The Communist Party of Ireland has pointed out on numerous occasions over the decades since this state joined the EEC/EU that there would be a constant erosion of neutrality and of sacrificing the limited political and economic independence secured by the Irish capitalist class. We also warned against the over reliance on transnational corporations to develop as a sustainable industrial base.
This latest deal signed between the EU-USA in relation to tariffs only reinforces the subservience of the Irish capitalist class to the needs and interests of the EU ahead of the social, economic and political needs of the people of Ireland. We consistently challenged the lies and misinformation peddled by this, and previous Irish governments that Ireland has an equal voice at the EU table.
This latest deal clearly exposes that not to be the case. The interests of the people of Ireland, north and south of the British imposed border, are not taken seriously. A cursory investigation of this deal clearly shows that the interests of US imperialism trump that of the interests of the EU. The EU is not our “savour” but rather is part of the problem.
Over the coming period we may well see further internal disputes within the EU as member states attempt to respond to national pressures – national class struggles – flowing from this tariff deal with the US.
The EU got little if anything from its recent “high-level” delegation to the People’s Republic of China. Ursula von Der Leyen returned from China the day before she met Trump empty handed. This indicates the growing weakness of the EU itself as an imperial bloc.
We will be contributing more to the growing EU military budget to buy weapons from the US, they have promised to buy $600 billion of US military hardware. This can only grow as the US is demanding that NATO members push military spending up to 5%.
To spend $750 billion buying more expensive energy from the US, this puts the sabotage of the Nordstream pipeline by the USA in its proper context. It was to advance the strategic economic/military strategic interests of the US and make the EU subservient. This is an inter-imperialist struggle for dominance and control of markets.
The US also secured $600 billion EU investment in the US which could mean further EU budget cuts and tightening budgetary controls on member states, given past experience.
There is growing uncertainty regarding the transnational corporation pharmaceutical sector – roughly 90 companies employ in the region of 50,000 workers, plus 20,000-30,000 downstream jobs.
The state will be hit disproportionately with the imposition of 15% tariffs (previously 5%). This will impact harder as over 25% of goods produced in this state are exported to the US, while the EU average is 8%.
The agreement on tariffs between the EU-USA is a massive transfer of wealth from working people of Europe to US monopoly capitalism.
We are a net contributor to the EU budget of 1.3% whilst the EU controls over 82% of Irish fishing quota. We were forced to take responsibility for 42% of EU banking debt in 2010, a debt that did not belong to the Irish people, at a cost of over €9,000 per person.
It is time for a new direction outside of the structures and restrictions of the EU to build a sustainable economy; to look towards better trading and political relationships with the likes of the BRICS bloc. To assert a more independent foreign and security policy that is suited to the best traditions of anti-colonialism and anti-subservience.
National sovereignty and national democracy are class questions, in whose interests should they be used? National sovereignty and democracy are either tools for liberation or for that of subservience. It depends on whose hands and whose interests they are wielded and served.
It is clear that the balance of economic and political forces are shifting away from the old imperial centres such as the EU/USA. What is clear is that the US is marshalling its forces for a future confrontation with BRICS – central to that is a confrontation with China. We need to decide what side of history we stand on.
