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ter-revolution furnish reaction with
opportunities of working towards the
abolition of socialism. On the basis of
an analysis of the facts and phenome-
na occurring in the Czechoslovak So-
cialist Republic, the fraternal parties
emphasized that a broad-scale on-
slaught against socialism was being
effected in Czechoslovakia, with the
forces of counter-revolution playing
the most active role in the affair. In
the implementation of this anti-social-
ist offensive, external imperialist forc-
es, the forces of counter-revolution and
Right-wing revisionist elements in the
Communist Party of Czechoslovakia
objectively converged. —

In endeavoring to support their bro-
thers-Communists and all the working
people of the Czechoslovak Socialist
Republic and averting a dangerous turn
of events in Czechoslovakia, the Com-
munist and Workers’ Parties of the s0-
cialist countries applied every means
to this end. Such was the aim of the
Cierna-nad-Tissou Meeting between
the Politbureau of the CPSU Central
Committee and the Presidium of the
Central Committee of the Communist
Party. of Czechoslovakia and of the
Bratislava Conference of the represen-
tatives of six Communist and Workers
Parties of the socialist states that fol-
lowed. At these meetings the represen-
tatives. of the Central Committee of
the Communist Party of Czechoslo-
vakia gave assurances that they would
take urgent and concrete measures to
stabilize the situation in the country
and to. consolidate and defend social-
ist gains. But after the Cierna Meet-
ing and the Bratislava Conference the
leading bodies of the Czechoslovak
Socialist Republic did nothing to re-
buff counter-revolution, while the
Right-wing’ anti-socialist forces inten-
sified their activities still further.
These forces set themselves quite defi-
nite aims: to deprive the Communist
Party of Czechoslovakia of its leading

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‘role in the development of a socialist

society—for which purpose they
launched a wide-scale offensive against
the Party’s prestige and a vicious cam-
paign of slander and falsehood against
the Party; to corrupt the Communist
Party and socialist society of Czecho-
slovakia and push them off the ideolo-
gical platform of scientific commu-
nism onto the path of reformism and
social democracy—which was why they
mounted attacks on Marxism-Lenin-
ism as an integral and creative teach-
ing and assailed Leninism; to change

_ the political framework of the Czecho-

slovak Socialist Republic by moving it
off the socialist platform onto the
track of social democracy towards a
bourgeois republic.

The accomplishment of these aims
would fully accord with imperialist
interests. It is precisely for this, and
no other reason, and not out of any

- sudden love for socialism and demo-

cracy and for the working people of
Czechoslovakia, that the alarming de-

-velopments in Czechoslovakia have

been so vigorously supported by the
imperialists and their propaganda ma-
chine.

After the Cierna Meeting and the
Bratislava Conference the Right-wing
counter-revolutionary forces intensi-
fied activities. The anti-socialist forces
organized drives to collect signatures
to petitions demanding the disband-
ment of the workers’ militia. These
drives were accompanied by rallies and
demonstrations of an anti-socialist na-
ture . Communist speakers at thése
meetings were rudely forced to leave
the floor and even manhandled. A ra-
bid, anti-socialist campaign has again
been launched in the press. The harsh
persecution which reaction unleashed
against the 99 Avto-Praha . workers
solely for their having boldly risen for
the defense of the socialist gains of the
working class and of the friendship be-

tween the peoples of Czechoslovakia

and the USSR is common knowledge.
With. the assault on ‘the offices of the
secretariat of the Central Committee
of the Communist Party of Czechoslo-
vakia in Prague, the rampage of the
past few days reached its peak.

The Cierna-nad-Tissou Meeting dis-
closed a Stratification of forces in the
Presidium of the Central Committee of
the Communist Party of Czechoslo-
vakia. While the minority of Presid-
ium members headed by A. Dubcek
came out openly from Right-wing op-
portunistic positions, the majority
adopted a stand of principle and de-
clared that decisive action was neces-
sary against the reactionary anti-
socialist forces, against connivance
with reaction.

But the Right-wing revisionist ele-
ments .within the leadership of the
Communist Party and government of
Czechoslovakia prevented action reach-
ed at Cierna-nad-Tissou and Bratisla-
va for protecting the positions of so-
cialism in Czechoslovakia, combating
the anti-socialist forces and rebuffing
the intrigues of imperialism. Professing
for purposes of camouflage a desire to
defend socialism, these men were actu-
ally trying to gain time while conniv-
ing with counter-revolution. As the
upshot of their treacherous perfidy the
socialist gains of Czechoslovakia are
genuinely threatened. Dyed-in-the-wool
reaction has emerged into the politi-
cal arena in Czechoslovakia.

“The extremist forces,” says a group
of members of the Central Committee
of the Communist Party of Czechoslo-
vakia, the government and the Na-
tional Assembly of the Czechoslovak
Socialist Republic in their appeal,
“turned a deaf ear to all party appeals,
and are stepping up their wrecking ac-
tivities in an effort to precipitate the
conflict at any cost.” At stake was
everything that the working people of

the Czechoslovak Republic have creat- -

ed over the past 20 years, all
achievements of socialism, Threat
were not only Czechoslovakia’s
gress along the road of socialig;
mocracy, which the people og
Czechoslovak Republic took in
ary, but also the very foundatig,
socialism, the Republic itself.

The atmosphere thus createg
totally unacceptable to the socia}j,
tions. It was necessary to act’ iy
atmosphere, act purposefully an,
cisively, without delay. It is pre,
for this reason that the Soviet
and the other socialist states re
to satisfy the request made b :
and state leaders of the Czeecho
Socialist Republic to provide th
ternal Czechoslovak people With
ent assistance including he]
armed force. E

All the socialist nations ho}
destiny of socialist Czechos)c
close to heart. They cannot te
the prospect of their common a
jolting Czechoslovakia off the oa

_ road and creating the danger of

ating it from the socialist com

~The peoples of our countries ha

too heavy a price and shed to
blood in the hard battle of t
war and in the struggle for so :
national emancipation to allo
ter-revolution to pluck Czecho
out of the family of the socialise:
The defense of socialism in a
slovakia is not only the concer |
people of that country; it ie
question of defending the pogj )
world socialism. It is precisely s
reason that we are supporting
ples of Czechoslovakia in the &
of the gains of socialism. By r
fraternal internationalist sup,
our Czechoslovak people, we Be
charging our internationalist Obn
and duty to them and to the _
tional communist working cy :
national liberation movement =

this duty comes before everythin,

ci