New features highlight
Canada and the world

Soviet proposals

Fight for disarmament

In preparing for this Central
Committee meeting, we based
ourselves on the fact that the
analysis at our last Central
Committee meeting stands up

should focus on are some new
features and new develop-
ments since that meeting. Among
these is the present stage of the
struggle for nuclear disarmament.

The Soviet Union, through Com-
rade Gorbachev, advanced various
proposals which, if implemented,
could begin the process of the elim-

quite well. Therefore, what we °

ination of nuclear weapons in the
world.

These included a_ unilateral
moratorium on nuclear testing which
the USA and some of its NATO allies
rejected. The Soviet Union, again
through Comrade Gorbachev, has
since then proposed that the USA
and the Soviet Union eliminate
intermediate nuclear arms (INF)
from Europe. This proposal, like
others before it, was welcomed by
people everywhere who saw it as an
important step towards the elim-
ination of nuclear weapons in
Europe and an opening to the elim-
ination of nuclear weapons on a
world-wide scale.

The U.S. administration and its
NATO allies also seemed to wel-
come the proposal to eliminate INF.
But since then, there have been
consistent efforts to obstruct and
prevent an agreement. Despite all
the efforts of the Soviet Union to
meet the U.S. and its NATO allies
half way, so as to come to an agree-
ment on the elimination of nuclear
weapons from Europe, these
governments continue to drag their
feet and advance obstacles to an
agreement. It should be clear to all
those concerned with peace and an
end to the threat of nuclear war that
strong forces in the USA and in
Western Europe are opposed to the
elimination of nuclear weapons.

The continued resistance by
imperialism to measures lead-
ing to nuclear disarmament
makes it more necessary than
ever for all forces of peace, so-
cialism, national liberation, the
working people of the capitalist
world and the mass democratic
movement of the people to
unite their forces in the drive for
arms control and the elimination of
nuclear arms from the world.

Our Party has called for joint ac-
tion by Communist and Workers
parties to achieve these objectives.
We believe this objective is more ur-
gent than ever. The forces clinging to
nuclear arms, who refuse to give up
nuclear arms, can and must be iso-
lated and defeated. The elimination

of nuclear arms is the only guarantee’

for the complete abolition of nuclear
war.

The elimination of INF would be a
first important step in that direction.
Possibilities exist for achieving this
aim. But this depends upon the
people, particularly in Western
Europe, in the USA and Canada.
The peace movement has a special
responsibility here to combine its ef-
forts at making Canada a NWEZ, op-
position to Star Wars, an end to U.S.
Cruise missile testing on Canadian
soil, with support for eliminating
INF from Europe.

On the issue of submarines in the
Arctic, the Mulroney government
has been quite irresponsible,
pretending there is a Soviet threat to
Canada’s sovereignty in the North
while closing its eyes to the real
threat to Canada’s sovereignty —
from U.S. imperialism.

The alleged Soviet threat has been
the cover under which to fasten U.S.
control over the Canadian economy
and now over Canada’s North. It is
in Canada’s interests to put an end to
this so-called ‘‘threat’’, and for

Canada to assert its independence in
all fields.

In connection with this, it would
be useful to draw attention to a
Statement adopted by the CEC
sometime ago but inadevertently
never published. (See statement en-
dorsed by the Central Committee
and published in the May 25 issue of
the Canadian Tribune.)

The tendency to military-oriented
production seen now in the latest
proposal to spend $5-billion on the
production of nuclear powered sub-
marines emphasizes the need for
energetic action for a peace econ-
omy, for civilian production.

What we said at our last CC meet-
ing with reference to the interven-
tionist policies of the Reagan Admin-
istration in Central America, Chile,
South Africa and the Middle East
remains valid. Everything possible
must be done to help extend and
strengthen the solidarity movements
on these and other fronts.

e Continued on next page

PACIFIC TRIBUNE, JUNE 3, 1987 e S1