N° 23 avril 2022 The tragic news of the war in Ukraine focuses all attention on the progress of military operations, on the ordeal civilian populations are going through with already hundreds of deaths,
thousands of wounded, numerous destructions and more than two million refugees added to the eight million Ukrainians who immigrated because of the economic crisis in their country, – a crisis caused by the oligarchy in power which took hold of the country following the dissolution of the USSR, destroying social property for their exclusive benefit. Added to this are the new restrictions on freedoms imposed by the authorities in Russia, while an economic crisis of unprecedented magnitude is looming in Ukraine as in Russia, which will plunge entire sections of the population into deep misery. In two previous articles we have qualified the nature of this war as a war within the imperialist system(1) and we added that the consequences weigh and will weigh heavily and for a long time on nations and peoples(2). These assessments and analyses are born out by the facts. The imperialist powers go to war and the people pay the price(3). However, it is not enough to be satisfied with analyzes and observations however accurate they may be, on the nature of this war. We must without delay lead the political struggle and create the balance of power to put an end to the conflict as quickly as possible by demanding that Russia put an end to its aggression against the sovereign state of Ukraine, while the USA, NATO and the EU must stop using the Ukrainian people as cannon fodder to ensure their domination in Europe. No one can deny the role played by the USA and the EU in supporting the forces which in Ukraine, relying on militarized fascist elements, eliminated through terror the progressive forces and especially the Communist Party(4).
If the war in Ukraine focuses attention, it is because there is the perception that this conflict, the beginnings of which date back to the end of the USSR, is in fact the apparent face of a deeper and wider conflict which can lead to a widespread conflagration. We will add that this conflict concerns the entire capitalist system in the permanent war waged by the monopolies for the control of natural resources, communication channels and the labor force in order to ensure maximum profits. This conflict is exacerbated over time, as it is marked by wars of various kinds: economic wars, blockade, cyberwar, terrorism, dislocation of States as was the case in Iraq, Libya, Yugoslavia… In all cases, the extension of NATO's role in these interventions is flagrant. To analyze the present situation, it is necessary to be aware that we have entered a new stage of capitalist development with an increased concentration of monopolies. The merger of financial, commercial and industrial capital has become the rule on a global scale; thus in 2021, 5815 billion dollars of mergers / acquisitions transactions were recorded, a colossal increase of 63% in 2020. At this stage, the division of the World, its resources and areas of influence is more than ever on the agenda. It concerns all continents, Asia, Europe, America, Africa. French imperialism is also responding to the growing influence of new competitors in the region, such as China and Russia. In the capitalist system, this redistribution which cannot be done without tension and war, leads to increased antagonisms between the greatest capitalist powers. The analysis of all ongoing conflicts shows this. To seek another source of these conflicts is to deliberately want to conceal that the cause of wars is rooted in the system itself, in its need to constantly increase profits and accumulate ever more capital.
Economic sanctions are an element of the war waged by the imperialist powers. By means of sanctions they intend to change the deal by weakening their competitors and increasing their own market. It is one of the weapons used against Russia by the USA and the EU. At the forefront of these sanctions, we find, unsurprisingly, those concerning the circulation of capital and energy. Economic confrontation has always been a major dimension of major military conflicts. This is even more so in a globalized capitalist economy. Let’s recall that although the Russian economy represents only 1.8% of world GDP, it is a major supplier of energy: it provides 13% of world oil production, it was nearly 20% at the end of the 1980 and 17% of world gas production, it was 30% at the end of the 1980s. Although largely in decline, its weight remains significant and is a key element of the current economic confrontation(5) (as regards France, its interests in Russia and Ukraine are not negligible(6)).
Two powers, Russia and China do not accept US domination. China, a rapidly developing capitalist power, firmly intends to position itself in the international competition for the domination of markets and the appropriation of energy and mining sources. China is the designated enemy of the USA whose strategy is organized around the imperative of weakening it. They challenge its power with heavy economic sanctions and the organization in Asia of a military structure with Japan, Australia and... the United Kingdom. EU countries, within the framework of a US-dominated NATO, have followed suit, in turn making China the designated enemy and substantially increasing their military budgets. Russia does not have the economic power of China, but it has considerable oil, gas and mining reserves. It is a US-level military power. Since 1991 despite its promises the USA has not ceased to bring NATO closer to Russia's borders to increase its military pressure on this country. Until the 2014 coup that saw the ousting of oligarch Yanukovych, Ukraine was within Russia's sphere of influence. Since then it has moved into the western camp. Russia has repeatedly called for the neutralization of Ukraine. The USA dismissed the request. Russia, which considers that Ukraine should be part of the Russian Federation, has decided to impose this point of view by invading it. In doing so, Russia has provided the EU states with the airtight pretext for strengthening their military powers in the service of the USA within NATO. Germany has thus decided to considerably increase its expenditure on armaments, in order to play a leading military role in Europe in the future, putting an end to what has been prohibited since 1945. Thus the military conflict in Ukraine is only the visible part of a larger confrontation between the economically and militarily dominant power, namely the USA and its allies (who have chosen to be its vassals) and all the economic and military powers that oppose this domination.
The peoples have nothing good to expect from all this. Their united struggles against imperialism, its denunciation as a warmonger must be their compass. In the immediate term, we call on them to mobilize and lead the political battle by demanding an immediate ceasefire and the opening of negotiations. With the Ukrainian and Russian peoples, let's say stop to the war and its spiral towards a widespread conflict.
(1)https://www.sitecommunistes.org/index.php/monde/europe/1784-ukraine-la-logique-d-escalade-militaire-en-cours-c-est-celle-des-affrontements-au-sein-de-l-imperialisme
(2)https://www.sitecommunistes.org/index.php/monde/europe/1787-ukraine-stop-a-cette-guerre-dont-les-consequences-pesent-et-peseront-lourd-et-longtemps-pour-les-nations-et-les-peuples
(3)https://www.sitecommunistes.org/index.php/france/politique/1791-les-imperialistes-se-font-la-guerre-ce-sont-les-peuples-qui-paient
(4) According to the World Federation of Democratic Youth Mikhail and Oleksandr Kononovitch, leaders of the Communist Youth are currently detained and threatened with execution by a fascist group in Kiev
(5)https://www.sitecommunistes.org/index.php/le-parti/comite-national/1793-rapport-au-comite-national-du-05-mars-2022
(6) Russia is home to 700 French companies employing 200,000 employees with some heavyweights such as Société Générale (2 million customers), LVMH, Hermès, Auchan, Renault (Lada), etc.,Engie is participating in the Nord Stream 2 gas delivery project that Germany finally blocked. A quarter of its hydrocarbon reserves are in Russia and the company Total intends with Russia to exploit gas from the Arctic; but Total also depends on financing from American banks, 30% of its shareholders are US funds, whose first of them is BlackRock. French banks are the leading foreign holders of assets in Russia with 25 billion dollars (3 billion in 2012).
In Ukraine, 160 French companies are present with 50,000 employees. There are still Auchan and Decathlon, Renault and Peugeot, banks (Crédit Agricole, BNP Paribas), agribusiness (Bel, Lactalis, Bongrain, Danone), TotalEnergies.