Lisbon Meeting 10-12 November 2006, Contribution of WP of
Belgium
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From: Portuguese Communist Party, Monday, November 13, 2006
http://www.wpb.be , mailto:wpb@wpb.be
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Contribution of the Workers' Party of Belgium (WPB)
Sexta, 10 Novembro 2006

" Dangers and potentialities of the international
situation.
The imperialist strategy and the energy issue, the peoples'
struggle and the experience of Latin America, the prospect
of socialism."

Fifteen years have passed since the tragic
counter-revolutions of 1989-1991, events that dramatically
changed the correlation of forces in the world.

Today, not much is left of the erstwhile triumphalism of
imperialism. It has failed in its plan to totally liquidate
socialism and the communist movement. Its economic
dominance has shrunk. It has not succeeded in installing
its absolute military dominance on the entire planet. To
the contrary, the objective perspectives for the
revolutionary movement for national independence and
socialism are becoming clearer.

1. While the US economy remains the world's strongest,
several factors are rendering it more fragile(1) .

It is more and more dependent on goods produced in the
Third World. In 1973, almost all goods consumed in the US
were produced there as well. In 2004, the US manufacturing
industry assures no more than half of the production needed
in the US, and Third World imports count for more than one
fourth. This is the reason of the huge trade deficit of the
USA.

As long as the US can lean on their international
status of superpower, they can compensate for this deficit
by an annual provision of foreign capitals. For 2005, this
is estimated to have been between 700 and 800 billion
dollar, or more than 6% of the country's GDP (2).

Also the profits of US companies are to an increasing
extent coming from abroad. The last years, the proportion
of foreign profits reached almost 20%.

2. Six years ago, here in Lisbon, the European Union
formulated "a new strategic objective for the coming
decade: to become the most competitive and the most dynamic
knowledge-based economy in the world" (3). In order to
surpass the US economy, the Europe of the managers imposed
the dismantling of the social achievements. The
flexibilisation of the job market, with the prolongation of
the professional career, the privatisation of services and
other similar policies constitute the key measures. But
these policies are met by the workers with growing
resistance. The European Union is also confronted with a
delay in achieving its own objectives. New strategies are
put into motion in order to increase the competitive power
of the big monopolies, in the process of course
intensifying the exploitation of the labour force and
leading us even more towards an americanization of the
society..

Several new members of the EU, formerly socialist
countries, are now living through the bitter experience of
the new order of the monopolies, with unbearable living and
working conditions and deteriorating health and education
services. Class struggle is advancing all over Europe. So
many people, older but also young people, are again
aspiring for socialism.

All this is highly disturbing for the big bourgeoisie.
Rightist forces are pushing fascisation. Thanks to the
mobilisation of communist and democratic forces, a strongly
anticommunist draft resolution did not pass at the Council
of Europe, in January 2006. But the struggle has to be
strengthened. The prohibition of the Communist Youth Union
(KSM) of the Czech Republic is a threat to all of us.

3. The growth sometimes spectacular in Third World
countries, and the South-South cooperation are shaking the
imperialist economic dominance.

3.1 Latin America is of crucial importance to the North
American market. In order to submit the continent,
Washington tried to impose ALCA. But, so far, its attempts
have globally been in vain. Venezuela, Cuba and Bolivia
reply with ALBA. Other countries are eager to follow suit.
An anti-imperialist current is taking the upper hand, and
our Latin American comrades will certainly tell us more
about it!

3. 2 In Asia, Washington's economic dominance is crumbling.

By developing commercial relations with China, the
Western powers and Japan hoped to gain control over its
economy. Parallel to this, they hoped to impose bourgeois
parliamentarism with the purpose of removing the CPC from
power. The 2002 annual report of the US Congress commission
on the economic relations with China says so explicitly.
But it has to admit the failure of this policy(4). The
2005 report of this same Commission concludes that "on
balance, the trends in the U.S.(5) China relationship have
negative implications for the long-term economic and
security interests of the United States". China is already
the major economic partner of countries traditionally
linked to the US, such as South Korea. On 10 August 2006,
the Congressional Research Service published a report with
the title "Is China a Threat to the U.S. Economy?". The
reply of the report is dual. On the one hand, "China's
economic reforms and growth have benefited (or could
benefit) the U.S. economy....", but on the other hand, "
some Members of Congress perceive China as a threat, or
potential threat, to the U.S. economy.... Analysts project
that in the near future, China will replace the United
States as the world's largest economy and exporter. In this
context, China's economic rise is viewed as America's
decline." (6)

Meanwhile, China and the 10 ASEAN countries are pursuing
their efforts at creating, by 2015, a free trade
association, for an area of 1.8 billion inhabitants and a
GDP of over 2000 billion dollar.

3.3 Last week-end, the Chinese-African summit ended, with
the conclusion of important agreements on trade and
economic cooperation.

All these developments contribute, beyond doubt, to the
weakening of the economic and political dominance, not only
of the US, but also of the European Union and Japan.

4. The importance of the Third World for the world economy
is increasing also to the degree that the oil reserves and
the reserves of other natural resources are rapidly
diminishing. World petroleum reserves would amount to some
1200 billion barrels. According to certain experts, the
first effects of a shortage would be felt by 2040. But
other studies indicate that as early as 2018, production
would no longer be able to follow demand.(7)
Objectively, the Third World countries have a lot of
leverage at their disposal!

5. Their growing economic dependence forces the US to
reinforce its dominance on the rest of the world by all
means, particularly by military means. Today's US military
budget surpasses the total military budget of the rest of
the world taken together. Washington and its NATO allies
are responsible for more than 3/4 of the world military
budget!(8)

John Pike, director of the independent research group
`GlobalSecurity.org', declares: "Much of the spending has
little to do with fighting the war on terrorism." Rather,
argues Pike, the spending for new ships, jets, missiles and
other armaments is "aimed at the [supposed] threat that
dare not speak its name: China."(9) Pike fails to cite the
millions of dollars spent for the maintenance and renewal
of the US nuclear arsenal
Although less under pressure than the US, the European
countries are also augmenting their military preparedness,
within and outside NATO. If the 2003 invasion of Iraq
underscored the contradictions between certain European
countries and the US, their military collaboration now
appears to get strengthened, as is the case in Afghanistan.
They are forced to do so because of their need to confront
the increasing power of the Third World.

6. But after having declared total victory over Baghdad in
2003, Bush now has to admit a certain resemblance with the
T�t offensive in Viet Nam Washington's troops are getting
stuck in Iraq, as NATO troops are in Afghanistan

Iraq gives an idea of the measure of bestiality that
imperialism is ready to deploy in order to impose its
dominance. According to public health experts from the US
and from Baghdad University, some 655,000 Iraqi civilians
died between March 2003 and July 2006 as a consequence of
the war.(10)

At the same time, Iraq is showing that a people that wants
to be free, can defeat the most powerful aggressor in the
world. Bush and the puppet government in Baghdad try to
justify their dirty war by accusing "the terrorists" of
blind massacres. A report of 3 August 2006 by the
Intelligence Agency of the US Defence Department, the DIA,
refutes such lies: "70% of the bomb attacks in the month of
July 2006 were directed against the American-led military
force. 20% struck Iraqi security forces. And 10%of the
blasts struck civilians", for which the resistance has
always denied responsibility. A senior Defence Department
official told the New York Times: "The insurgency has more
public support and is demonstrably more capable in numbers
of people active." (11)

Israeli attack against Lebanon completely failed. This
victory of the forces of resistance, including the Lebanese
PC, is a major defeat for Washington and Tel Aviv, which
had prepared this attack for a long time. The Zionist
defeat in Lebanon reinforced Iraqi resistance, in its turn.

More than 3052 allied soldiers have already lost their
lives, among them at least 2813 US soldiers. Nearly 45,000
other US soldiers got seriously injured.

The spectre of a defeat is haunting the US superpower.

But never shall imperialism abandon its ambition to rule
the world, whatever it takes. The preparation for the
production of mini-nukes in the US is an indication of the
latter's orientation toward even more massive and
destructive terror.

7. The necessity and the possibility of a victorious
struggle against imperialism and monopoly power are
growing. Two tasks seem essential to us.

One the one hand, to strengthen the world united front
against imperialism. If it is true that you need weapons in
order to defend your independence as reality proves this
by itself is not sufficient. You also need friends, allies,
a broad united front. In the South, there is an increasing
tendency toward cooperation, in various forms. The recent
summit of the 118 countries of the Non-Aligned Movement in
Havana was a real success. Socialist Cuba does an excellent
job in forming an anti-imperialist axis with Hugo Ch�vez'
Venezuela, Evo Morales' Bolivia and other countries such as
Lula's Brazil and Belarus. China has done well to
consolidate and enlarge the Shanghai Cooperation
Organisation, to prepare for the free trade association
with the 10 ASEAN countries, and to conclude cooperation
agreements with numerous countries in Asia, Africa and
Latin America. Fortunately, such initiatives are
multiplying. They all show that the unity of the countries
that wish to maintain their independence and their people's
right to decide on their future, is really making progress.
This unity is a serious obstacle to the hegemonist plans of
the US and to the projects of the other imperialist powers.

We, in Europe, in North America and in the rest of the
world, must intensify our anti-imperialist work for the
defence of peace and democracy, among others by emphasizing
the development of the World Peace Council.

On the other hand, the facts also show that in the
absence of communist parties that are truly revolutionary,
based on scientific socialism, internationalist and solidly
linked to the broad masses, a lasting success of the
popular struggles cannot be guaranteed. If our communist
movement is advancing and I speak in particular of my own
party we are lagging behind if compared to the actual
needs of the situation. Our parties will not easily
overcome their weaknesses if they rest isolated. We are
confronted with the anachronism that while the communist
movement was the first in the world to organize itself
internationally, today we generally do not reach beyond the
stage of useful but informal exchanges. For several years
now, numerous arguments have been advanced for organizing a
more structural cooperation and coordination among our
communist parties. The absence of such unity is causing a
waste of efforts and a great loss of efficacy. It also
impedes us from learning faster from our respective
successes and failures.

I hope, comrades, that during these days we can make
progress on this matter. For the situation of the peoples
and the toiling masses calls more than ever for another
society, a socialist society which, by the way, the
general crisis of the capitalist system is rendering ever
more possible.

Baudouin Deckers, General Secretary

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[1] All data from a study by Henri Houben, �tudes Marxistes
nr. 73/2006, Brussels.

[2] Council of Economic Advisers (2006), The Annual Report,
in Economic Report of the President, Washington, February
2006, p.125.

[3] CONSEIL EUROP�EN DE LISBONNE, Conclusions de la
Pr�sidence, 23 ET 24 MARS 2000, point 5,
http://www.consilium.europa.eu/ueDocs/cms_Data/docs/pressD-
ata/fr/ec/00100-r1.f0.htm

[4] "U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission",
2002, Executive Summary,
http://www.uscc.gov/researchpapers/2000_2003/reports/excsum-
02.htm

[5] "U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission",
2005, Executive Summary,
http://www.uscc.gov/annual_report/2005/annual_report_full_0
5.pdf

[6] CRS Report for Congress, "Is China a Threat to the U.S.
Economy?", August 10, 2006
http://www.capitaltocapital.net/pdfs/congressionalresearchs-
ervice_china.pdf

[7] Resource Depletion: Modelling and forecasting oil
production - Michael Smith, Oil Depletion Analysis Centre,
http://www.odac-info.org/

[8] "Bush pushes to increase defence spending. Jump of 7%
would top rest of world's military budgets", Eric
Rosenberg, San Francisco Chronicle, 12/02/2006, Page 17,
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2006/02/12
/MNG41H78RK1.DTL

[9] Ibid.

[10] According to the medical journal The Lancet. (AFP, 11
October 2006)
[11] NYT, 17/08/2006, "Bombs Aimed at G.I.'s in Iraq Are
Increasing", by Michael r. Gordon, Mark Mazzetti and Thom
Shanker,
http://travel2.nytimes.com/2006/08/17/world/middleeast/17mi-
litary.html