KOREANS RAISE QUESTION OF VIETNAM AT BULGARIAN CP CONGRESS
The Ninth Congress of the Bulgarian Communist party, which was held in Sofia November 14-19, was a rather cut-and-dried affair that stirred little interest among Communist circles. However, a militant note in relation to the war in Vietnam was sounded by Huh Suk Sun, the head of a fraternal delegation from the Korean Workers party. ;
The escalation of American aggression in Asia, he declared, has transcended the immediate struggle in Vietnam itself. He cited a number of new moves by the Pentagon in Korea. In face of the mounting danger, he appealed for more effective aid to the Vietnamese freedom fighters and the beleaguered Democratic Republic of Vietnam.
The speech by Huh Suk Sun was of special interest as an expression of a "third" tendency in the official international Communist movement, a grouping including the leaders of Cuba, Korea and to some degree Vietnam. They are pressing for a resolute stand, coupled with a united front in action, among all the anti-imperialist and anticapitalist forces in order to put a speedy halt to American aggression.
In the first part of his speech, Huh Suk Sun gave high praise to the Bulgarian Communist party and the achievements registered in Bulgaria since capitalism was overturned there. He then went on to present the Korean view on the war in Vietnam. This part of his speech was as follows:
"Comrades,
"Of late the U.S.-led imperialists are gravely harassing peace everywhere in the world, while opposing the socialist countries and suppressing the national liberation movement.
"The U.S. imperialists are further escalating their war of aggression in Vietnam.
"They have already drawn into South Vietnam over 350,000 U.S. aggressor troops and scores of thousands of satellite and puppet troops, and are carrying on barbarous "scorched earth' operations and sending reinforcements continuously.
"They are intensifying brigandish bombing of the Vietnam Democratic Republic and have recently expanded the range of bombing to the areas of Hanoi and Haiphong.
"The 'peace negotiations' chanted by the U.S. imperialists are nothing but a fraud for diverting elsewhere the attention of the world's people and camouflaging their intrigues for expanding the war.
"The 'Manila Conference' held some time ago was a war conference of the U.S. imperialists and their stooges for expanding their aggressive war in Vietnam to a new scale.
"The U.S. imperialists are intensifying aggression and provocations in Korea, too. ;
"They have already converted South Korea into their atomic-rocket base. Of late, they are aggravating tension ceaselessly by equipping the U.S. troops stationed in South Korea and the puppet army with new-type weapons, readjusting and expanding the military setups and perpetrating armed attacks against the northern part of Korea along the military demarcation line.
"Stepping up Asian aggression, the U.S. imperialists are driving out Japanese militarism as the 'shock brigade' and converting Japan into a new war base of aggression.
"The obtaining situation makes it incumbent upon the anti-imperialist forces of the world to unite close and further intensify the struggle against imperialism, U.S. imperialism in particular.
"All the socialist countries should take a colder and tougher attitude toward U.S. imperialism and thoroughly expose and condemn its policy of aggression everywhere.
"As the U.S. imperialists are escalating the war of aggression in Vietnam so the socialist countries and all the progressive peoples of the world should escalate their struggle to oppose U.S. imperialism and aid Vietnam.
"Only through a staunch struggle against U.S. imperialism can its policies of
re
aggression and war be frustrated and. peace safeguarded.
"Today it is very important to defend the cohesion of the Socialist camp and solidarity of the international communist movement.
"To this end, all the communist and workers' parties should abide by the norms governing the relations between fraternal parties such as equality, independency, mutual respect, noninterference in each other's internal affairs and comradely cooperation.
"The Korean people always value their friendship and solidarity with the Bulgarian people. We are convinced that the relations of friendship and cooperation between the peoples of Korea and Bulgaria will develop in the interests of the two peoples on the principle of proletarian internationalism.
"In conclusion, I wish the Bulgarian people new success in fulfilling the tasks of socialist construction set by this Congress."
LAURENT SCHWARTZ