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The Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization (United) (1925–1936) (Macedonian: Внатрешна македонска револуционерна организација (обединета), Vnatrešna makedonska revolucionerna organizacija (obedineta); Bulgarian: Вътрешна македонска революционна организация - обединена, Vatreshna makedonska revolyucionna organizatsiya - Obedinena), commonly known in English as IMRO (United), was the name of a revolutionary political organization active across the entire geographical region of Macedonia.
Contents
Foundation
IMRO (United) was founded in 1925 in Vienna after the failure of the May Manifesto by the left wing of the Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization (IMRO). It was under the leadership of Dimitar Vlahov, Pavel Shatev, Georgi Zankov, Rizo Rizov, Vladimir Poptomov, Metodi Shatorov and Hristo Yankov. Its main objective was to free Macedonia within its geographical and economical borders, and to create a new political entity which would become an equal member of the future Balkan Federative Republic. It was accepted as a partner in the Balkan Communist Federation and was sponsored directly by the Comintern, maintaining close links with the Bulgarian communist leader Georgi Dimitrov. He, as secret agent of GRU was responsible especially about the contacts with the IMRO (United).
Activities
The Resolution of the Comintern publicly acknowledged the existence of the Macedonian nation and Macedonian language, although published as a resolution of the Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization (United), was undoubtedly the most significant international acknowledgement of the Macedonian national individuality, which had very favorable consequences for its development and affirmation. The text of this historic document was prepared in the period between December 20, 1933 and January 7, 1934 by the Balkan Secretariat of the Comintern. It was accepted by the Political Secretariat in Moscow on January 11, 1934, and approved by the Executive Committee of the Comintern. It was published for the first time in the April issue of Makedonsko Delo under the title "The Situation in Macedonia and the Tasks of IMRO (United)". After replying to those who, even within the progressive movement, denied the existence of a separate Macedonian nation, the Resolution, among other things, stated:
"...The bourgeoisie of the ruling nations in the three imperialist states among which Macedonia is partitioned, tries to camouflage its national oppression, denying the national features of the Macedonian people and the existence of the Macedonian nation...".
By 1935, the IMRO (United) organisation in Greece was working closely with the Communist Party of Greece (KKE). Indeed, on 3 July 1935, the KKE newspaper, Rizospastis, reported a statement issued by the IMRO (United) organisation in Edesa (Voden) and signed by G. Slavos:
"...We Macedonians also insist on not being called Bulgarians, for we are neither Bulgarians, nor Serbs, nor Greeks, but Macedonians. We invite all Macedonians to join the ranks of the IMRO (United), and all of us together will fight for a free Macedonia..."
However the members of the IMRO (United) had previously declared themselves as Bulgarians and never managed to get rid of their pro-Bulgarian bias. Until its dissolution in 1936 it sought to act as part of a Bulgarian Communist Party, Communist Party of Yugoslavia and the Communist Party of Greece and in fact attempted to play the part of a Communist led Macedonian national or popular front.