Reiterating its positions regarding the situation in Europe and the conflict in Ukraine, the PCP condemns the ongoing escalation of war and militarism, contrary to the interests of the workers and peoples, and warns of the serious dangers that such an escalation entails, in particular to other more global levels of confrontation.
The announced enlargement of NATO to Finland and Sweden not only does not bring security, but also represents a serious heightening of tension in Europe and at the international level. If materialised, it will mean a qualitative leap in the process of enlargement of NATO, which leads to the presence of this political-military bloc close to the borders of the Russian Federation, one of the factors behind the worsening situation in Europe and the current war in Ukraine.
The enlargement of NATO to Finland and Sweden will call into question the traditional neutrality of these two Nordic countries – it should be remembered that the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe, was held in Helsinki, Finland, between 1973 and 1975, and that the principles for relations , security and cooperation were enshrined in its Final Act -, marks a drastic turnaround in their foreign policy which, significantly, is carried out in a hasty way and preventing the peoples of these countries from being able to pronounce on a decision with such disturbing consequences for themselves and for all the other peoples of Europe.
The first enlargement of NATO after the break-up of the Soviet Union took place in 1999, accompanied by NATO’s illegal bombings on Yugoslavia, which brought war to Europe for the first time after World War II and served to impose the disintegration of Yugoslavia.
The five enlargements of NATO since 1999 not only breach commitments made since the end of the German Democratic Republic and its integration into the Federal Republic of Germany, in 1990, but they have also been accompanied by the promotion of forces hostile to the Russian Federation, including openly fascist forces that idolize Nazi collaborationists during World War II. They have also been accompanied by the growth of manoeuvres, deployment of equipment and military provocations increasingly closer to the borders of the Russian Federation.
The enlargement of NATO to Finland and Sweden is not a new issue, determined by a need for security. On the contrary, it continues a process that began in 1994, when Finland and Sweden joined the so-called NATO Partnership for Peace, and as NATO itself points out, both countries have been “one of the most active partners” of this political-military bloc, notably by participating in its occupations in the Balkans, Afghanistan or Iraq.
The announced new enlargement of NATO is accompanied by brutal increases in the military spending of its member countries. The money that allegedly never exists to raise wages, strengthen public health, social security and education systems, or other social investments, is miraculously found to fund warmongering expenses. The increase in spending on the war machine of the NATO powers, in addition to representing an escalation in the dangers of war, will also serve as a pretext for new attacks against the living conditions of workers and peoples.
The PCP stresses that the current escalation of militarism and war is inseparable from the deepening of capitalism’s structural crisis and the refusal of the imperialist powers to accept the reality of a new correlation of forces at the international level. The US and the great powers of the EU seek to counter their relative decline and assert by force a planetary hegemonic domination that no longer corresponds to the new economic realities, as is also evident in the open escalation of the US and its allies against the People's Republic of China, particularly regarding Taiwan.
The PCP deplores the Portuguese government's explicit commitment to this new enlargement of NATO and the escalation of confrontation, in a clear expression of submission to US interests. The Portuguese workers and people know what NATO represented, both when Portugal's accession in 1949 to this aggressive alliance was used to support the fascist dictatorship, and when, right in the middle of the April Revolution, it issued threats against the young Portuguese democracy.
The PCP calls for the strengthening of the struggle for peace, against the escalation of war, the arms race, the increase in military spending, against authoritarianism and the promotion of fascist and fascistic forces, for the end of political-military blocs, for a general , simultaneous and controlled disarmament.
It is up to peoples to have the determining word in the construction of History. It is urgent to stop the path towards the abyss into which imperialism wants to lead Humanity.
