The Socialist State in Latvia: From the revolutionary triumph to the drama of dissolution

 By Vladimir Frolov*

Latvia has a special place in the history of the revolutionary movement and the socialist construction in Russia, during the 20th century. At the end of the 19th century, the rapid development of capitalism was marked in the Governorates of Livonia and Courland, in the Russian Empire (today parts of modern Latvia). 

Latvia’s population was only equal to 1.5% of the total population of the Russian Empire, while the 5.5% of the total industrial products were produced in Latvia. 62,300 workers were employed in Latvia’s heavy industry. 

German Election 2025: Statement by Communist Party of Turkey (TKP) Organization in Germany

Statement of the TKP Organization in Germany on the upcoming German Federal Election (Bundestagswahl) which is due to be held on 23 February 2025:

Once again, the February elections are being presented as the ‘most important’ ones—a narrative designed to obscure the lack of real choice for the working class. Not only German institutions and organisations, but also many who claim to represent the Turkish community in Germany are calling on people to vote together against the AfD and for democracy.

80 years since the disgraceful Varkiza Agreement

The signing of the Varkiza Agreement, 12 February 1945

On this day, February 12, 1945, the negotiations between the representatives of EAM and the Plastiras government were concluded and the unacceptable Varkiza Agreement was signed.

In the negotiations, the EAM delegation consisted of G. Siantos (Secretary of the CC of the Communist Party of Greece (KKE) and head of the delegation), M. Partsalidis (Secretary of the CC of EAM) and l. Tsirimokos (General Secretary of the Union of People's Democracy party). The government was represented by I. Sofianopoulos (Minister of Foreign Affairs), P. Rallis (Minister of Interior) and Ioannis Makropoulos (Minister of Agriculture).

 

Communist Front of Italy: On the nationalist, anti-communist state propaganda of the "foibe massacre"

The Communist Front of Italy (Fronte Comunista) published a statement on the occasion of the February 10 "Remembrance Day" - established by the Italian government - for the so-called Foibe massacre and the exodus of Italians from the territories of Istria, Fiume and Dalmatia:

"The establishment of February 10 as “Remembrance Day” represents the elevation of fascist propaganda to the level of state ideology, with a nationalist, anti-communist and revisionist function.

South African communists blast Trump's imperialist agenda: "We will not bow to imperialist threats"

In a statement issued on 6 February 2025, the South African Communist Party (SACP) condemns U.S President Donald Trump's threats against South Africa and defends the country's national sovereignty. 

The statement reads:

"The South African Communist Party (SACP) unequivocally condemns the right-wing conservative President of the United States, Donald Trump, in the strongest possible terms. We reject his imperialist agenda and the entire United States imperialism and its extension to our country with the contempt it deserves.

On imperialism and the current situation in the world

By Andreas Sörensen

The development in the world the past year has sharpened the contradictions inherent within the imperialist system and has thus also accentuated the need for a deepened analysis of the mechanisms that push the development forward.

To be able to do this, this presentation will focus on the analysis presented by Lenin in his pamphlet Imperialism as the Highest Stage of Capitalism. Here, he explored the mechanisms that decided and decide the development of international capitalism. In the course of this article, the mechanisms and features that he identified will be discussed, and light will be shed on problematic approaches that readers take to Lenin.

Communist Workers’ Platform USA: The Class Struggle in America and the Communist Strategy

Below you can read an interesting contribution of the Communist Workers’ Platform USA to the discussion of the communist parties and organizations of the Americas on December 22, 2024:

Section 1: Brief Overview of the Labor Movement in the Americas

The class-oriented trade movement in the Americas is largely fractured and disjointed. In the main, there is a very weak true class-based and revolutionary trade unionism, and the lack of their independence as fighting organizations of the working class. 

Israeli communists denounce Trump's plan for Gaza: "It's a crime against humanity and a serious violation of international law"

The Democratic Front for Peace and Equality (Hadash) and the Communist Party of Israel (CPI) rejected, Wednesday, Feb 5, calls for displacement of the Palestinian people and annexation of Gaza by the US or Israel.

In a communique they warned of their dangers and disastrous repercussions on the conflict arena, the countries of the region and the world, and which affirmed their adherence to the just and legitimate rights of the Palestinian people, foremost of which is the embodiment of the Palestinian state on the ground with East Jerusalem as its capital, in implementation of the principle of the two-state solution.

Communist Party of Turkey: Ahmed Al-Shara is an ISIS remnant and a war criminal

Al-Shara with Erdogan in Ankara, 4/2/2025

In a statement issued on Tuesday 4 February, the Communist Party of Turkey (TKP) refers to the visit of former ISIS member and current leader of Syria Ahmed Al-Shara in Ankara, where he met with President Rejep Tayyip Erdogan: 

"Al-Shara, who was put in charge of Syria after it was destroyed by an international operation, with the collaboration of the US, UK and Israel, is visiting Turkey. This jihadist, remnant of ISIS, is meeting with Erdoğan today. 

Vietnam's Communist Party marks 95th anniversary

The 3rd of February marked the 95th founding anniversary of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV), a party with a glorious and important history of struggles.

"Over the past 95 years, our Party – the vanguard of the working class, the people, and the Vietnamese nation – has led the country through countless hardships and challenges to obtain great victories and achievements, leaving a lasting imprint on the nation's glorious history", the Party's General Secretary To Lam underlined in a recent article. 

Communist Party of Canada: Canadian sovereignty and independence is seriously threatened by Trump

In a statement, the Central Executive Committee of the Communist Party of Canada (Parti Communiste du Canada) stresses out:

The Ipsos poll taken immediately following Trudeau’s announcement that he would be stepping down as Prime Minister and Liberal Party leader showed that public support for the Liberal Party remained unchanged at 20% with or without Trudeau at the helm.

Jihadist Syrian government bans the Communist Party

Archive Photo

In a meeting held on January 29, the new jihadist government of Syria under Islamist Ahmed al-Sharaa (formerly Al-Jolani) decided to ban the activities of parties that participated in the so-called National Progressive Front, including the Communist Party of Syria. 

The activity of Syrian communists goes back to the 1920s with the foundation of the Syrian-Lebanese Communist Party in 1924. Despite its internal splits and divisions, the Communist Party had always been a progressive and democratic force, struggling for the rights of the Syrian people. 

Trump Uses Religion to Defeat Those Who Oppose Him

By Nathan Richardson*

In recent years, the political landscape in the U.S. has seen a marked shift toward religious extremism, particularly among right-wing factions. This shift is exemplified by Trump's rhetoric and policies that cater to evangelical Christians and other conservative religious groups. The embrace of religious nationalism is not merely a cultural phenomenon; it represents a calculated strategy by the Republican Party to consolidate power by appealing to a base that feels increasingly marginalized in a rapidly changing society. 

Communist Party of Mexico criticizes Sheinbaum government, plans to create an electoral platform

The Communist Party of Mexico (PCM) announced the formation of an electoral platform under the name “Communist Platform of Mexico” (Plataforma Comunista de Mexico), under which it aspires to participate in the 2027 and 2030 elections. The decision was taken recently, during the VI Plenary Session of the Party's Central Committee ( Read here the full statement of the PCM ) which discussed and evaluated the domestic and international political developments, the rights of the Mexican working class and the PCM's action plan for 2025. 

 

Hadash rejects Trump-Netanyahu plans on forced displacement of Palestinians from Gaza

US President Donald Trump doubles down on his desire for forced displacement of Palestinians from Gaza to Egypt. 

 

Trump tells reporters Monday, Jan 27 aboard Air Force One, “When you look at the Gaza Strip, it’s been hell for so many years… There have been various civilizations on that strip. It didn’t start here. It started thousands of years before, and there’s always been violence associated with it. You could get people living in areas that are a lot safer and maybe a lot better and maybe a lot more comfortable”.

 

European Communist Action meeting in Istanbul: Statement on the developments in the Middle East

The European Communist Action convened in Istanbul on January 19, 2025, hosted by the Communist Party of Turkey (TKP).

The parties participating in the meeting organized under the title “Developments in the Middle East We strengthen our solidarity with the peoples of Palestine, Lebanon and Syria” exchanged ideas on the developments in the Middle East.

KKE's leader Koutsoumbas on the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz by the Red Army

In a statement concerning the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau by the Soviet Red Army in 1945, the General Secretary of the CC of the Communist Party of Greece, Dimitris Koutsoumbas, stresses out:

"The Holocaust of the Jews is a timeless reminder of the true face of the rotten capitalist exploitative system and the criminal nature of Nazism - fascism that it engenders. 

Elon Musk and the Dictatorship of the Capital

 By Nikos Mottas

“Fascism can be combated as capitalism alone, as the nakedest, most shameless, most oppressive, and most treacherous form of capitalism. Those who are against Fascism without being against capitalism, who lament over the barbarism that comes out of barbarism, are like people who wish to eat their veal without slaughtering the calf. They are willing to eat the calf, but they dislike the sight of blood”. 

Gaza: By whatever name you call It – Is Genocide!

By Avishai Erlich*

The Lancet, the world’s leading medical journal, published the results of a study by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) claiming that the figures published by the Hamas Ministry of Health on the deaths in Gaza are biased downwards. 

The real number of Palestinian deaths and missing in Gaza, according to the London statisticians, is not 46,000 but closer to 70,000, almost 3% of the population, of whom about 59% are elderly, children and women. 

Another shameful anticommunist resolution of the European Parliament, full of unhistorical references

Once again, the European Parliament confirms its role as a political institution dedicated to the promotion of anti-communist lies and falsification of History. 

 

In a statement, the Europarliament Group of the Communist Party of Greece (KKE) denounces a new delirium of anti-communist propaganda by the majority of the European Parliament. 

The statement (here in Greek) reads:

The KKE condemns the reinstatement of Cuba on the list of “states sponsors of terrorism”

In a statement, the International Relations Section of the CC of the Communist Party of Greece (KKE) condemns the reinstatement of Cuba  on the list of “states sponsors of terrorism” by the Trump administration:

"The second Trump administration in the USA, in a shameful action on its very first day in office, has reinstated Cuba on the list of “state sponsors of terrorism”. Equally responsible is the Biden administration which, after keeping Cuba on the list for four years, after maintaining and reinforcing all the measures of the barbaric imperialist blockade, decided hypocritically at the tail end of its term to remove Cuba from the list.

 

Veteran Dutch communist Wil van der Klift passes away

The Central Committee of the New Communist Party of the Netherlands (NCPN) has issued the following statement in memory of comrade Wil van der Klift (15 November 1942 – 19 January 2025), who passed away on 19 January:

On 19 January, comrade Wil (Willy Ernst Karl) van der Klift, former member of the NCPN Political Bureau and Central Committee, editor-in-chief of the newspaper Manifest and international secretary, passed away. With his insights, humour and tireless efforts, Wil fought for a better world. He made an indispensable contribution to building the communist movement in the Netherlands.

KKE comment on Trump's inauguration

In a comment (here in Greek) regarding Donald Trump's inauguration as the 47th U.S President, the Press Office of the CC of the Communist Party of Greece (KKE) points out the following:

“The confrontation within the U.S ruling class and circles, which led to the new Trump presidency, has to do mainly with the terms, conditions and alliances through which the US will maintain its primacy in the global imperialist system against its competitors, especially China.

From Hitler to Trump, two art pieces say the truth about capitalists and the state

Here are two editorial art pieces about capitalists and the state. John Heartfield put together a montage in 1932 dramatizing that big capitalists like Fritz Thyssen, owner of United Steelworks, financed the Nazi party. Heartfield was a prolific artist, a lifelong communist, and an early member of the German Communist Party.

Ann Telnaes drew the other cartoon a week ago. Five media billionaires (Post owner Jeff Bezos, Facebook boss Mark Zuckerberg, Los Angeles Times owner Patrick Soon-Shiong, artificial intelligence wheeler-dealer Sam Altman, and the Disney Corporation) offer bags of money to Donald Trump. Telnaes had been a Post editorial-page cartoonist since 2008, but when her editor refused to publish this cartoon, she resigned.