Update: I could not find proper translation of Zelensky’s speech to Ukraine Parliament of December 28 when I posted excerpts from New Year’s speech below. Above link explains even more clearly than below that Ukraine is leading the global democratic revolution as well as the war against fascism – and knows it.
We are all one family.
One Ukraine.
This is the year when Ukraine changed the world.
And the world discovered Ukraine.
We were told to surrender.
We chose a counterattack!
We were told to make concessions and compromises.
We are joining the European Union and NATO.
The world heard Ukraine.
European Parliament, Bundestag, the UK Parliament, Knesset, the US Congress.
The world felt Ukraine.
Ukraine in the media.
In the hearts of people.
At the top of Google search.
The world saw Ukraine.
On the main squares in Toronto, New York, London, Warsaw, Florence, Sydney and other cities.
Ukraiinians surprise.
Ukrainians are applauded.
Ukrainians are inspired.
Is there anything that can scare us?
No.
Is there anyone who can stop us?
No.
Because we are all together.
It is what we are fighting for.
One for each other.
The best salute for us is at the warehouses of the occupiers.
The best gift is the numbers in the report of the General Staff.
We do not know for sure what the new year 2023 will bring us.
But ready for anything.
New achievements?
We will be happy.
New hits?
We will be steadfast.
Continuation of the fight?
We will fight.
And when we win, we will hug.
Dear Ukrainians!
A few minutes remain until the New Year!
I want to wish us all one thing – victory.
And that’s the main thing.
One wish for all Ukrainians.
Let this be the year of return.
The return of our people.
Soldiers – to their families.
Prisoners – to their homes.
Immigrants – to their Ukraine.
Return of our lands and the temporarily occupied will become forever free.
Return to normal life.
To happy moments without curfew.
To earthly joys without air alerts.
The return of what has been stolen from us.
The childhood of our children, the peaceful old age of our parents.
So that grandchildren come to visit their grandparents during the holidays.
To eat watermelons in Kherson and the cherry in Melitopol.
So that our cities are free.
Our friends are faithful.
And so that our main figure and main success appeared in reports near the figure of 100,000 destroyed enemies, thousands of units of destroyed Russian equipment – it is 603,628 square kilometers.
The area of independent Ukraine, as it was since 1991.
As it will always be.
May the New Year bring all this.
We are ready to fight for it.
That’s why each of us is here.
I’m here.
We are here.
You are here.
Everyone is here.
We are all Ukraine.
Glory to Ukraine!
Happy New Year!
C21st Left 
Spot on Arthur. And for those who hold revolutionary aspirations and are what we may call fair dinkum left as opposed to pseudo/fake left, there is no room for equivocation on this matter.
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Putin. Fascism. Aren’t you the guys who were arguing that Putin was going to bring about democracy in Syria?
My recollection is that Patrick and me were arguing that Putin was up to no good in Syria and you guys were arguing that Putin and the UN were going to do the right thing.
This is what you wrote “The ceasefire, which some people regarded as doomed to failure before it had even started, has been working, in the main, for nearly six weeks now. It has provided breathing space, with parts of Syria under rebel control able to commence reorganisation of their localities. For the first time in years, Syrians have been able to take to the streets again demanding the regime’s overthrow. Some humanitarian aid is getting through where needed, but this is still a problem area in places where the regime is obstructing aid delivery – and further isolating itself (and strengthening the case for miltiary intervention on the side of the pro-democratic forces).
Assad is increasingly isolated, with Putin looking for a way out and supporting the UN transitional plan; a plan that means the end of Assad’s rule.”
The cease fires as we pointed out at the time were a disaster and as we pointed out Putin was not looking to end Assad’s rule but to use the cease fires to isolate and destroy pockets of resistance. The minimal you should do is write a self-criticism to explain why you got it so wrong.
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Putin bring democracy to Syria? That assertion is a wanton misinterpretation of the words you quote. As I said above, there is no room for equivocation on this matter and I would like to know what your position is on “Ukraine is leading the Global War Against Fascism – and knows it”
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I’m doing this from memory, but I remember that Arthur and Barry were arguing that Assad had become a puppet of Putin and that there was no way out other than Putin in conjunction with the UN transitioning Syria into a post Assad democratic outcome. Barry and Arthur argued that the cease fires were positive. Patrick and I argued that Assad was not done for and that Putin wasn’t working towards anything good and that the cease fires were a piece meal way of defeating the revolution.
My position on Ukraine is Slava Ukraine. As to Zelensky’s New Year address I thought that it was great.
As to the war being against fascism well that all depends upon your definition of fascism. Mine is that fascism is a rebellion against modernity and in particular the rise of the working class as a class-conscious of its interests.
As to fascism in Ukraine that’s an interesting topic, at Maidan the red and black fascist flags were quite prominent, the Odessa massacre was a massacre committed by fascists which the state clearly sided with the fascists. The worship of Stefan Bandera, the openly fascist Azov battalion were all problematic. Fortunately Ukrainian society has dealt well with the fascist threat incorporating the Azov battalion into and under military discipline and most importantly at the most recent national elections the unity ticket of the ultra-right parties failed to gain a single seat.
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“I’m doing it from memory” – plus a complete misrepresentation of what we said re-Putin.
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OK Barry if I’m wrong just explain what your position was. I’m forced to use memory because the website where we used to argue is no longer accessible. My memory suggests that your argument was Assad was impotent, and that Putin was looking for a way out and that the UN in conjunction with Putin would usher in a new system and the only option available was democracy. If I have misrepresented your position feel free to correct my poor memory and I will offer an apology.
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Stop wasting my time. It is up to you to get things right and not to make claims that are wrong. Check things before you spout off. Your claim was that we argued that Putin would bring democracy to Syria. The voices in your head were wrong.
This thread is about Ukraine. No further comments about Syria will be published on this thread.
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How on earth do you come to such conclusion? Even kindergarteners know that neo nazis – the azov battalion – are part of the Ukrainian armed forces
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