The following is a greeting to the 2002 World Conference against A & H Bombs, held Aug. 2-9 in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, from the National Committee of the Communist Party USA.
The Communist Party USA sends its warmest solidarity greetings to the 2002 World Conference against A & H Bombs, and wishes the conference the greatest success.
Today, most people hope fervently for a world free of nuclear and other mass-destruction weapons. But the challenges to winning such a world are greater than ever. Following the tragic events of Sept. 11, the U.S. administration of President George W. Bush has launched a savage, many-sided international offensive under the guise of a “war against terror.”
Your annual conference symbolizes the growing determination of the world’s peoples to build the broadest coalition to turn back that danger and win a world of peace, economic and social justice.
The U.S. administration has unilaterally abrogated the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty – the keystone of nuclear arms agreements – as it drives to revive Star Wars and weaponize space. It has announced it is targeting seven countries including Russia and China with nuclear weapons. It has explicitly stated a first-strike policy, and in an unprecedented move, has said it would use nuclear weapons against non-nuclear states. The Pentagon is escalating its development of new types of nuclear weapons.
The United States, the world’s first and by far most powerful nuclear power, is the only country to have used nuclear weapons. The devastation of Hiroshima and Nagasaki was a war crime that terrorized hundreds of thousands of innocent victims. Its consequences are felt to this day. Now, the people of Japan play a very special role in the worldwide struggle against nuclear arms.
The danger that nuclear weapons will be used again is greatly increased by the Bush administration’s aggressive policies, including its war in Afghanistan, its threatened military assault on Iraq, its expansion of military bases around the world, and its wholehearted support for the Sharon government’s efforts to crush the Palestinian people. Even the nuclear threat arising from the tension between India and Pakistan has its roots in U.S. foreign and nuclear policy.
Though today the United States is by far the world’s greatest military power, the Bush administration’s drive for unending war can and must be turned back. The objective basis for a broad global front against the policies of the Bush administration is growing, as throughout the world multi-class and social forces are finding new ways to link arms against U.S. imperialism. Here at home, that broad coalition must defeat the forces of the extreme right and turn U.S. government policy away from war and destruction, and toward fulfilling human needs. The Communist Party USA is intensifying its effort, together with others, to build that broad front for peace and democracy.
Again, dear friends, the CPUSA wishes the 2002 World Conference against A & H Bombs the greatest success in your global life-preserving mission to remove forever the looming threat of nuclear destruction.
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