this post was submitted on 09 Dec 2024
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Welcome again to everybody. Make yourself at home. In the time-honoured tradition of our group, here is the weekly discussion thread.

On Sunday last week, Damascus fell to Salafi terrorists and other imperialist-aligned forces. Regardless of the flaws of the ousted government, this is a horrible situation for the Syrian proletariat as well as for the people of Palestine, Lebanon and others. We can only hope for the perseverance of the Syrian workers and the remaining anti-colonial resistance.

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[–] multitotal@lemmygrad.ml -3 points 1 week ago (3 children)

Why are Russia, China, the Taliban worthy of "critical support", but Rojava isn't? US trade with China amounts to a total of some $50-60 Billion a year. Russia sells uranium to the US.

What is Rojava's sin? Surviving with the help of the US. The US gave military equipment to the Soviet Union, too, when they were fighting Nazis. They were even allies for a while.

Rojava is AES in the Middle East. They are the only socialist entity in all of Middle East.

Tin-foil hat mode: This Rojava hate is not organic. I mean you had Trotskyists joining ISIS to fight against the US, maybe this hate comes from them? I dunno. I just know the hate is unreasonable and certainly not in proportion to the "crime".

[–] GrainEater@lemmygrad.ml 16 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (1 children)

Trade is not the same thing as helping the US steal oil. The people in Rojava were and are in an unenviable position and it may deserve critical support in the future compared to the other imperialist collaborators in the region, but it's certainly not AES

[–] multitotal@lemmygrad.ml -1 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Trade is not the same thing as helping the US steal oil

Except the US didn't "steal" any oil. The oil extracted in Rojava was sold to the Syrian government and Iraq. Look at the map of pipelines in Syria. The US didn't carry it away in a big bucket.

Why does Rojava control those oil fields? Because they took them from ISIS, they weren't under the control of the Syrian govt. at the time.

So yeah, SDF stole the oil... from ISIS. The pil profits went to Rojava, the US didn't see a dollar from it.

and destabilize the Syrian government.

How did they do that? By existing? By fighting ISIS in the northeast? By cooperating with the SAA in fighting the Turkish incursion into Syria?

It wasn't SDF that deposed Assad, it was HTS (and SNA). SDF is actually fighting the Turkey-backed SNA right now, as the SNA wants to take over Manbij.

[–] GrainEater@lemmygrad.ml 18 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (1 children)

The US absolutely did steal enormous amounts of oil, which contributed to the destabilization of the Syrian government and the suffering of the Syrian people, especially considering the crippling sanctions

[–] bennieandthez@lemmygrad.ml 15 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Rojava is on the side of the US empire.

[–] multitotal@lemmygrad.ml -2 points 1 week ago (1 children)
[–] bennieandthez@lemmygrad.ml 13 points 1 week ago (1 children)

in the global class war, they served the purpose of desestabilizing Syria, which like it or not was struggling against US imperialism.

[–] multitotal@lemmygrad.ml -5 points 1 week ago (1 children)

But they didn't destabilise Syria. They fought ISIS who threatened their existance. They created an autonomous region to govern themselves because there was no SAA or Syrian government presence. SAA was not able to defend people in that region from ISIS.

DAANES (they were formerly AANES) had always stated that their goal is to preserve the integrity and sovereignty of Syria. They wanted to be an autonomous region under the Syrian constitution. They didn't want to separate or declare independence.

Syrian government and SDF were in negotiations (slow and rocky) but they did have a dialogue and limited cooperation.

[–] bennieandthez@lemmygrad.ml 13 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (1 children)

As graineater said, they collaborated with the US to steal Syria's oil. This group is completely backed by the US and wouldn't exist without their support, like it can't get more blatantly obvious.

Their internal policies are irrelevant, they are US stooges and their funds come from imperialism.

[–] multitotal@lemmygrad.ml 0 points 1 week ago (2 children)

So what should happen to Rojava and the Kurds and minorities in it? If DAANES disappears, the HTS and SNA will genocide/ethnically cleanse the Kurds.

What would be the communist and anti-imperialist thing to do in their situation?

[–] bennieandthez@lemmygrad.ml 7 points 1 week ago (1 children)

What would be the communist and anti-imperialist thing to do in their situation?

Not doing the US dirty work?

Far from being based on a single ‘relation of coercion’, the world capitalist system is a tangle of multiple and contradictory ‘relations of coercion’. What determines the ultimate location of an individual (and group) in the camp of the ‘oppressor’ or of the ‘oppressed’ is the hierarchical ordering of these social relations in accordance with their political and social relevance in a determinate concrete situation, on the one hand, and the political choice of the single individual (or group), on the other. - Domenico Losurdo on Class Struggle.

[–] multitotal@lemmygrad.ml -2 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Not doing the US dirty work?

And that means not defending themselves against ISIS.

Is ideological purity more important than survival?

[–] bennieandthez@lemmygrad.ml 5 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (1 children)

The dichotomy between nations with a rich history and historyless ‘small states’ was now replaced by that between nations and nationalities. The picture is not much clearer as a consequence. But the theoretical and political crux emerges unequivocally: affirmation of the principle of self-determination does not necessarily entail support for the agitation of ‘small states’ or ‘nationalities’. Engels’ most questionable, or even utterly unacceptable, pages are precisely those that raise a problem of great contemporary relevance: there are countless separatist movements instrumentally encouraged or supported by great powers which are protagonists of national oppression on a large scale. It may even turn out that recognizing a particular people’s self-determination strengthens the main enemy of the liberation movement of oppressed peoples as a whole. We must not lose sight of the conflict of liberties that can arise. In other words, the mutilation of class struggles must be rejected. But that does not mean ignoring the problem whereby a historical situation (especially a major historical crisis) can require a ranking of class struggles.

why are you talking about "ideological purity" ? I don't support US stooges, regardless of their ideology, this does not mean i support ISIS either which is also an US stooge, they very well could be getting training in the US bases the SDF hosts or getting weapons through them.

[–] multitotal@lemmygrad.ml -2 points 1 week ago (1 children)

they very well could be getting training in the US bases the SDF hosts or getting weapons through them.

You can't just say things like that without evidence. If you claim ISIS is training on DAANES territory, then you should back that claim up.

I have a problem with the "US stooge" label. We can recognise Rojava cooperates with the US, we can say they receive help, money, training, weapons... but we don't have to rob Rojava of agency. Why can't cooperation with the US be a temporary, necessary measure on their part, rather than an essential quality?

[–] bennieandthez@lemmygrad.ml 3 points 1 week ago (1 children)

I have red lines, and working with the US to destabilize a country is one of them. If that's not a red line for you, what is?

[–] multitotal@lemmygrad.ml 0 points 1 week ago

You have to first realise that "red lines, and working with the US to destabilize a country is one of them." is a construct. Because for example my construction of what's happening over there is not the same as yours. You say "working with the US to destabilise a country" and I say that the country was already destabilised, and that the people of Rojava saw an opportunity.

I don't like the implication that Kurds have no agency. They do and they choose to work with the US instead of the alternative of being genocided.

[–] Commiejones@lemmygrad.ml 2 points 1 week ago

the HTS and SNA will genocide/ethnically cleanse the Kurds.

Which is exactly what the usa wants to happen. This is exactly why the usa supported both ISIS, and the SDF. The suffering is their goal. Keep everyone fighting so they can keep oil prices low.

What would be the communist and anti-imperialist thing to do in their situation?

Revolutionary defeatism. Don't pick any side in the fight between the imperialists and the local bourgeois ruling class. Wait to see if the local government will fail while organizing a communist (not ethnic or religious) resistance to whom ever wins the fight. Save energy to fight when the victor is weakest instead of weakening themselves fighting for promises from the great satan that will undoubtibly be broken.

[–] maysaloon@lemmygrad.ml 2 points 1 week ago

Rojava served their US-requested role of suffocating Syria and paving the way for the fall of Assad regime and victory of HTS. Rojava's role was to hold the longest frontline with the fallen regime's forces, be a host for US military bases and a launchpad for US attacks on Syrian gov forces, and most importantly hoard Syria's most viral resources such as oil, wheat and drinking water (which also yields electric power).

When HTS launched their offensive, Rojava attacked Syrian government forces in Deir Ezzor, only to retreat a week later and hand it over to HTS.

Watch my words, the US will abandon Rojava in 2025 now that their job is done, and you will see that they were nothing but useful idiots for the empire.