Archive for the ‘Russia’ Category
Breaking the Gaza Blockade: Ukrainians on the Sumud Flotilla to Gaza – Arrested on the high seas by Israel’s Genocide Navy – Release all crew members now!
Two Ukrainian activists, Andrii Movchan and Nina Potarska, have been arrested by the armed forces of the genocidal Israeli state.
Israeli Navy’s criminal attack on Gaza flotilla: Ukrainian team among detained crews. Release them all now!
April 30, 2026
The European Network for Solidarity with Ukraine (ENSU) has learned that the vessel carrying the Ukrainian team as part of the Sumud Global Flotilla 2026 was one of those illegally seized by the Israeli Navy early this morning.
According to an Al Jazeera report seven out of the 58 vessels were captured by Israel near Crete, over a thousand kilometres from the coast of Gaza.
ENSU coordinator Szymon Martys described the raid as “a blatant and cynical attack on unarmed vessels navigating peacefully in international waters”. He demanded the immediate release of the detained crews, which include the Ukrainian team of Nina Potarska and Andrii Movchan.
Martys said that ENSU, which is supporting the two Ukrainian peace and human rights activists, had no information as to their situation, but assumed that they, along with other crews, were being held illegally on an Israeli navy vessel.
“They must all be freed immediately”, he added, and called on the Ukrainian government, along with the governments of all the kidnapped crews, to demand their immediate release.
Martys commented that the Israeli’s government’s action–attacking the flotilla when it was far from Gaza and before public attention on its mission would be at a peak–betrayed its fear of the power of international solidarity with the Palestinian people.
“We in the Ukraine solidarity movement understand this truth”, he added. “Powerful governments, like Netanyahu’s and Putin’s, although armed to the teeth, can be brought low by the mass mobilisation of all who stand for the rights of peoples. The Sumud Global Flotilla is symbol of popular indignation at the murderous violence of war and of people’s determination to stand with the oppressed.”
The Ukrainian team had joined the Sumud Global Flotilla to help the humanitarian effort for the blockaded people of Gaza, towards whom they, as members of a nation also victim of brutal invasion, feel a special duty of solidarity.
I invite you to read my new English translation for Спільне / Commons: “Breaking the Gaza Blockade: Ukrainians on the Sumud Flotilla.”
It is a thought-provoking interview with Ukrainian activists Andrii Movchan and Nina Potarska about Gaza, Ukraine, occupation, human rights, and solidarity.
Read the rest of this entry »Hungary – “Defeating Orbán is One Thing – Defeating Orbanism Quite Another”
Donnacha Ó Beacháin discussed the Hungary elections with Flor MacCarthy and
@shonamurray.bsky.social on Oireachtas TV. Defeating Orbán is one thing, dismantling Orbánism quite another Expectations are high and Magyar’s support base is diverse, even contradictory. Managing expectations will be key to avoiding fragmentation
Six lessons from Hungary’s vote and Orbán’s defeat An “illiberal democracy” can be ousted — what India and the world should learn
Link :
Six lessons from Hungary’s vote and Orbán’s defeat
Kavita Krishnan examines the fall of Orbán in greater detail here :
Writing in The Hindu after Viktor Orbán’s 12 April 2026 electoral defeat, Indian Marxist-feminist Kavita Krishnan draws six lessons for an international readership and, above all, for India under Narendra Modi. She argues that illiberal democracies can be ousted at the ballot box; that obituaries for universal democracy are premature; that Ukraine won the Hungarian vote; that regime-change accusations are confessions; that Orbán’s fall is a defeat for Xi Jinping as well as Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin and Benjamin Netanyahu; and that pro-democracy forces must now discard the “West versus rest” map and consolidate their gains across borders. [AN]
Hungarian voters have swept their far-right strongman Viktor Orbán out of office, ending his 16-year run as Prime Minister and electoral autocrat. Here are six lessons the world can take from them.
Read the rest of this entry »Multiple Bullies At Work, Out to Create a “Multipolar World” – Kavita Krishnan
Two interesting articles by Kavita Krishnan are below.
The author explains :
My article in The Hindu on what’s at stake for Ukraine and the world.
Kavita Krishnan
I try to get all my material on Ukraine from the horse’s mouth: I just read Putin, Dugin, Vance, Mearsheimer really thoroughly – and they confirm all that I’m saying, without even bothering to disguise their intent. There can’t be more reliable and irrefutable sources.
The article attached is based on reading Mearsheimer himself saying Putin’s top peace condition is a puppet regime in Kyiv, since liberal democracy in Ukraine is an “existential threat to Russia”.
The second article examines the recent electoral defeat of Viktor Orbán in Hungary
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Hungary 2026: An Autopsy of Sixteen Years of Illiberalism
A few days before the Hungarian general election held on April 12 2026 the USA Vice president JD Vance flew into Budapest campaigning for the far-right prime minister Viktor Orbán. Vance, a high-profile member of the Catholic Church, picked the wrong place to boost a close ally. The self-described hillbilly bombed in Budapest.
Orbán was also strongly backed by the far-right president of Russia, Vladimir Putin. Hungary joins a growing list of countries where candidates closely aligned with the far-right twins Trump-Putin sink to a humiliating defeat.
Adam Novak explores the issues in the interview below published on the
Europe Solidaire Sans Frontières (ESSF) site:
Link :
Hungary 2026: An Autopsy of Sixteen Years of Illiberalism.
Among the fascinating details in the article below, we highlight two :
For Trump and Vance, it is the loss of the most useful ally within the European Council — the one who blocked collective decisions on Ukraine, including the 90-billion-euro loan to Kyiv that Orbán had vetoed. For Putin, it is the loss of the most accommodating European government on energy and sanctions. For European far-right parties, it is the signal that the model is not election-proof.
Vance delivered a speech on Christ and the Christian foundations of European civilisation before a comparatively secular Hungarian audience. He invoked workers’ rights without saying a word about the tech billionaires enriched under Trump. And he denounced Brussels bureaucrats for “making millions” whilst saying nothing of the oligarchy that Orbán himself built. The electoral effect of the visit is close to zero: Vance is little known in Hungary, and it was not Trump who came.
Hungary 2026: An Autopsy of Sixteen Years of Illiberalism.
After Orbán: Electoral Fractures and the Programmatic Void
The Hungarian legislative elections of 12 April 2026 brought to an end sixteen years of uninterrupted rule by Viktor Orbán. Péter Magyar’s Tisza (Respect and Freedom [Tisztelet és Szabadság]) party won a super-majority of 138 seats out of 199, inflicting on Fidesz a defeat explained by judicial scandals, saturation of the identitarian discourse, a generational fracture, and the concrete effects of the freeze on European funds.
Read the rest of this entry »Report of Public Meeting : Solidarity With the People of Ukraine – Bring the Stolen Children Home (Tuesday March 24 2026)
Report of Public Meeting : Solidarity With the People of Ukraine – Bring the Stolen Children Home
Irish Left With Ukraine (ILWU) held a very fruitful meeting on Tuesday 24 March 2026 in the Teachers Club. Interesting insights were shared. The discussion showed us all the hope that if you take action, you can make a difference.
We thank Alex Yurov, Aishe Kurtamet (Crimean refugee and mother of her abducted son Appaz), Catriona Crowe (Archivist and Historian), Sandra Corrigan (INTO Global Solidarity Officer) and Ruth O’ Dea (Labour Party) for their contributions.
Alex Yurov reviewed the situation in Donetsk from 2014, when Russia invaded that part of Ukraine. He gave us details of systematic removal and “re‑education” of children into Russian territory.
Aishe Kurtamet told the story of her son Appaz who was abducted in Crimea.
Aishe gave a sustained account of her son Appaz’s 2023 abduction from Kherson, alleging transfer to occupied Crimea, detention, forced collaboration offers, torture, and imprisonment in multiple Russian facilities; she also reported her son’s father was later abducted, tortured, and sentenced.
Link to information about the plight of Appaz Kurtamet :
Appaz Kurtamet, Aishe Kurtamet
Sandra Corrigan, Global Solidarity Officer of the Irish National Teachers’ Organisation, described international solidarity work for teachers and children, including a solidarity fund, emergency supplies, trauma support, and advocacy that helped secure teacher salary increases for 2025–2026. Ukrainian teacher union reports emphasised the prolonged conflict and an education crisis.
Catriona Crowe described the fascist and genocidal nature of the war Russia is waging in Ukraine – one proof of that description is the systematic kidnapping and disappearing of children in zones of occupation. She drew our attention to the awful history of child abuse in Ireland’s Mother and Baby homes.
She highlighted the international attention shift away from Ukraine to other conflicts, such as Iran, and the need for continued support.
She emphasized the importance of providing Ukraine with adequate weaponry to resist Russian aggression.
She discussed the broader context of the war, including the unprovoked invasion by Russia and the significant casualties on both sides. war on Ukrainian children, including the kidnapping and indoctrination by Russian authorities.
Read the rest of this entry »Alumina made in Aughinish, Limerick, is exported to smelters that sell aluminium to a trader supplying Russian arms manufacturers – Results of a Major Irish Times Investigation, March 24 2026 “Aughinish exposes a general trend in State attitude to Ukraine, Palestine, human rights …”
Evidence of Limerick-produced alumina entering Russian military supply chain ‘horrific and shocking’, says Labour party leader Ivana Bacik
Aughinish Alumina contributes to Russian war against Ukraine – Ivana Bacik, the Labour party leader, raised the issue in Dáil Éireann :
Link :
Inside the Supply Chain Funneling Irish Alumina to Russian Rockets – OCCRP
Yesterday Conor Gallagher in The Irish Times, working with the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project, revealed shocking details about the supply chain linked to the Aughinish Alumina plant in Limerick.
His report outlined how significant quantities of alumina from this facility are being exported to Russia, where they are being used to make aluminium, which is then sold to a trading company supplying over 100 Russian weapons manufacturers. It is deeply alarming to see that shipments of Irish alumina to Russia have increased significantly since Putin’s brutal full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. It is horrific to see this. It is unconscionable that a plant operating in Ireland could be contributing to materials used in the destruction of so many communities and so much civilian infrastructure in Ukraine and can be used to kill children in Ukraine. This is appalling to see and I do welcome the Taoiseach’s commitment to review this report, but the question is clear: what urgent action will the Taoiseach take to ensure that no Irish-based industry or business is complicit in supporting Russia’s war machine?
Ivana Bacik; Aughinish Alumina plant aids brutal Russian invasion of UkraineIvana Bacik is right to insist that the Irish government must take “urgent action” on this issue – words and good intentions are not good enough.
In the letters page of the Irish Times (Friday May 27) Conor O’Neill – Head of Policy, Christian Aid Ireland; Chair, Irish Coalition for Business & Human Rights points out :
Aughinish exposes a general trend in State attitude to Ukraine, Palestine, human rights …
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The U.S. & Israeli War with Iran: What Should Be the Approach of a Principled Socialist Left? – Frieda Afary
Below is the revised text of a presentation by Frieda Afary to the South African organization, Zabalaza for Socialism on March 15, 2026.
Link :
These are key passages :
Globally, the Russian government has gained from this war because the price of oil has increased, and the Trump administration has lifted sanctions on Russia’s sale of oil. Russia has also gained because the anti-missile systems that Ukraine and Europe were buying from the U.S. to help defend Ukraine against Russia’s brutal imperialist invasion of that country are now going to the Middle East. Russia is also helping the Iranian government by sharing secret information about U.S. targets.
Frieda Afary, ESSF, March 15 2026
The Chinese government has also gained from this war, because the U.S. government will pay less attention to the Pacific Region and might even allow China to proceed with its plans to take over Taiwan.
IV. What Can International Progressives Do Now?
Frieda Afary, ESSF, March 15 2026
First: Do anything you can to stop this war. Educate, speak out, protest, put pressure on your government representatives and independent intellectuals. In the case of the United States, public opinion is currently 60% against this war. Most people don’t want to send their children to fight in the Middle East. Half the adult population is opposed to the Trump administration’s attacks on and detention/deportation of innocent immigrants. There is also a great deal of anger about the ways in which mostly wealthy men including Trump, other politicians and even academics have collaborated with and benefited from the late Jeffrey Epstein’s network for trafficking of women and girls for rape and sexual abuse. All of these questions need to be addressed in articulating an anti-war message.
Second: Reach out to progressives in the Middle East or Middle Eastern progressives abroad. Do not limit yourself to talking only about one struggle or one country in the Middle East.
Third: Oppose campism, take a clear stand against all global and regional capitalist-imperialist powers and defend the rights and humanity of the peoples that these powers are oppressing.
Fourth: Address key issues that are holding back our struggles: racial and ethnic discrimination, patriarchy, capitalist exploitation, and capitalist alienation.
“The brave few documenting ordinary life in Putin’s Russia” – Catriona Crowe
This excellent article appeared in the Friday March 20 2026 issue of the Irish Times :
Concerning the differences between the Ukrainian and Russian States, Catriona Crowe hits the nail on the head :
Casualties are breaking down at a ratio of 2-2.5 to 1, with Russia suffering the largest proportion, according to the Centre for Strategic and International Studies. While the international press can report from Ukraine, although with some difficulty and considerable danger from the front lines, the Kremlin has detained at least 27 journalists since 2022, and 355 international journalists have been branded “foreign agents”.
Irish Times March 20 2026
Catriona Crowe: The brave few risking everything to unmask Putin’s Russia
The Oscar-winning documentary Mr Nobody against Putin is a record of something totally unseen in the world outside Russia
Ukraine is now in the fifth year of its war with Russia, an unprovoked invasion of a sovereign state based on Vladimir Putin’s desire to reconstitute the Russian Empire. It is estimated that casualties for both sides (killed, wounded and missing) will amount to two million sometime this year.
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Tomás Ó Flatharta 