At the Youth conference in Belgrade, commemorating the 25th anniversary of Nato Bombing Yugoslavia
Decades of occupation: Tracing NATO’s Presence in Greece and the prospects of the united anti-imperialist struggle for a common future in the Balkans
It was the 12th of March, 1947, when US President Truman announced what would come to be known as the Truman Doctrine in an address to the US Congress. The main concern raised was the imminent victory of the communists in Greece, and what that would spell for US imperialist interests in both Greece and Turkey. This was preceded by the British informing the Americans by late 1946 that they could no longer offer military and economic assistance to the right-wing royalists in Greece, and a visit from right-wing Prime Minister Tsaldaris to Washington. This was followed by the announcement of the Marshall Plan in 1948. In April 1949, the foreign ministers of the US, the UK, France, Canada, Denmark, Belgium, Norway, Italy, the Netherlands, Iceland, Luxemburg and Portugal would sign the North Atlantic Treaty in Washington, establishing NATO. Its stated purpose was clear, to act as a military implementation of the Truman Doctrine.
Greece would join NATO in February 1952, and the US would demand of the Plastiras-Venizelos government full access to the country’s airports. It would not be until after the elections of November, that the newly-formed Papagos government would “…provide the government of the USA the right to establish military aerial services and communications, in the entirety of Greece, for a transitional period of three years”. This of course would not be a short-term agreement, and the 12th of October 1953 would mark the start of the over 70-year-long presence of US troops in Greece.
Between 1959 and 1961, the first nuclear weapons would be deployed on Greek soil. The post civil war climate of Greece and the establishment of the US-imposed junta of the colonels would allow US imperialist expansion in Greece to continue unhindered for a decade. During the years of the junta and after the events of Cyprus however, popular disdain for the US would reach new highs. The anti-imperialist movement in Greece had gained huge momentum, something that was reflected in the slogans used during the Athens Polytechnic uprising, namely “USA out!” and “NATO out!”. Hence, the Greek government had to placate this sentiment, and in 1976 talks about “modernizing” the terms of the treaty of 1953 began. However, these talks remained just talks. Throughout this decade, the social democrats of PASOK in opposition critiqued the governments of Nea Dimokratia for their complicity with US demands, and gained political support through anti-US rhetoric. However, by 1981, when the social democrats would pose to become the new government, the US would come to understand that all of this was just that, rhetoric. A few days after the 1981 elections, US secretary of state Alexander Haig would openly remark that “the new socialist government of Greece does not demand the removal of US military bases and personnel, in spite of speculations which are likely linked to pre-election rhetoric”.
After a year of negotiation, the so called “renegotiation of the Greek base agreement” was signed on July 15th 1983. The agreement had key differences in its English and Greek versions. In English, it stipulated that the bases would be rendered “terminable” in 5 years, while the Greek version stated that the bases would be terminated in 5 years. This was of course no error, but a careful ploy so that the newspaper of PASOK could cite the agreement text and claim that the bases would be gone by 1988. In 1987, the Papandreou government entered in “new negotiations”. Due to the scandals of 1989, it would be the new government of Mitsotakis that would sign the “Mutual Defense Cooperation Agreement”, which would remain in effect until 2019. A supplementary agreement would be signed in 2001 in Brussels, the “Comprehensive Technical Agreement between the Hellenic Republic and the United States”, which would ensure that US military personnel cannot be tried by the Greek state.
All of this I say to illustrate both the historical and current position of Greece in relation to the west. Greece is not a typical western-European country where capitalism prevailed after WW2, nor is it a country of early-socialism which was dragged into the clutches of NATO within the last two decades by its bourgeois politicians. Since our independence from the Ottoman Empire, the essence of Greek statehood has been subservience and dependence to foreign powers. Since the end of WW2, this has taken the form of economic subservience to the EU and IMF and military subservience to the US.
Despite this, or perhaps because of this, the Greek people themselves largely hold negative views of NATO. During the bombings of Yugoslavia, the mass anti-imperialist movement forced the Greek government to abstain from participating in the bombing. Even today, when the anti-imperialist movement is weaker than it was 20 years ago, Greece consistently polls last in the percentage of people who hold positive views of NATO within the NATO member states.
Therefore, it is a paramount duty for Greek communists to strive for the country’s liberation from NATO’s clutches and the removal of all military bases. But we know that in this struggle, we are not alone. We must stand together with the people of Serbia, who directly face repression from the NATO occupation in Kosovo and Metohija today, more than two decades after NATO’s criminal bombing of Yugoslavia. We must stand together with all Yugoslavian people, who have been dragged into NATO’s web by their treacherous bourgeois politicians. Italy as well is in a similar position to Greece’s, as any thinking person understands what the nuclear weapons stationed in Ghedi and Aviano would mean in case of a nuclear exchange and the danger this puts the Italian people in. Liberating our countries from NATO is not only a requirement for revolutionary conditions to emerge, it is paramount for the very survival of our peoples, lest we see our countries succumb to a fate like Ukraine’s, the fate of a discarded former NATO puppet.
But like the NATO occupation of Greece, the brotherhood of our peoples and their united struggle also have deep historical roots. During the 18th century, revolutionary Rigas Feraios urged all people who opposed the Sultan’s rule to leave the cities and take to the mountains, where they could organize communities to resist the Ottomans. During the 19th century, many social democrat intellectuals would propose a union of Balkan states, from the proposed “Democratic Oriental Federation” in 1865 to the League for the Balkan Confederation in 1894. These were followed by the movement for the Balkan Socialist Federation, whose first conference was held in Belgrade in 1910 and its main platforms being Balkan unity and action against the impending wars. After the Great October Socialist Revolution and in its spirit, the Balkan Communist Federation was formed in 1920–1921. Due to the inherent contradictions of early-socialism that characterized the Comintern and its parties, many important issues such as the Macedonian question would remain unresolved, and the struggle for a united Balkan federation would ultimately cease with the start of the Informbiro period. Despite this, the vision of our comrades for a united struggle of the Balkan people is very much alive.
It is our task to bring this struggle to a victorious conclusion. It is our task to free the Balkans from imperialist occupation. It is our task to create the conditions for the next wave of socialist revolutions.
Down with Euro-atlantic imperialism!
Long live the anti-imperialist struggle of our peoples!
