Imperialism: A short introduction

[This the text of an educational given to Socialist Alliance Melbourne branch on April 4, 2023.]

We live in a world where capitalism is near universal. However, it’s not just capitalism but capitalism in its imperialist stage. If we don’t understand what this is (and what it is not), we can’t understand anything about the politics of Australia and the world today.

Key issues of the war in Ukraine

These notes should be read in conjunction with the document Theses on the war in Ukraine by myself and Renfrey Clarke which gives a succinct overview of the issues raised by the war. Here I want to deal in more detail with some of the key questions.

The West wants to dominate Russia

Washington has an historically unprecedented world empire which it wants to maintain and expand. It is never going to be reconciled to any country it doesn’t control or dominate. The two main targets in its sights today are Russia and China, both big capitalist countries which are by no means opposed to relations with the West but want them on their own terms.

One way or another, Washington wants to dominate Russia, to subjugate and exploit it, install a client regime, or possibly even to break up it up into several more pliable states, as advocated by some neocons. Right now, through the conflict in Ukraine, it seeks to move NATO bases and missiles right up to the border and to bleed Russia in an endless war (like in Afghanistan).

Theses on the war in Ukraine

By Dave Holmes & Renfrey Clarke

A.  Introduction

1. Climate change threatens the survival of humanity. Disasters are coming thick and fast and will quickly get much worse. But rather than deal with the truly existential crisis this represents, Western imperialism is devoting more and more resources to a war drive against Russia and China, two big countries that have persistently resisted subordination to Western imperialism.
   

2. This perverse misallocation of resources shows the pathological sickness of the world imperialist system presided over by the United States.

3. The war in Ukraine is being used to massively intensify the West’s anti-Russia campaign. But the blowback from the sanctions regime is destabilising Western Europe and intensifying the suffering of developing countries.

Ukraine war: Negotiations only way forward

 

The Russia-Ukraine war has been raging for over six months. Tens of thousands of soldiers and civilians have died, many more have been wounded and traumatised. Millions have become refugees. The material damage is immense — towns and villages, infrastructure, transport and so on have been smashed up.

Rojava & Turkey’s war on the Kurds

[Education to Melbourne branch of Socialist Alliance, August 2, 2022.]

There are around 40-45 million Kurds — about 20 million in Turkey (a quarter of the population), 10-12 million in Iran, about 8 million in Iraq and 3.5 million in Syria. There is a Kurdish diaspora in Western Europe of as many as 2 million people, about half of them in Germany.

 

In each country they face a struggle for their rights. In Iraq there is the Kurdish Regional Government area but it is controlled by a neo-colonial kleptocracy headed by the Barzani family which colludes with Turkey to keep the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) in check.

 

Stop Turkey’s war on Rojava

 [Speech at a rally in Melbourne on July 23.]

Socialist Alliance joins with you in calling for the United Nations to impose a no-fly zone over the liberated territory of North and East Syria — Rojava — to block a new invasion by Turkey and its Islamist mercenaries.

Open Borders or a First World Fortress?

[From Asylum! A Socialist View of the Refugee Crisis (2022).]

The spectacular August 2021 collapse of the Western puppet government in Afghanistan in the face of the Taliban offensive generated a new wave of people seeking asylum.

Prime Minister Scott Morison made it clear that only Afghans who came through “official channels” would be resettled in Australia. If you come by boat forget it — apparently, making the slightest concession to “boat people” would open the floodgates to the dreaded people smugglers. And none of the 4200 Afghans already here on temporary visas would be permanently settled. Then Defence Minister Peter Dutton weighed in, claiming that some Afghan asylum-seekers could be terrorists or pose a threat to Australia.