On 17 June Boris Johnson again made a flying visit to Kiev. On his return, he spoke about the fact that ‘we need to steel ourselves for a long war’. This is the same line as that used by NATO Secretary General Stoltenberg, who was reported as saying the conflict could last for years. The consequences of this for the international working class are dire, with continuing attacks on living standards exacerbated by the ongoing rises in fuel and food costs and the possibility of escalating military conflict across Europe. Stoltenberg declared that Ukraine had to be supported, ‘even if the costs are high, not only for military support but also because of rising energy and food prices’.
The British ruling class knows that there is the potential for growing opposition to the war. Johnson articulated this when he warned against ‘Ukraine fatigue’ setting in. He acknowledged that Russia was making slow advances in the Donbas: ‘It would be a catastrophe if Russian President Vladimir Putin were able to secure cities in the south of Ukraine and the Donbas’. He promised more military and training support from Britain. The new head of the British army, General Sir Patrick Sanders, went a step further when he declared: ‘There is now a burning imperative to forge an army capable of fighting alongside our allies and defeating Russia in battle’.
Inter-imperialist rivalry
The underlying crisis of capitalism, accelerated by the Covid pandemic, is driving the imperialist countries to war. The US, with British imperialism attempting to assert itself as an independent player at its shoulder, is driving the conflict with Russia. European imperialism has thrown its weight behind NATO and the US agenda, but tensions remain under the surface.
At the beginning of June, French President Emmanuel Macron reiterated his position that Russia should not be humiliated by NATO – ‘We must not humiliate Russia so that the day when the fighting stops we can build an exit ramp through diplomatic means’. This underlying unease, amongst not just some of the European ruling class, but also the majority of countries in Latin America, Africa and Asia, about the direction the war in Ukraine is heading was articulated by Pope Francis at the beginning of June in an extraordinary article in the Catholic publication La Civilta Cattolica.
His comments included his view that ‘a few years ago it occurred to me to say that we were living a Third World War in pieces. Now, for me, the Third World War has been declared.’
He said it was simplistic and wrong to say that he was siding with Russia. ‘I am simply against reducing complexity to the distinction between good and evil, without thinking about the roots and interests, which are very complex’. He went on to say that perhaps Russia’s invasion of Ukraine was ‘provoked or not prevented’: ‘What we have before our eyes is a situation of world war, of global interests, of arms sales and geopolitical appropriation, which is martyring a heroic people’.
These serious comments from the Pope were in direct contrast to the pro-NATO ramblings of many apparently ‘left-wing’ commentators, including Paul Mason, Owen Jones and the so-called Marxist Slavoj Zizek. Writing in The Guardian on 21 June, Zizek expressed the warmongering views of sections of the middle class, calling for more support for NATO and all-out support for Ukraine. According to his version of reality, which is the same as the far right, Russia and Putin are attempting to dismantle Europe and have to be stopped now.
Ukrainian government officials have admitted that the Ukrainian military is sustaining heavy losses with estimates ranging from between 100 to 200 men killed each day and hundreds wounded. 10,000 Ukrainian soldiers have reported to have been killed since the start of the war. Russia also has over 5,500 prisoners of war.
To bolster the Ukrainian military both the US and European imperialists have been pledging even more arms. On 15 June the newly formed Ukraine Defence Contact Group met. At its meeting, US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin announced that Biden had approved a $1bn security assistance package for Ukraine. This will include multiple launch rocket system munitions, 18 more Howitzers and the tactical vehicles to tow them, and 36,000 rounds of ammunition. It also includes two additional Harpoon Coastal Defence Systems and thousands of secure radios, night vision devices, thermal sights and other optics. Germany also pledged to provide three multiple-launch rocket systems with a supply of guided rockets.
NATO military trainers have also directly trained around 1,000 Ukrainian military personnel in the use of some of the advanced weaponry that has been supplied.
The Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Mark Milley said, in response to criticism from the Ukrainian military of a lack of military hardware, that since the start of the Russian invasion, the Ukrainians had asked for 10 battalions of artillery but that ‘twelve battalions of artillery were delivered’. The contact group has also delivered 97,000 anti-tank systems. ‘That’s more than there are tanks in the world,’ he said.
As a further public expression of European support for Ukraine, on 16 June French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi traveled together on a special train to Kiev to meet with Zelensky. In Kiev, Romanian President Klaus Johannis joined the party. One of the main announcements made by these leaders was their support for a rapid process that would bring Ukraine into EU membership.
On 20 June Lithuania, an EU and NATO member, announced a ban on the passage of Russian goods sanctioned by the EU through its territory to the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad. Kaliningrad, which is bordered by Lithuania and Poland, is reliant on supplies from Russia which predominantly come by road and freight train via the Belarus corridor. The ban will cut off half of all goods coming into the territory, as well as Kaliningrad’s only oil pipeline from Russia. This is a dangerous major escalation in the direct confrontation between NATO and Russia.
What lies behind the proxy war with Russia is the US’s looming conflict with China. On 26 May US Secretary of State Antony Blinken made a wide-ranging speech on China, amongst the talk of diplomacy and living together he articulated US imperialism’s real view on China and the threat it poses to US domination of the world’s economy,
‘Even as President Putin’s war continues, we will remain focused on the most serious long-term challenge to the international order – and that’s posed by the People’s Republic of China.
‘China is the only country with both the intent to reshape the international order and, increasingly, the economic, diplomatic, military, and technological power to do it. Beijing’s vision would move us away from the universal values that have sustained so much of the world’s progress over the past 75 years.’
Bob Shepherd
NATO will be presenting its 2022 Strategic Concept at a summit at the end of June in Madrid. Stoltenberg has already said that it will for the first time address the issue of China. Our next issue of FRFI will carry a full analysis.
