To mark the one-year anniversary of the outbreak of the war in Ukraine, the World Socialist Web Site and the International Youth and Students for Social Equality are sponsoring a round-table discussion to explain the present situation and elaborate a socialist and internationalist strategy to end the war.
On the eve of the anniversary, the US and NATO powers are moving evermore openly toward a direct war with Russia. Biden’s trip to Kiev and his speech in Poland this week were intended to deliver the unambiguous message: The US-NATO are fully committed to the military defeat of Russia. All resources will be deployed to achieve this aim, up to and including ground troops. The world stands closer to a full-scale conflict between nuclear powers than at any point since the 1960s.
The evolution of the war has exposed the lie, relentlessly promoted by the imperialist powers and capitalist media, of an “unprovoked war.” The Putin regime’s invasion of Ukraine was reactionary and reckless, launched to defend the interests of the Russian oligarchy. However, the war was instigated by the US and NATO powers with the aim of pursuing longstanding aims.
The war must be opposed and the drive to World War III stopped! A strategy for workers and youth must be based on an understanding of its root causes and consequences: What is the historical background to the war? What are the geopolitical interests driving the US and the NATO powers? What social and political factors shaped the Putin regime’s decision to invade Ukraine? What is the relationship between the war and the growth of the class struggle throughout the world?
In this roundtable discussion, leading members of the International Committee of the Fourth International and the International Youth and Students for Social Equality will discuss these issues and elaborate a strategy for the working class and youth to put an end to imperialist war.
The discussion will be broadcast live, with an opportunity for questions to be submitted by viewers. Readers can also submit questions in advance of the meeting via Slido
here.
Speakers:David North is chairman of the International Editorial Board of the WSWS and the Socialist Equality Party (US).
Nick Beams is the former national secretary of the SEP (Australia) and WSWS writer specialising in Marxist political economy.
Christoph Vandreier is chairman of the Sozialistische Gleichheitspartei (Socialist Equality Party) in Germany.
Andre Damon is a WSWS writer specialising in geopolitics and US imperialism.
Clara Weiss is a WSWS writer specialising in Eastern European history and politics.
Moderators:Joseph Kishore is the national secretary of the Socialist Equality Party (United States).
Andrea Peters is a sociologist and WSWS writer whose work focuses on the Soviet Union and Russia.
