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p Drawing upon Marxism-Leninism and generalising the more than century-long experience of the proletarian class struggle, the Communist Parties have, at their 107 international Meetings in Moscow in 1957 and 1960, collectively charted the general line of the world communist and working-class movement.

p This general line proceeds from an analysis of the nature of the present epoch, from the fact that the world working class and its principal creation, the world socialist system, stand at the hub of this epoch, whose content is the transition from capitalism to socialism. The socialist system is increasingly becoming the decisive factor of human development. Together with the revolutionary working-class movement of the capitalist countries, the national liberation movement and various democratic movements, the peoples building socialism and communism form a single, anti-imperialist revolutionary torrent that is undermining capitalism and establishing the new, socialist and communist society in the world.

p The general line of the world communist movement is that of class struggle and socialist revolution. Communists believe that the revolutionary destruction of capitalism and the establishment of the dictatorship of the proletariat are the means for transition to socialism, and that this transition can, as we have already pointed out, be accomplished in diverse forms.

p The Communist Parties have always been and remain opposed to colonialism. They unconditionally support the national liberation movement, and press for the completion of the democratic, anti-imperialist revolution, the winning of genuine national independence and noncapitalist development.

p Everywhere Communists are active fighters against imperialist reaction, for the democratic liberties and rights of the working people. They regard every anti-imperialist, democratic movement as an ally in the common struggle against capitalism, for socialism and social progress.

p The communist movement is the most humane movement of the present epoch. It regards the struggle for peace and peaceful coexistence of states with different social systems, for the preservation of the lives of millions of people, for the preservation of the material and spiritual values created by working people as one of its paramount tasks. In order to carry out this task the Communists unite the efforts of all peace-loving, anti-imperialist forces.

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p Such is the general line of the present world communist movement. In short, it is a line of revolutionary struggle against capitalism, for the complete triumph of socialism and communism throughout the world, a line of struggle for national independence and democracy, to avert another world war. This line accords with the most cherished aspirations of the working people, with the loftiest human ideals.

p It would be a grave delusion to think that the communist movement develops without contradictions and difficulties. Today, in the same way as decades ago, the Communists have to wage a Herculean struggle not only against the bourgeoisie, against the theoreticians and champions of the bourgeoisie, but also against opportunist trends within their own ranks, against revisionism and dogmatism.

p Just as they used to do before, the revisionists, like the Social-Democratic leaders, renounce the socialist revolution and the proletarian dictatorship, the building of socialism and communism, and slur over the antagonisms of capitalism.

p Arguing that Marxism arose in the 19th century and that we live in the 20th, the modern revisionists say that Marxism has become obsolete, that it must be “specified” and “corrected”, and in so doing they strip Marxism of its revolutionary essence. They claim that the new phenomena of modern capitalist reality, linked up with the growth of state-monopoly capitalism, with capitalist nationalisation and the attempts of the bourgeois state to regulate economic development, are indications that the very foundations of capitalism are changing, that capitalism is drawing ever closer to socialism, that it is “ crawling" into socialism.

p The arguments that present-day capitalism is automatically developing into socialism obviously imply a renunciation of the class struggle, of the socialist revolution, of the dictatorship of the proletariat and of socialism. It is no secret that all the above-mentioned new developments in modern capitalism do not affect the foundations of capitalism—private ownership and exploitation. Capitalism has remained unchanged and it can be transformed into 109 socialism only by a socialist revolution and the proletarian dictatorship.

p Subjectively speaking, the dogmatists and sectarians are for revolution. Moreover, they regard themselves as genuine revolutionaries and press for the immediate destruction of capitalism by a “revolutionary war”. They seek to push the development of the world revolution by force of arms, to impose socialism on nations from without, caring nothing whether the conditions for socialism are ripe in the given country or whether the people of a given country are prepared to accept socialism. They turn a blind eye to the fact that today, when monstrous weapons of destruction are available, a “revolutionary war" against world capitalism will inevitably become a world thermonuclear catastrophe. This war would claim hundreds of millions of lives, wipe entire nations and countries off the face of the earth and civilisation would be thrust far back.

p In spreading views that are incompatible with the spirit of Marxism-Leninism, the dogmatists usually allude to quotations, in particular, from the works of Lenin, who, some half a century ago, wrote that wars are the inescapable fellow-traveller of imperialism. True, the aggressive nature of imperialism has not changed, and it is, therefore, quite possible that the reactionary imperialist forces will try to start another war. But, as nobody can fail to see, this would be much more difficult to do today than before. World peace is guarded by the mighty socialist system, many non-socialist countries and the broad masses. And this has enabled Marxists-Leninists to draw the conclusion that world wars are not inevitable in the present epoch.

p Dogmatism, as we can see, consists of inability and unwillingness to take into account the concrete situation, the changes that have taken place in the world, of blind devotion to obsolete and outworn quotations. Is this not also the substance of revisionism, whose adherents have likewise failed or refused to understand the changes in modern capitalism? The inability to analyse and assess the new situation and to formulate tactics in accordance with this situation is a feature of all kinds of opportunism, from revisionism to dogmatism. The revisionists are 110 against the socialist revolution. The dogmatists clamour for an immediate “world revolution”, which, whether they want it or not, will damage the revolution irreparably. Both the dogmatists and the revisionists thereby bring grist to the mill of the bourgeoisie, and it turns out that revisionism and dogmatism are the two sides of one and the same coin.

p As was noted in the decisions passed by the 23rd Congress of the C.P.S.U., “deviations to the ‘left’ or right of the Marxist-Leninist line are doubly dangerous when associated with nationalism and hegemonistic ambition".

p Differences among Communists are a serious matter, but it does not mean that they are insuperable. They can and must be overcome, because the cohesion of the world communist movement is a key condition for the success of the struggle against capitalism, for socialism and communism.

p Differences among Communists in theoretical and political issues can be settled only on the principled foundation of Marxism-Leninism, of proletarian internationalism. The basis of this unity, which the Communists of the Soviet Union and all other real Marxists-Leninists work with such perseverance to attain, is fidelity to MarxismLeninism, to the cause of the world socialist revolution, the cause of the working class and all other working people.

p Practice, the development of political life itself is an important means of settling differences. These differences, Lenin wrote, are frequently resolved “by those with incorrect opinions going over in fact to the correct path of struggle, under pressure of the course of developments that simply brush aside erroneous opinions, making them pointless and devoid of any interest”. He said that decisions should be verified as frequently as possible in the light of new political developments.  [110•* 

p Inasmuch as the world communist movement embraces equal and independent parties and, inasmuch as in this movement no party can be predominant or subordinated to the domination of another party, the only possible way 111 of resolving outstanding issues is by joint, collective discussion.

p This implies debating the issues, stating and listening to opinions, finding the view of the majority, expressing this majority view in a decision and conscientiously abiding by the decision. That is the road chosen by the international conferences of Communists, at which pressing problems of the day are discussed and agreed decisions are taken on major problems of the revolutionary struggle.

Naturally, differences between Communist Parties cannot be settled at once. Time and patience are required. Moreover, as was noted at the Consultative Meeting of Communist and Workers’ Parties in Moscow in March 1965, it is important to accentuate not differences but points of agreement, to focus attention on finding ways and means enabling all fraternal parties to take joint, co-ordinated action against the common enemy, for the earliest attainment of the common goal.