Hello comrades, I am from OKDE Spartakos, Greece. OKDE Spartakos participates in the anti-capitalist front of ANTARSYA. Our members actively engage in Anti-War Action Greece as well as in March to Gaza Greece, having also participated in the recent Global Sumud Flotilla mission.
1. First, I want to highlight two essential aspects of Greek capitalism’s orientations
a. Greek capitalism is oriented towards the West
This orientation historically determines (ever since the foundation of the Greek state) the policy of the ruling class in Greece. It is the doctrine “we belong to the West.” Greek capitalism seeks to belong to this camp on all levels: political, economic, geostrategic, institutional, and cultural. Consequently:
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The Greek state participates in all Western imperialist organizations: NATO, OECD, IMF, World Bank, WTO, the EU since 1981, and the eurozone since 2001.
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The political system, institutions, and economy are fully oriented toward and dependent on the West— relying economically on the EU and militarily on the USA.
This political choice is unchallenged by all factions of the Greek ruling class. It was not challenged, even after the recent bankruptcy of the Greek economy, which led to a social catastrophe and political crisis unprecedented for a period of peace.
For the Greek ruling class, participation in the EU and the eurozone is non-negotiable, while at the same time, Greece is a granted ally of the US in the region. This has been stated and implemented by all governments in recent decades without exception, and it is supported by the vast majority of the country’s parliamentary parties.
Therefore, the steadfast support for Israel will continue; therefore, the support for Kyiv will remain; therefore, the participation of the Greek army in the Middle East will continue (Patriot missiles in Saudi Arabia, frigates in the Red Sea, aircraft and warships in Cyprus, etc).
Therefore, also, unhindered operation of US military bases will continue. At the top of the list is the Souda naval and air base in Crete, the only one in the region capable of docking even the largest nuclear-powered aircraft carriers. Second on the list is the port of Alexandroupolis and the military base granted there, through which large quantities of weaponry were transferred to the regime in Kyiv, bypassing the Bosporus when the latter was closed regarding the transport of military equipment by the Turkish government precisely due to the war.
b. The threat from the East doctrine (that goes for Turkyie)
The historical depth characterizing the rivalry between the ruling classes of these two countries is well known in both Greece and Turkey. It began already with the formation of the Greek state and has since then led to countless confrontations, several of which escalated into military conflicts. In our modern history, the peoples, the working classes, and the poor popular strata in both countries have paid and continue to pay for this rivalry with a lot of sweat, millions of refugees, and tens of thousands of war casualties.
The Greek-Turkish rivalry is being recast and updated against the backdrop of escalating rivalries.
On a global level between the US and China. On a European level between the EU and Russia, centered around the war in Ukraine. In the realignment of balances in Western Asia and the Middle East, centered so far on Israel’s expansionist and genocidal wars, the control of energy, and the new competitive economic corridors being designed (the Silk Road under China’s control, the Belt and Road Initiative, on one hand, and the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor -IMEC on the other).
The Greek-Turkish rivalry is also being reshaped by the development of productive forces and technology, which now permit economic exploitation of maritime areas that, until a few decades ago, held scarce economic interest. This includes drilling capabilities at greater depths, the installation of offshore wind farms, the construction of underwater oil and gas pipelines, and the laying of electricity and digital data cables connecting Europe, Asia, and Africa.
2. The goals of Greek capitalism
The general goal of Greek capitalism is to exclusively assume the role of the bastion and custodian of Western imperialism’s interests in the region, having fully aligned its own interests with those of the West.
Within this framework, it attempts to build a series of alliances with reactionary regimes—always within the boundaries set by the imperialists in the region—such as with the dictatorial regime of Egypt, the monarchy of Saudi Arabia, the collaborationist government of Lebanon, etc.
In particular, significant is the reactionary Greece-Cyprus-Israel axis under US hegemony. This axis is continuously deepening and acquiring a more strategic character. Their multi-layered collaboration spans the economic, political, and military spheres, while expanding into technology, cybersecurity, and innovation—most recently extending into energy research and new technologies.
Regarding the competition with Turkish capitalism, Greek capitalism has formulated a framework of claims— which are represented, at least domestically, as its legitimate and almost self-evident rights:
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Extension of territorial waters and airspace to 12 nautical miles, which means control over maritime and air traffic in the Aegean.
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Determination of the Greek EEZ (Exclusive Economic Zone) with full effect given to Greek islands, extending it to such a degree (due to Kastellorizo) that it touches the EEZ of the Greek Cypriot state, which qualitatively upgrades the role of the Greek state in the Eastern Mediterranean.
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Expansion of the vertical corridor that starts from the port of Alexandroupolis and reaches Northern Europe (as mentioned before, this corridor currently functions only for the transport of military equipment) through the construction of a natural gas pipeline and the upgrading of road and rail axes for the transport of commodities, bypassing the Bosporus straits.
3. Military spending, militarism
In support of these claims, the Greek state consistently ranks near the top of NATO countries in terms of military and defense spending—exceeding 3% of GDP—while, unsurprisingly, ranking near the bottom regarding expenditure on the welfare state, healthcare, and education.
It is implementing a massive military armament program exceeding 25 billion euros with a horizon up to 2036. New weapons have been ordered and received (frigates, Rafale and F-35 jets, etc.), …older ones are being upgraded (F-16s, MEKO frigates), while additional procurements are in the pipeline, including an anti-missile dome from Israel valued at over 3 billion euros.
Within the framework of “ReArm Europe,” a series of investments are being deployed to boost defense production.
Changes are being made to military service to increase the number of those serving in the armed forces (the voluntary—in its first phase—conscription of women has begun, plans for an active and combat-ready reserve of 150.000 men modelled on the Israeli army, an increase in the duration of military service, a drastic reduction in draft evasion, etc). Greece already ranks first among NATO countries in terms of military personnel relative to its population, boasting more than 11 service members per 1,000 inhabitants.
The militarisation of the islands is being promoted: new modern weapons, as well as the new anti-missile shield. The move to install Patriot missiles in Karpathos under the pretext of protection from Iranian attacks was clearly in this direction.
4. Conclusions
Ongoing mobilisations are taking place in Greece against this policy, against foreign military bases, and especially against the alliance with Israel, standing in full solidarity with the Palestinian resistance.
For the Greek ruling class and its political staff, the rivalry with Turkish capitalism serves as a crucial multi-tool for the ideological and political manipulation of the Greek working class, dividing her among Christian and non- Christian and also migrants and refugees.
The “threat from the East” doctrine constitutes a historical ideological and political investment for the Greek bourgeoisie. This propaganda is served by all bourgeois political parties, to which all reformist-workers’ parties, including historical workers’ parties, have capitulated to—if not actively sought to outbid in reproducing.
It also serves as a permanent argument—the strongest argument—to justify almost all the political choices of the Greek bourgeoisie: “we must buy weapons to face Turkey”, “we must be on good terms with the imperialists to face Turkey”, “we may disagree with the genocide by the Zionists, but we must be careful with Israel and not break off our relations because it is a powerful ally and a rival of Turkey in the region”, etc.
We assume that something similar is also happening in Turkyie.
We cannot predict the future with precision. However, it would be an unforgivable mistake not to learn from history—not to sound the alarm about the war preparations taking place, or to fail to warn our peoples by all means about the danger of a new military conflict when the fire of war and imperialist interventions is already burning and spreading in our region.
The heroic struggle of the Palestinians, which feeds the massive solidarity movement, has created cracks in the consciousness of broad strata and delegitimised mainstream policy among large sections of the Greek people, the working class, and the youth.
However, on the critical issue of the Greek-Turkish rivalry, we are far behind. Initiatives and joint actions need to be undertaken to bring Greek and Turkish militants closer together; joint campaigns should be planned in both countries to strengthen our common internationalist movement.
The anti-war movement, the struggle against imperialist interventions, the struggle against NATO and foreign military bases, the solidarity movement with resistance in Palestine and the national liberation struggle of the Palestinians, the fight for a free – independent – democratic Palestine state from the river to the see, provide a fertile ground to take steps toward strengthening the internationalist bonds between peoples, and especially between working classes, also between our two countries.
We attend the Anti-imperialist Peace Summit here in Istanbul to strengthen the internationalist dimension of our movement, build international links and common actions, and construct strong, joint relationships with anti-war movements from Turkey to confront the common threat of the Greek-Turkish rivalry against the working class in both our countries.
Thank you for the invitation and your attention
