Fighting Fascism: The Need for an International Coalition

Via the Communist Party of Cuba, translated from the Spanish

At the opening session of the Second International Anti-Fascist Forum in Moscow, the urgency of consolidating unity among leftist and progressive forces to confront the resurgence of fascism globally was highlighted. The sacrifice of the Soviet people during the Great Patriotic War was commemorated, and the importance of learning from their legacy in the current struggle against neocolonialism and imperialism was emphasized.

Speech by Emilio Lozada García, Head of the International Relations Department of the Communist Party of Cuba Central Committee, at the opening session of the Second International Anti-Fascist Forum.

Moscow, April 23, 2025

Dear comrade and brother Gennady Andreyevich Zyuganov, Chairman of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation:

Distinguished participants:

On behalf of the Communist Party of Cuba, I thank the Communist Party of the Russian Federation for inviting me to participate in this important Forum, which we are confident will help coordinate actions against the advance of fascism at the international level.

We are proud to share these days of great historical commemorations for the Russian Federation and for all humanity, such as the 80th anniversary of the victory in the Great Patriotic War and the 155th anniversary of the birth of Vladimir Ilyich Lenin, whose contributions and leadership have been essential guides for Cuba on the path to building socialism and the significance of a vanguard party organizing and leading a Revolution.

On May 7, 1963, Commander-in-Chief Fidel Castro Ruz, at the Central Stadium in Volgograd, reflected on the role of the Soviet Army in World War II, saying: “…from the Battle of Volgograd onward, the books of history will forever remember this event and this name as an example of courage, as an example of heroism, as an example of patriotism, as an example of firmness, tenacity, and will. And this example will always be an encouragement to patriots everywhere in the world.”

We cannot allow some in the West to distort these facts to claim recognition that is not theirs. It was the heroic Soviet people who defeated fascism in the Great Patriotic War, sacrificing the lives of 27 million of their children. Therefore, as patriots, we have the duty and responsibility to ensure that current and future generations understand and defend the fact that it was the Soviet Union that saved humanity from the Holocaust.

Dear participants:

Just when we thought fascism had been definitively defeated in 1945, this ideology emerged in Latin America and the Caribbean, backed by the United States and its Central Intelligence Agency, with the aim of overthrowing governments that sought the well-being of their peoples after years of domination and plunder by national oligarchies.

A period of bloody coups d'état, such as those of Fulgencio Batista in Cuba in 1952, Jacobo Árbenz in Guatemala in 1954, and Augusto Pinochet in Chile in 1973, led to the deaths and disappearances of thousands of people in our region.

Regardless of the period, fascism has been present in various forms throughout Latin America over the past 80 years, with the ever-present support of the United States. Its methods vary, ranging from promoting coups d'état, plotting subversion, and persecuting the region's main progressive leaders, but its essence remains the same.

There are very significant examples such as the coups against Commander Hugo Chávez in Venezuela in 2002, against Manuel Zelaya in Honduras in 2009, and against Fernando Lugo and Dilma Rousseff in Paraguay and Brazil, respectively.

Dear participants:

To defeat the fascist threat, we must move toward consolidating unity among leftist and progressive forces. It is urgent to strengthen the coordination of our political organizations' actions, both physically and digitally, a decisive battleground for countering media manipulation campaigns and unconventional or fourth-generation wars engineered by imperialism to destabilize our nations.

Only through unity and solidarity can we overcome the colossal challenges that fascism imposes on us.

Distinguished participants:

The Cuban people know well the cost of these fascist and criminal policies. For more than 65 years, they have been illegally subjected to the most comprehensive, complex, and prolonged system of unilateral coercive measures ever applied against any country.

The economic, commercial, and financial embargo has intensified in recent years, with measures designed entirely to hinder the success of the country's economic development plans, including its inclusion on the spurious list of states that allegedly sponsor terrorism.

The challenges we Cubans face today are very difficult, but with the strength of unity, the resilience of the people, and the solidarity of our friends around the world who have always supported us, we will emerge victorious.

Distinguished participants:

The example of the heroic Soviet people is more relevant today than ever. Let us learn from their feat and courage to win this new battle against fascism, neocolonialism, and imperialism.

The unity of progressive and leftist forces is and will continue to be the path. Let's do it for the peace, well-being, and development of our people!

Thank you very much.

This work was translated and shared via a License CC-BY-NC