z al | et Br D ‘economy and _ developing “tote ARETE ilu gues Letter from fraternal parties Letter to the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Czechoslo- vakia from the Central Committee of five fraternal parties in Socialist countries: Dear Comrades! . On behalf of the Central Commit- tees of the Communist and Worker’s parties of Bulgaria, Hungary, the Ger- man Democratic Republic, Poland and the Soviet Union we are applying to you with this letter prompted by 4 feeling of sincere friendship based on the principles of Marxism-Leninism and proletarian internationalism and by the concern for our common affairs, for strengthening the positions of so- cialism and the security of the social- ist community of nations. The development of events in your country evokes deep anxiety in us. It is our deep conviction that the offen- sive to the reactionary forces, backed by imperialism, against your party and the foundations of the social system in the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic threatens to push your country off the road of socialism and that consequent- ly it jeopardizes the interests of the entire socialist system. We expressed these apprehensions at the meeting in Dresden, during re- peated bilateral meetings, as well as in letters which our parties sent in the recent period to the Presidium of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia. Recently we offered the Presidium of the Central Committee of the Com- munist Party of Czechoslovakia to hold a new joint meeting on July 14, this year so as to exchange informa- tion and opinions on the state of af- fairs in our countries, including the development of events in Czecho- slovakia. Unfortunately, the CPC Central Committee Presidium did not take part in this meeting and did not use the opportunity for a collective com- radely discussion of the situation that has developed. That is why we thought it necessary to state to you in this letter, with complete sincerity and frankness, our common opinion. We want you to understand us well and assess correctly our intentions. We neither had nor have an inten- tion to interfere in such affairs which are strictly the internal business Of your party and your state, to violate the principles of-respect, independence and equality in the relations among the Communist parties and Socialist countries. We are not. applying to you as re- presentatives of the past who would like to interfere in the correction Of mistakes and shortcomings, including the violations of socialist law which had taken place. S We are not interfering in the mée- thods of planning and management of the -socialist national economy of Czechoslovakia and in your actions aimed at improving the structure of socialist democracy. . We shall hail the settlement of rela- tions between Czechs and Slovaks on healthy foundations of friendly c0- operation within the framework of the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic. At the same time, we cannot agree to have hostile forces push your coun- try from the road of socialism and create a threat of severing Czecho- slovakia from the socialist community- This is something more than your cause, It is the common cause of all the Communist and Worker’s Parties - and states united by alliance, cooper- ation and friendship. This is the com- mon cause of our countries, which have joined in the Warsaw Treaty to ensure the independence, the peace and security in Europe, and to set up an insurmountable barrier for the intri- gues of the imperialist forces, aggres- the people of our countries gained vic- tory over Hitlerite fascism, won free- dom and independence and an oppor- tunity to follow the road of progress and socialism. The frontiers of the socialist world have moved to the -centre of Europe, to the Elbe and Sumava mountains. And we_ shall never agree to have these historical gains of socialism, independence and security of our peoples being put to threat. We shall never agree to have imperialism, using ways peaceful and non-peaceful, making a gap from the inside or from the outside in the so- cialist system and changing in impe- rialism’s favor ‘the correlation of forces in Europe. The might and firmness of our alli- ances depend on the inner strength of the socialist system in each of our brother countries, on the Marxist- Leninist policy of our parties which dicharged the leading role in the poli- tical and social life of their respective nations and states. Ham-stringing of the leading role of the Communist Party leads to liquidation of socialist democracy and the socialist system. There are thus imperilled foundations of our alliance and the safety of the community of our countries. You are aware of the understanding with which the fraternal parties treat- ed the decisions of the January Plen- ary Meeting of the Central Committee ~ of the Communist Party of Czecho- slovakia, as they believed that your party, firmly controlling the levers of power, would direct the entire process in the interests of socialism and not - let anti-communist reaction exploit it -oyblenary ,Meeting of the Central Com-