Portuguese Communist Party

Statement by the Political Commission of the PCP
on the international situation


1. In reaffirming its clear-cut condemnation of yesterday's terrorist
attacks in the United States and renewing its feelings of respect for the
pain and mourning of the families of the victims and of the American
people, the PCP considers it its duty to emphatically draw attention to
the
obvious looming dangers of a worsening of international tension and of the
world situation.

2. In effect, the statements by President Bush and other members of his
Administration, as well as those by other heads of Government of NATO
member countries indicate the clear intention of, under the pretext of
fighting terrorism - which in some cases is led by former US allies and
stooges - stepping up and heightening arbitrary and aggressive policies in
international relations which are hostile to the rights of peoples and the
sovereignty of nations, which violate the United Nations' Charter and
International Law, are based on a permanent resort to force, on financial
domination, on an unjust world economic order and are geared towards a new
arms race.

3. To the already sufficient condemnation of terrorism (be it carried out
by groups or factions, or by States) for reasons of principle, it is
legitimate to add a condemnation for political reasons, since it serves
precisely as a pretext for the US Administration to discredit and diminish
support for the just struggles of peoples, to cover up the long list of
crimes and aggressions committed by the USA and its allies in actions
which
are an affront to the UN Charter (recall the many thousands of deaths from
the attacks against Iraq, Yugoslavia, the Palestinian people), to
legitimise the role of the United States as masters and policemen of the
world.

4. Faced with the immense dangers of a deterioration in the world
situation, in the context of the political, ideological and military
exploitation of yesterday's attacks, the PCP considers it indispensable to
undertake a strong and determined mobilization of world public opinion and
to ensure a responsible attitude by States and Governments in putting an
end to the spiral of violence and concentrating efforts on the political
solution of problems and conflicts which are prominently contributing to
the current international tension.


September 12, 2001
The Political Committee of the PCP's Central Committee