Dear Comrades,
With pride and happiness, I convey to you in the name of our Party, Communist Party of Israel with its members Jews and Arabs, most beautiful comradely greetings, and best wishes on the occasion of the 80^th anniversary of the establishment of your heroic Party, wishing you great achievements and successes in your hard struggle.

We are proud of the brotherly relations, and relations of friendship, mutual respect, and mutual stands between our two Parties. We will, from our sides, do our best to strengthen these relations.

Your Party proved through its long march, its faithfulness to the interests of the working class, and all the toilers, and its true national stands. Your Party was the leader of the armed struggle against Nazi-Fascist occupation of your country during the years of the Second World War, and mobilized all the patriotic forces for the freedom of Greece. The sacrifices given by your Party in this ferocious battle were very great.

Your Party never left the principles of Marxist-Leninism and Proletarian Internationalism, and Socialist future. Today you are raising high the flag of Marxism-Leninism.

Comrades,
We celebrate also 150 years for the appearance of the Communist Manifesto, with communists and progressives in all parts of the world.

All the developments which happened in the world Communist movement, and the conditions in which it works nowadays, stress the great need for international solidarity of the Communist Parties and cooperation between them, for exchange of experience and for mutual activities against the policy of Imperialism and huge monopolies, and their plans to impose new world system. Once more the call of the communist manifesto "Workers of all Countries Unite" is proved. We welcome the suggestions presented by the General Secretary of your Party, comrade Aleka Papariga in her speech, about the continuation of meetings of our Parties, and to strengthen cooperation between them.

While the monopolies make huge profits, millions of unemployed

in the main capitalist countries suffer, poverty and hunger increase.

This proves that the allegations of these monopolies that they give the alternative for socialism, are not true. The crisis which exploded in the capitalist countries in the far east, and shocked all the capitalist countries, prove that capitalism cannot get rid of crisis, as a result of the deep capitalism in the capitalist society, and that capitalist countries may face strong economic and social shocks in the future.

Comrades,
Our Party regained its health and strength, after the crisis which hit it after the collapse of Socialism in the Soviet Union, and in the midst and east of Europe. Our Party is sticking to the principles, it believed and struggled for always, the principles of Marxism-Leninism and scientific Socialism, principles of struggle for peace, for the defense of working people. In the last congress of our party-the 23^rd congress, our Party accepted changes in the inner Party rules which aim to strengthen inner-democracy in the Party, and to give more freedom to the members, to debate and express their opinions, on the basis of respecting the principle of democratic centralism.

Our Communist Party of Israel, with its Jewish and Arab comrades was the only political force in the country who presented before 50 years, the principle of self-determination for the two people, the Arab and the Jewish, and the establishment of two states in Palestine. Our Party never left this stand, even when it was alone in the political arena, the Israeli and the Arab alike.

Conditions changed, and the slogan of self-determination and two states for the two people, became accepted and adopted by the leadership of the PLO, and big forces in the Israeli society. This factor, lead after the heroic Intifadah (uprising) of the Palestinian people, to Oslo agreements, which opened the gate for negotiations for the achievements, of just and comprehensive peace. The former prime minister of Israel, the Late Rabin, started to carry out practical steps, and to negotiate with the Palestinians, we hoped that this will lead to the achievement of just peace on the basis of two states for the two peoples, and the withdrawal from occupied territories.

The right forces, got mad, and carried out a wide campaign of incitement against Rabin properly, against his govt., and against Oslo agreement, because they understood that the continuation of this new peaceful march, will lead to the liquidation of occupation, and the establishment of Palestinian state beside Israel. This incitement lead to the assassination of Rabin. The right Likud party headed by Benjamin Netanyahu won in the elections which took place before two years; Netanyahu built governmental coalition which totally depends on the extreme right, which adopt the principle of great Israel, i.e. all of Palestine, and who completely refuses the withdrawal even from one meter of the occupied Palestinian Land. So the situation changed and instead of going in the direction of understanding and solution, we are moving since two years in the direction of liquidating the peace process. The Govt. of Netanyahu is dragging things, preventing any positive steps, presenting positions, its only substance is the enforcement of capitulation on the Palestinian people, like the allegation that Israel only decides its security needs and its borders, and the allegation that the Palestinians do not carry out whet was agreed upon, to fight against terrorism to cancel those item which call for the liquidation of Israel in the Palestinian National Program, which were practically cancelled. Meanwhile the confiscation of Palestinian Land, the building of new settlements in the occupied Western bank, and actions of bloody suppression against the Palestinians continue, as happened lately when demonstrations were held on the 50^th anniversary of the catastrophe.

We say that Netanyalu's govt. do not want to carry out the Oslo agreement, and is working to liquidate it. While we are working to build the widest Peace alliance to carry out the Oslo agreement, we work at the same time to bring down Netanyahu govt. which is right and against peace.

The Clinton administration is dealing with Netanyahu govt. with silk gloves, it did not bring any pressure against it, and do not take any practical steps for the carrying out of Oslo agreement, and at the same time the many friends of Israel inside the congress and out side it call not to make any pressure on Israel. Here it is worth mentioning that there is a strategic alliance between the USA and Israel, and that Israel is playing a very important role in defending American interests in the area, and for achieving American hegemony in it. The military approaching between Israel and Turkey, is taking place as a result of American directions, its aim is to build a big force which will serve American interests in the Area.

While the USA is playing the role of the main patron of the peace process, AL Gore the deputy of Clinton is competing with leaders of the republican party in declaring support to Netanyahu and his policy, and blame the Palestinians for not achieving agreement.

It is a pity that the Working Party whose leadership (Rabin-Peras) lead to the Oslo agreement while in power, is absent nowadays from the arena of mass struggle against Netenyahu's govt. policy. More bad the fact that Ehud Barak the leader of Working Party, is taking positions in important issues which do not differ from those of Netenyahu. The domination of the extreme religious forces on the Israeli society is increasing.

Our Party see its main strategic duty today is to unite peace forces in the widest front for renewing peace process, and carrying out Oslo agreement, calling for withdrawal of Israel from all Palestinian territory occupied during June 1967 War, and for the establishment of Palestinian state with eastern Jerusalem as its capital beside Israel. We also struggle for peace with Syria and Lebanon, which cannot be without the withdrawal of Israel from the Syrian Golan heights (occupied in 1987) and from southern Lebanon.

Our Party warns of the dangerous situation as a result of freezing peace process, and alienation of the interests of the Arab Palestinian people led by PLO, which will lead the Area to new explosions, and a return to blood shed and the absence of security to both people.

Once again I greet you, wishing your Party more successes, in the service of workers and all toilers, for extending democracy, for peace in the area and the world, and for Socialist future.