Join the next Red Ant public discussion

Saturday 13 July, 3pm (AEST)
Online via Zoom:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86181547493?pwd=TsjNR1QT4exMPSvIvy41BkAy8qZbFG.1
Meeting ID: 861 8154 7493
Passcode: 027614

Speakers:

Xiong Jie (Shanghai)
Researcher at the Tricontinental: Institute for Social Research and director of the Global South Study Center at the International Communication Research Institute, East China Normal University.

China: The Primary Enemy of Polarised Imperialism
In response to the “China Threat Theory”, which has been widely exaggerated by the Western media, and the rising situation in the Taiwan Strait, Xiong will introduce the historical lineage of the Taiwan issue, and further analyse the core contradiction in today’s world: the fact that imperialism is entering into a new stage of development – Hyper-imperialism. The Hyper-imperialist bloc led by the United States sees the peacefully rising China as the most important enemy to contain, thus creating tensions in the entire East Asia region. There is no basis for calling China “imperialist”.

Sam King (Melbourne)
Editor at red-ant.org and author of Imperialism and the Development Myth: How the Rich Countries Dominate in the Twenty-First Century, Manchester University Press (2021).

What is the Marxist definition of Imperialism? And is China really “imperialist” for Marxists?The mass media in Australia and the United States is carrying on a years-long hysterical and racist campaign to demonise China as a brutal, aggressive threat. This anti-China outlook reflects the foreign policy consensus of Australia, the USA and other imperialist states. They are attempting to isolate and weaken China, and to deny the Chinese people their right to develop. After years of hysteria, the majority of people in Australia – even some who self-describe as socialist – now think it’s obvious that China is “imperialist”.

But Marxist theory has a different definition of “imperialism” to that of the capitalist establishment. China does not fit that criteria. The world is still controlled by the same small club of super-rich countries (including Australia) that have dominated for more than 100 years. These countries still exploit and dominate the whole world – including China. It is their aggression and exploitation – not China’s essentially defensive responses – that explains the current conflict with China.

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