russia

‘Putin’s terror affects everyone’: anarchists join Ukraine’s war effort

from The Guardian

Activists from Kyiv and around world join state forces in fight against totalitarianism

In an unnamed basement bar in central Kyiv, Ukrainian anarchists have created a headquarters where they gather supplies to send to their peers on the frontlines and welcome anarchists from abroad who have come to fight.

Militant group of anarcho-communists sabotages railroad track [Russia]

via Enough14

We, the Militant Anarcho-Communist Organization, have carried out a sabotage operation on the railroad track at coordinates 56 16’44″N 38 12’40.5″E on a sidetrack leading to a military facility of the 12th Main Directorate of the Russian Ministry of Defense.

Misconceptions about imperialism, and anarchist collective traumas

from avtonom Submitted by Антти Раутиайнен on 26 May, 2022 - 14:33

Ever since the beginning of the Russian invasion against Ukraine, we have seen statements by anarchists, communists and leftists not from Ukraine, on how Ukrainian anarchists, communists and leftists should not defend themselves against attack of Putin, but lay down their arms and flee instead.

Farewell to Life, Farewell to Love… Ukraine, War and Self-Organisation

from ddt21.noblogs.org by Tristan Leoni, May 8, 2022.

What is to be done… under the bombing?

We experience neither the life of the Ukrainians, nor the situation of anarchists or communists living in Ukraine. We do not know what must be done there, we cannot pass judgement on their activity, because, whatever we think, we do not know how we would react in their place. With historical hindsight, it may seem easy to assess a situation because we know how it unfolded and ended. But it is truly impossible to know what “internationalist” stand we would have taken in August 1914 or June 1940. That said, should our Ukrainian comrades be immune from criticism just because they are the ones involved ? What they do is of course their own concern; but the way they understand and justify their activity, their discourse which is echoed abroad by other groups, that at the very least warrants discussion.

After the war. May declaration of anarchists from Ukraine

via libcom

Black Flag militants near the new bus obtained thanks to support of audience. We have translated their preliminary conclusions from the past two and a half months of this madness. Their earlier activity we covered in this and this materials. All photos are taken from their Telegram channel. Also please join our fundraising for work on restoration of the city social fabric and help to civilian residents of destroyed Kharkiv.

A-ryhmä opposes Finland joining NATO

A-ryhmä opposes Finland joining NATO

by A-ryhmä submitted to Anarchist News by anon

The majority of the Finnish elite have supported the idea of Finland joining NATO for a long time already. After Russia's attack to Ukraine, support of the prospect has risen throughout the entire population due to fear of war. The elite wants to use this situation as an opportunity to submit a membership application to NATO. It is understandable that Putin's hostile policies cause fear and a counter reaction, but Putin is not going to attack Finland. Putin already imagines himself to be surrounded by enemies. Therefore, a military alliance opposing him expanding to the Russian border is not necessarily a punishment, but rather a validation of his deluded worldview. Applying for a NATO membership is about highly theoretical long-term threats, but on a long time span, anything can happen. For example, the US could turn into a dictatorship.

Position on our solidarity work in Ukraine

from Anarchist Black Cross Dresden

A few days before the start of the war of aggression, we exchanged views with comrades from Ukraine, among others. What to do in case of war? For us it was clear that we would answer the call for help of our friends. We saw our possibilities of support very concretely in starting a fundraising campaign to support Operation Solidarity directly in Ukraine and people on the run outside. It was clear to us that there were activists who were already planning to stay and fight in Ukraine. With this, we clearly positioned ourselves and were also criticized for it. Therefore, in the following text we would shortly like to explain why we are doing what we are doing.

“Now it’s definitely time to act”– interview with a member of the Anti-Authoritarian Squad

from pramen

After the war began, many of our comrades in Kiev became either volunteers or members of the Anti-Authoritarian Squad within the Territorial Defense. Now the squad is mainly engaged in training and guard duty. When the enemy was still in the Kyiv region, the guys went to frontline positions to help the Ukrainian Armed Forces (AFU) with surveillance from drones, participated in transporting refugees through the green corridor, and went out on calls from citizens about sabotage groups.

War diary from Ukraine [Part 1]: Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

via Enough14

Comrades from the Enough 14 and Cars of Hope collectives were in Ukraine. Here are some first impressions by Riot Turtle.

Much is happening under the radar here, partly because although the Kremlin narrative about “denazification” is bullshit, there are very real problems with fascists. Anarchist comrades are also not appreciated by the Ukrainian state. The cooperation between cops and fascists is sometimes similar to the situation in Germany. They are well connected with each other.

Another reply on Ukraine, war and class war

from avtonom Submitted by mooncalf on 14 May, 2022

A continuation of a debate over anarchist positions on Ukraine that previously ran on It's Going Down:

It’s good to see that my article on Ukraine and anti-war/class war positions has provoked a few responses, and I hope that discussion will continue elsewhere. By this point, the most important arguments have probably been made, so there’s a danger that diminishing returns and petty point-scoring might set in; but for what it’s worth, here’s a few comments on the two responses.

Moscow Anarchist Black Cross updates, May 2022

Anti-war sticker in Russia

from avtonom

Possibilities to protest in Russia were already significantly limited before the pandemic, and during the last two years, from March 2020 to Russian attack to Ukraine, street demonstrations have been banned with the pretext of the Covid Pandemic. People were demonstrating persecutions against opposition leader Alexey Navalnyi, and in few other cases, but these ended in massive arrests. But still, there was freedom of speech in social networks, some relatively free medias remained, authorities were making concessions with some local conflicts, such as defence of local green areas from forest clearance. 

"In the Spirit of Sholem Schwarzbard" - Addressing Confusion about the War in Ukraine

submitted by anon, original source: avtonom

A text recently appeared on It’s Going Down decrying support for anarchists in Ukraine who are fighting against the Russian army. Entitled “No War but the Class War,” it begins with a quotation from Rosa Luxemburg and concludes with a dedication: “In the spirit of Sholem Schwarzbard.” These two historical figures—a Jewish Marxist from Poland, active in Germany, and a Jewish anarchist from Ukraine, active in France—are conscripted to legitimize the authors’ polemic.

A sidenote to one statement

from Anarchistická Federace

The Committee on Relations of the Internationale of Anarchist Federations (CRIFA), which met in Marseille on 19-20 March, discussed, among other things, matters relating to the ongoing war in Ukraine. Although there are different views among the member federations on some points, they agreed to continue the discussion. The debate resulted in common positions which were summarised in a compromise statement entitled "Against war, for global solidarity" (full text at the end of this article).

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