p Dear Comrades,

p Allow me to greet all of you sincerely and fraternally on behalf of the People’s Vanguard Party of Costa Rica.

p The main purpose of this Meeting is to find the way to cement the unity of the world revolutionary .movement. That is a high-minded and profoundly humane task, because it is through unity, unity forged on the basis of the military, economic and ideological might of the socialist camp headed by the Soviet Union, that the revolutionary movement can safeguard mankind from a calamity unseen in history.

p Given genuine faith in revolution, given genuine devotion to it, unity may be achieved on the basis of a correctly formulated platform of struggle. If this genuine faith is lacking, if revolutionary conscience gives place to underhand designs, then unity will not be achieved until the enemy or enemies of this unity are crushed.

p The Document drafted by the Preparatory Committee is a good one. It can play a positive role in the fight for unity, and we support it. At the same time, we should prefer it to be more lucid, to be less vacillating in its approach to the big problems of the present revolutionary movement. It is incomprehensible, for example, why we should keep silent about the policy of the present leaders of the Chinese Communist Party, who are surreptitiously co-operating with imperialism. Not only are these gentlemen prodding China towards a war with the Soviet Union (that is just what imperialism is after), but also trying to poison the minds of the backward masses throughout the world with crude falsifications of Marxism-Leninism. It is foolish to expect unity with people who have adopted this posture. They do not want unity. They laugh at unity. In fact, they;have unity with US imperialism. Unity with the Chinese Communist Party will not be achieved until it relieves itself of the present leadership. Unity with the Chinese people will not be achieved until it is led by a genuinely Marxist-Leninist Party. There can be no unity with those who create a front of struggle on the borders of the Soviet Union, knowing that this facilitates the aggressive designs of German-American imperialism. An uncompromising ideological struggle must be waged against them; they must be exposed before the eyes of the democratic forces of the world, compelling them thereby to 466 retreat. And that struggle, we hold, should be begun in this Document.

p While we do not call in question the character of the Document in its present form, we must declare openly that we do not believe in achieving unity by literary subterfuge. Fictitious unity is not unity at all, but self-deceit. What really counts is true militant unity based on revolutionary principles. That alone can be a factor uniting the progressive and revolutionary forces of the world. Certainly, we imply the unity of the communist movement. Joint action with the other, non*communist forces, .is a different question.

p There have been references here to tactics. We agree that the movement needs flexible and bold tactics more than ever before. However, this does not mean that we should sit back idly in face of an adversary determined to continue striking at us, employing the foulest means. In the highly expressive vernacular of our country that is called "struggle by a tethered donkey against a free tiger". That sort of struggle is not for us. We are neither donkeys nor philistines.

p There are also differences of another, kind, which shall never stand in the way of our unity. These concern’the conception of the revolutionary struggle waged by each of our Parties ifi" its -respective country and what forms of struggle should be applied in each specific case. However, these differences have nothing to do with the basic points—:the need to fight imperialism unto victory, the need to extirpate the capitalist system and to build socialism. The Communist Parties in Latin America encounter problems of a dual nature: some are specific for each country, others are common to the entire continent. As regards the former, we shall always employ methods we think are best suited for the place and concrete time in history.. As regards the latter, we shall of course adhere to the common line, I am sure, for example, that if imperialism ventured one day to put into effect its plans of attacking Cuba, Latin American Communists of all generations would be ready to lay down their lives in defence of the Cuban revolution. We should not be rebuked for following tactics in our countries that may differ from what some think is right. We veteran Latin American Communists know the inside of jails, we have experienced persecution and exile. All of us have shown our capacity for sacrifice in the name of our cause.

p Allow me to go on to another point related to the substance of this intervention.

p We disagree with the comrades from Australia, Spain and Italy as regards their conception of principled policy in relation to certain concrete problems. Oar conception is different. We hold that principles should not be viewed abstractly or applied mechanically. Even bourgeois ideologists never apply them thus. They subordinate everything to safeguarding their exploiter regime, while we should subordinate everything to the aim of smashing imperialism, safeguarding peace and building socialism.

p To elucidate oxir viewpoint more clearly, I shall try to show how we interpret some of the internationally important events still giving rise to differences of opinion.

p To begin with, we never lose sight of the fact that imperialism is keeping the world on the brink of war, that it is hatching war, intriguing continuously in order to start a war. With the help of money and the police imperialism manages to penetrate into most unexpected areas. Its skilful subversive activity 467 is usually conducted in secret from the masses. In the circumstances, any abstract application of principles is intolerable, because they may then become an obstacle to our cause.

p That was what we were guided by in relation to the events in Czechoslovakia. At the same time, we saw that President Johnson was stepping up the criminal escalation of the war against the people of Vietnam, deaf to the protests of world opinion, to the strong warnings of the Soviet Union and other socialist countries. We saw, too, how Indonesia and Greece fell prey to military juntas, fanatical anti- Communists and shameless Pentagon lackeys. We were witness to Israel’s perfidious attack on the Arab countries and saw behind Israel’s back the powerful, threatening and blood-stained fist of the imperialists. We saw how German generals in collusion with Americans held dangerous manoeuvres in Eprope. Last but not least, we saw how the agents of imperialist powers endeavoured to subvert the security of-the socialist countries by means of a plan drawn up in the United States Senate. And seeing all this, we realised :clearly that the hour had come to block imperialism’s path in, the, most energetic way, to prevent it from buttressing its positions in Europe, tcj_: make it understand that it cannot continue with impunity the drive towards war, It was on this basis that we worked out our policy. The socialist world was obliged to take, and did take, measures to safeguard the revolution and world peace. That did not go against any of our principles, because, as has been pointed out, our basic principles in this alarming time for all mankind boil down to blocking the imperialist offensive, thwarting its plans of a nuclear war and safeguarding peace and the integrity of the socialist camp. We should be naive men indeed if we were to follow the principles of the bourgeoisie which they try to dress up.

p Imperialism has been driven into a corner, yet disposes still of considerable resources and has never been more dangerous precisely because of its difficulties.

p The prospects of smashing imperialism would still be very remote without the military and economic power of the socialist world headed by the Soviet Union, It is beyond any question that the Soviet Union and the other socialist countries are in the firing line and constitute the prime bastion of revolution.

p The imperialists are perfectly well aware of this, and aim their fire against the Soviet Union and the entire socialist camp. At the present stage, slander and divisive manoeuvres are their chief weapon. But subsequently they may resort to arms of destruction.

Let us not fool ourselves and justify certain tactics by means of various dodges. We must lose no time and rally the ranks of the world revolutionary movement round the Soviet Union and the socialist camp .as a whole. ,Tn conclusion, I wish to declare our most fervent assent to all the three documents submitted for our consideration—the Appeal in Defence of Peace, the statement on solidarity with the Vietnamese people and the address on the centenary of Lenin’s birth.

p ,,,

p Expressing the thoughts of my Party and all progressive mankind, I .should like to pronounce:

p Glory to the people of Vietnam, the pride of the revolution and all mankind!

Glory to Lenin, the greatest humanist arid unsurpassed leader of the revolution!