On EU-US-NATO imperialist plans, competition and interventions at the expense of the peoples
The capitalist crisis, which has been accelerated by the pandemic, has enforced the tendencies towards shift in the balance of power among capitalist countries, sectors and segments of capital. Imperialist competition among monopolies and capitalist countries has been sharpening, leading to wars and interventions at the expense of the peoples and the working class.
Global and regional struggle for control over markets, natural resources, trade routes and other economic and geopolitical advantages have become increasingly intertwined, raising the frequency of regional conflicts. Foci of conflict and imperialist planning currently exist in regions such as Eastern Europe, the Balkans, the Eastern Mediterranean, the Caucasus, the Sahel, the Middle East, the Indian Ocean, the South China Sea and, due to climate change, increasingly even the Arctic.
Euro-Atlantic imperialism has been increasing its efforts to confront existing and potential rivals. NATO has expanded globally with new memberships and partnerships. The relations between the EU and the US as well as within the EU and NATO has been increasingly characterized by counteractive tendencies as cooperation is coexisting with opposition.
NATO has increased its military presence in Eastern Europe, the Baltics, the Balkans and the Caucasus, raised the troop numbers of its “NATO Response Forces” and established new headquarters and battlegroups. However, opposition within NATO has become apparent as disagreements between the US, France, Germany and others concerning the future and orientation of the alliance have become louder.
New contradictions within the EU have emerged as well. The capitalist crisis and developments such as the Brexit have changed the balance of power and led to competition and collision. However, the EU as an imperialist centre with increasing military and economic weight is serving the interests of the monopolies of the European countries.
The EU has been enhancing its own military capabilities, which function complementarily within the framework of NATO, but, at the same time, may lead to greater military autonomy towards the US. Using the legal framework provided by the latest treaties, the EU has established the “Permanent Structured Military Cooperation” (PESCO), with the participation of 25 member-states, while since 2018 France has also been promoting the “European Intervention Initiative” (EI2), which operates beyond the EU and NATO frameworks. The EU is currently sustaining 6 military and 11 non-military missions in Europe, Africa and Asia.
Programmes and mechanisms [“European Defence Fund” (EDF), the “European defence industrial development programme” (EDIDP), the “European Peace Facility” (EPF), the “Coordinated Annual Review on Defence” (CARD)] have been designed to boost the EU’s military research, development and production capabilities. Besides, the EU has been further developing its non-military intervention capabilities through partnerships and developmental programmes, aiming at unifying and optimizing the EU’s external intervention apparatus.
Under the new Biden administration, the US has continued and further intensified its efforts to retain its position as the leading economic and military power in the imperialist system, and the confrontation with China and Russia has been considerably escalating. The new administration has carried out new attacks against Syria. It has been working on deepening and extending its alliances as well as its military presence in the Indo-Pacific region. Furthermore, the US maintains its blockade against Cuba, intervenes in countries of South America such as Venezuela and supports Israel’s murderous policy against the Palestinians. We should also mention the increasing efforts of USA and European Imperialism to escalate the conflict in Donbass and around Crimea, their undisguised attempts to incite a direct military conflict between Russia and Ukraine, whereas they don’t shun to support the overtly Nazi forces in Kiev.
The European Communist Initiative vehemently opposes the EU-US-NATO imperialist plans. It rejects all illusions of opportunist forces concerning a reform of the EU in the interest of the peoples. We call on the peoples to struggle for the complete disengagement of each country from NATO, the EU and all imperialist alliances of the bourgeoisie. This struggle is part of class struggle and can only succeed when waged by the working class in alliance with the popular strata of society for establishing their own class power and building a socialist society, as a prerequisite for an international system of cooperation, solidarity and peace.