KKE continues mobilisation against Rubio’s visit to Greece

A major Pan-Thessalian anti-war rally was held in Larissa on 7 October, organised by the Pan-Thessalian Coordinating Committee of Organisations together with the Larissa Labour Centre. Workers’ unions, student organisations, pensioners and other social organisations from across Thessaly participated. The mobilisation opposed Greece’s involvement in US, NATO and EU military plans and the use of local infrastructure as bases for foreign military operations.

Following the rally in Larissa’s central square, demonstrators marched through the city towards the 110th Combat Wing (110 ΠΜ). At the entrance to the air base, they protested against the use of Thessalian military infrastructure for foreign military purposes. The action was particularly significant for KKE because Larissa has become an important centre of US military activity and hosts US military assets at the 110th Combat Wing.

The central speaker at the Larissa rally was Giannis Skokas, president of the Larissa Labour Centre, who declared Rubio unwelcome in Greece. He linked the US secretary of state's visit to what he described as the escalation of wars and the transformation of Thessaly into a launching point for foreign military forces. The organisers called for the closure of foreign military bases and for Greece to disengage from the wars and military plans of the US, NATO and the EU.

The Larissa action was part of a broader mobilisation by organisations associated with KKE's labour and anti-war movement. The party highlighted the Pan-Thessalian rally as one of its main activities around Rubio's visit, with the slogan “Out with the killers – out with their bases! Greece out of the wars!”

KKE also issued a major statement on Rubio's visit on 7 October, responding to his meetings with the Greek government and his public remarks in Athens. The party argued that the Greece-US Strategic Dialogue was deepening Greece's involvement in US and NATO military, energy and economic plans. It specifically pointed to the role of Souda and Alexandroupolis, Greece's involvement in military operations from Ukraine to the Middle East, and the prospect of a new Greek mission in the Strait of Hormuz.

The party also attacked the planned Vertical Energy Corridor and the import of US liquefied natural gas. KKE argued that presenting Greece as an energy hub would not improve energy security for households but would instead deepen Greece's participation in regional energy competition and benefit large business groups. It similarly criticised the government's military spending and the acquisition of expensive military equipment within the framework of Greece's defence cooperation with Washington.

Another major theme was Greece's relationship with Israel. KKE criticised the strengthening of the Greece-Israel strategic relationship during the continuing war in Gaza, arguing that the government's alignment with the United States, NATO and Israel was increasing Greece's involvement in regional conflicts.

KKE's 7 October statement also explicitly called for workers to develop their own independent agenda of disengagement from what the party described as US-NATO war planning. It concluded with the slogan “No sacrifice for their profits and their wars.” The party also criticised the Greek government for allowing Rubio to deliver his address at the historic Pnyx in Athens, arguing that the site had been used as a backdrop for what it described as a pro-war speech.