p In the modern world, two ideologies—the communist and the bourgeois—are engaged in a struggle of unprecedented acerbity. This contest is a reflection in mankind’s spiritual life of the historical transition from capitalism to socialism.

p The struggle between world socialism and world capitalism is the principal contradiction of the present-day development of the world. It is the same class struggle, waged in all its forms, but now unfolding in the international arena. Growing acerbity is the basic and determining law of its development.

p Lenin said it was a law that the greater the strength of the revolution, the force of its attack, its energy and determination, the more complete its triumph, the more intense the resistance of the reactionaries. He said: “The more victorious we are the more the capitalist exploiters learn to unite and the more determined their onslaught.”  [5•1  He anticipated the inevitable sharpening of the class struggle between socialism and capitalism, when he wrote that capitalism “does not die at once but puts up increasingly furious resistance the closer death approaches”.  [5•2  Today, capitalism naturally has even less to go before its demise than it had half a century ago, when Lenin formulated this important task: “To overcome the capitalists’ resistance in every form, not only military and political, but also ideological, which is the strongest and the most deep-seated.”  [5•3 

p The task has never been more pressing than it is today. The character of our epoch and the lines along which world history has been running have transformed the ideological struggle into the bitterest and most advanced front of the class struggle.

p The law-governed aggravation of the ideological struggle, as a form of class struggle (apart from the general tendencies characteristic of the class struggle as a whole) is determined 6 by the changing relationship between the principal forms of the class struggle at different stages of history and in different conditions.

p At the present stage, while the struggle in the economic competition retains its full importance, the class adversaries of the USSR essentially no longer have any hopes for a collapse of socialism because of economic failure, but are, on the contrary, forced to admit that its economy has been growing ever more efficient. Hopes of vanquishing socialism in a frontal military attack have also been blasted. The Soviet people crushed the monstrous Hitler invasion. That is why imperialism has now turned its attention to making the utmost use of weapons on the ideological front.

p Meanwhile, socialism has been advancing. In 1917, it accounted for less than three per cent of world industrial production, in 1950, for 20 per cent, and in 1968, for roughly 39 per cent.

p This has fully borne out Lenin’s prediction that once the socialist revolution has won out, there would be a vast acceleration in the development of society’s productive forces. In the years of its peaceful labour, the USSR increased its industrial output at an average of 14 per cent a year; for the whole Soviet period the figure is 9.9 per cent, as compared with two to four per cent for the USA, Britain, France and West Germany.

p The community of countries within the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance (CMEA) is the most dynamic industrial area of the world. With 18 per cent of the globe’s territory and 10 per cent of its population, it accounts for almost 32 per cent of its industrial output. The aggregate industrial potential is roughly double that of the Common Market (EEC) and is edging up on that of the USA.

p It is not surprising that the ruling circles of the imperialist powers have devoted vast efforts and resources to subversive political and ideological struggle against the socialist countries, and against the communist and all other democratic movements.

p The ideological struggle in the modern world has also grown more acute in view of the obvious successes scored by the national liberation movement. More than 70 sovereign national states have arisen on the ruins of the colonial empires, and their peoples are now faced with a highly important historical task, namely, to emancipate themselves 7 from economic dependence, to escape from the world capitalist system, and to take the way of non-capitalist development. Lenin was quite right when he said that “the movement of the majority of the population of the globe, initially directed towards national liberation, will turn against capitalism and imperialism”.  [7•1 

p One of the key international problems today which has largely gone to exacerbate the ideological struggle is the choice of way for the liberated countries. Bourgeois ideologists have been trying hard to denigrate socialism, communism and Marxism, and to cover up the new forms of exploitation of the economically lagging countries—the neo-colonialist methods of imperialist enslavement—so as to get these countries to take the capitalist way.

p The growing role of the subjective factor in present-day conditions is another objective law governing the advance of history which is of great importance in sharpening the ideological struggle in the world.

p On the whole, the capitalist system is ripe for socialist revolution, that is, it already has the material prerequisites for revolutionary change. But historical laws do not work automatically, and it takes vigorous and conscious action by masses of people to realise the objective laws of social development. However, the working people’s consciousness in the capitalist countries largely remains under the influence of the alien, hostile ideology of the ruling, exploiting classes, who have been doing their utmost to prevent the working people from sloughing off their spiritual fetters. It will take very intense effort by the progressive social forces and their conscious vanguard—the Communist and Workers’ Parties— to overcome the pressure of reactionary ideas on the consciousness of the masses. This tends to complexify and sharpen the ideological struggle in the capitalist countries.

p In the socialist countries, where development proceeds under a qualitatively new socio-economic formation, the subjective factor has an extremely great part to play in society, with special importance attaching to the tireless struggle against ideas which are alien and hostile to socialism.

p A change of tactics by the class adversaries of socialism has had a direct influence on sharpening the world-wide 8 ideological struggle. The imperialists have ever more frequently resorted to the treacherous tactics of undermining socialism from inside. “They are probing for any weak links in the socialist front, setting their sights on subversive ideological activity within the socialist countries. . ., seeking to sow dissent, to drive wedges between them, to encourage and to fan nationalistic feelings and tendencies.”  [8•1 

p Imperialism seeks to weaken the ideological and political unity of the working people in the socialist countries, relying mainly on the nationalistic and revisionist elements. This active urge to use nationalism and revisionism in the fight against socialism goes hand in hand with ever more overt attempts to shift the centre of gravity of the ideological struggle onto the territory of the socialist countries.

p The sharpening of the ideological struggle is also objectively connected with the complexification of this struggle which ultimately stems from the successes scored by the working-class and international communist movement.

p Another important factor objectively tending to exacerbate the ideological struggle in the world is the well-geared mass media which technical progress has put at the disposal of those who spread ideas. Radio, television and the mass printing of books, newspapers and magazines have enlarged the scale and potentialities of the ideological struggle, and have intensified it to an unprecedented degree.

p Consequently, the sharpening of the ideological struggle in present-day conditions has been quite natural and has been determined by the whole course of the class struggle throughout the world. The growing acerbity of the ideological battles is evidenced by the increasing importance of the subjective factor, the ever fiercer resistance on the part of imperialism, the constant improvement of the forms and methods of this resistance, which includes subtle and extensive use of lies, slander, demagogy, pseudo-scientific conceptions and all sorts of falsifications, the mounting ideological subversion of imperialism against the socialist nations, the revival of revisionism on the Right and on the “Left” and the increasingly active attempts by the imperialists to use it in undermining the ideological-political unity of the 9 socialist community, and the growing scale of the struggle of ideas due to the introduction of ever more powerful technical means.

p In these conditions, it is of especial importance to assimilate Lenin’s ideological legacy, in particular, Lenin’s approach to the problems of ideological struggle. At the turn of the century, Lenin declared that socialist and bourgeois ideology were incompatible, and that this was due to the very nature of ideology as a social phenomenon, and also to the qualitative features of the one and the other.

p In all his activity in criticising views hostile and alien to socialism, Lenin started from the following basic principles: the bringing out of the class content and epistemological principles of various theories, propositions and concepts; the concrete, dialectical approach to the questions of ideological struggle; the attacking attitude; and the close connection between the struggle against the ideology of imperialism and the struggle against opportunism in all its forms and manifestations. These propositions are just as meaningful in our own day.

p The Marxist approach to the questions of the ideological struggle calls for skill in bringing out at every stage the main ideological and political trends which are hostile to the communist cause. Lenin always ranked, alongside the Party’s programme and tactics, its assessment of “... ideological and political trends of the given period, or the most widespread of them, or those which are most harmful for democracy and socialism”.  [9•1 

p Which then are the trends that are most harmful for democracy and socialism today? Relying on the socio- historical practice of our day, the policy-making documents of the CPSU and the international communist movement, and the decisions of the 24th Congress of the CPSU, it is safe to say that such trends are above all anti-communism, including anti-Sovietism; nationalism; the ideology of Right-socialist reformism, and revisionism, both Right and “Left”.

p These are the trends that are aimed against the three decisive forces of the world revolutionary process: the socialist community; the international working-class movement and its communist vanguard; and the national 10 liberation struggle of the peoples. Anti-communism, the chief ideological and political weapon of modern imperialism, is aimed against all these streams of social progress; reformism splits the working-class movement, thereby weakening the anti-monopoly, anti-imperialist front; revisionism (Right and “Left” opportunism) undermines the international communist movement from inside and weakens it. The ideology of reformism and revisionism increasingly coalesces and interacts with anti-communism and nationalism.

p The decisions of the 24th Congress of the CPSU say that the fight against anti-communism and against Right and “Left” revisionism and nationalism continues to be an important and pressing task. The Congress urged an implacable struggle against any trend seeking to subordinate the workingclass movement to the interests of monopoly capital, and to undermine the cause of the working people’s struggle for peace, democracy and socialism. The Congress instructed the CPSU Central Committee to continue pursuing its policy of resolutely resisting the imperialist policy of war and aggression, and exposing and frustrating any schemes hostile to the cause of peace and freedom.

p The 24th Congress of the CPSU demonstrated the abiding importance of the great ideas of internationalism, cohesion and unity of the communist movement, of the socialist community and of all the progressive forces of the world.

p The Central Committee’s Report to the 24th Congress said, in particular, that the Czechoslovakian events were a fresh reminder that under certain conditions the internal antisocialist forces variously remaining in the countries taking the path of socialist construction may become active and may even mount direct counter-revolutionary action in expectation of support from outside, from imperialism, which is always prepared to form blocks with such forces.

p In this context, the danger of Right revisionism was fully brought out. Under the pretext of “improving” socialism it seeks to kill the revolutionary heart of Marxism-Leninism and paves the way for the penetration of bourgeois ideology.

p “It was clear to us,” L. I. Brezhnev said, “that this was not only an attempt on the part of imperialism and its accomplices to overthrow the socialist system in Czechoslovakia. It was an attempt to strike in this way at the positions of socialism in Europe as a whole, and to create favourable 11 conditions for a subsequent onslaught against the socialist world by the most aggressive forces of imperialism.”  [11•1 

p The Central Committee’s Report quoted the following assessment of the importance of the collective assistance of the fraternal states made by a Plenary Meeting of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia in its document, “The Lessons of the Crisis Development”, which said:

p “The entry of the allied troops of the five socialist countries into Czechoslovakia was an act of international solidarity, meeting both the common interests of Czechoslovakia’s working people and the interests of the international working class, the socialist community and the class interests of the international communist movement. This internationalist act saved the lives of thousands of men, ensured internal and external conditions for peaceful and tranquil labour, strengthened the Western borders of the socialist camp, and blasted the hopes of the imperialist circles for a revision of the results of the Second World War.” Having quoted this, L. I. Brezhnev added: “We fully agree with the conclusion drawn by the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia. Life has once again provided convincing evidence that the fraternal unity of the socialist countries is the most reliable barrier against the forces trying to attack and weaken, the socialist camp, to undermine and invalidate the working people’s socialist gains. The peoples of the socialist countries have clearly demonstrated to the whole world that they will not give up their revolutionary gains, and that the borders of the socialist community are immutable and inviolable.”  [11•2 

p The reference to the lessons of the crisis development in Czechoslovakia is due not only to the gravity of those events, but also to the importance of the conclusions drawn by the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia which followed from that analysis. Conclusions like the undeviating observance of the Leninist principles of leadership; measures in overcoming the revisionist and opportunist legacy; measures designed to protect Czechoslovakia’s socialist gains, to consolidate the world’s socialist community, the international ties, and the unity of the communist movement 12 and Czechoslovakia-Soviet brotherhood—all this assures the working people of Czechoslovakia of a radiant path of socialist progress.

p In fact, the main content of the 14th Congress of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia consisted in an examination of the concrete tasks in advancing along this path. At the Congress there was a profound analysis of the halfcentury of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia and it was emphasised that in acute political struggle against revisionist, opportunist and counter-revolutionary forces the Communists of Czechoslovakia learned to distinguish friend from foe, receiving in this struggle internationalist assistance from the fraternal socialist countries.

p In his speech of greetings at the 14th Congress of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia, L. I. Brezhnev stressed that Czechoslovakia’s experience is a fresh reminder that in all their activity in building the new society the Communists of a socialist country have the sacred duty undeviatingly to follow the precepts of Lenin, the revolutionary essence of his doctrine, giving resolute rebuffs to any attempts to distort or falsify Leninism, and to any manifestations of opportunism. It goes without saying that the lessons drawn by the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia from the acute clash with the class enemy are important not only for the further development of Czechoslovakia, but also of the other socialist countries.

p Of great importance for an analysis of the problems of the present-day ideological struggle was the conclusion drawn in the Central Committee’s report at the 24th Congress of the CPSU that questions of democracy are now central to the ideological and political struggle between the socialist world and the capitalist world. At the Congress, L. I. Brezhnev said:

p “Bourgeois ideologists and revisionists raise a hypocritical hue and cry, alleging that we have no democracy. They offer us all sorts of ’advice’ on how to ’improve’ and ’democratise’ socialism. But their concern is not for socialism, of course. They would like to return us to bourgeois practices and, therefore, try to force bourgeois democracy on us, a democracy for exploiters, alien to the interests of the people.”  [12•1 

p The consideration by the 24th Congress of the CPSU of questions arising from the further development of the socialist democracy provided fresh refutation of the inventions of the enemies of socialism. The Congress showed that the political system of Soviet society and the steadily growing initiative of the working people in the Soviet Union are at the service of communist construction. The meaning and content of socialist democracy in the USSR are embodied in the real and ever more active and effective participation by broad masses of people in running the country and social affairs.

The whole system of capitalism is in contradiction with the basic trends of social progress. The very course of social development brings home to ever broader masses of people that socialism has history on its side.