps have not been characterized by a clear support for the Ukrainian people, but by political manoeuvring, with mostly abstract promises and Ukraine in a beggar’s position. And finally, there was Bundeskanzler Scholz, blocking the last military support package for Ukraine because of the upcoming elections.
Russian imperialism is widly underestimated and it’s the Ukrainian people who are currently paying the prize for the indecisive Western politics, just like the people did in Syria. And while people in Ukraine suffer, Russia stays in a pretty good state, getting ready for further military approaches and imperialist moves, while oil and gas continues to flow around the globe.
Rise of authoritarianism and fascism
With the increasing climate and economical crises and the ongoing war, support for authoritarian ideas is growing all around the world and fascism is on the rise. In Germany, Putin is interfering in the elections and general politics with massive disinformation campaigns. At the same time, Elon Musk is promoting AFD as the only solution and supports it with a lot of money. Tech-Oligarchs and authoritarian leaders are working hand in hand to gain influence and control. This poses a major threat to the relative personal and collective freedoms and more or less social security achieved through decades of struggle by labour, anti-racist and feminist movements – to name but a few -, even if the so-called democratic world likes to claim them for itself. These processes are taking place in many countries.
With the increase of those pro-Russian imperialist fascist ideas, the support of the people in Ukraine is at stake. That’s why we do need an even stronger grassroots solidarity to not let fascism prevail. There are no easy solutions for such complex power games. But we can get connected to the people in Ukraine and listen. We can get organized and support directly.
Our fight against militarism in Europe means that we have to defeat Russia, because it is one of the strongest forces feeding militarism in the region.