STATEMENT ON THE 2022 NATO SUMMIT

The leaders of the NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) held their annual Summit from June 28 – 30. In contrast to the business-as-usual style summits of the past, this one marked an unprecedented increase in the militarization of the whole of Europe and the expansion of its members particularly in the east against Russia and of its influence in the Indo-Pacific to address the threat of China. This reflects the intensified heightening contradictions between the US-led and Russia-dominant poles of the inter-imperialist system. It also reflected the heightening contradiction between the imperialist class and the masses of the world who held mass protests to expose and oppose NATO as the leading imperialist alliance in the world today.

The NATO Summit was preceded by the G7 meeting of the most powerful US-led imperialist economies (US, Canada, UK, France, Germany, Italy, Japan). Instead of discussing the most pressing needs of the people such as rising commodity prices and the exacerbating climate crisis, the leaders’ only focus was on combating Russia with harsher sanctions and military posturing. Apart from acting as a mere dress rehearsal for the NATO Summit directly afterwards, these actions are meant to pull European countries further away from the Russian economy so as to be more reliant on US-led oil and gas producing countries.

The NATO Summit itself solidified a major increase in NATO’s offensive capabilities. US President Biden hollowly referred to “threats from the east and challenges from the south” as the NATO 2030 strategy described China and Russia as “systemic enemies”. The number of NATO troops on “high alert” will be increased sevenfold to 300,000, the largest since the end of the Cold War. It was determined that over $350 billion have been spent on NATO budgets by its members since 2014 with new plans announced to increase more over the next year.

The US made its own increase to its troop presence in Europe, promising two navy destroyers to the Rota navy base in Spain, bringing the total number now to six. The US army will establish its first permanent troop basing in Poland, add more permanently stationed troops in Germany and Italy, commit troops to Romania and increase rotating troop levels in the Baltic countries.

The most significant development was the welcoming of Sweden and Finland’s application to the alliance. Turkey, a NATO member, had originally opposed their application given the presence of exiled PKK (Kurdistan Workers’ Party) members in their countries. Yet after a phone call from Biden, the three countries signed a trilateral agreement affirming Sweden and Finland’s intent to join NATO and the two countries’ commitment to collaborate closely with Turkey on “anti-terrorism” operations. This exposes the continued role of the US as the commander in chief of NATO while clarifying the alliances’ inherent counterrevolutionary character.

The presence of South Korea, Japan, Australia and New Zealand is a harrowing reminder that, despite its name, NATO’s influence expands far beyond the North Atlantic as the US-led war machine sinks its talons further into the Indo-Pacific to defend its weakening existence.

The people of the world are making clear their rejection of this decrepit relic of the Cold War past. An estimated five thousand people marched in the streets of Madrid under the calls of “No to NATO!” and “Bases Out!”, with multiple gatherings and counter-conferences held to discuss the way forward given this increased consolidation of the imperialist forces.

ILPS members joined in these demonstrations along with other members of the International Coordinating Network on a European Peace and Justice tour as part of the Fight Against Imperialist Wars campaign. The League and all genuine anti-imperialist forces are one with the people in demanding the dismantling of NATO. Only a mass movement has the power to free the people from the conditions of endless war!

Signed by:
Len Cooper
ILPS Chairperson
July 2, 2022