Trump’s announcement of reciprocal tariffs has kicked US-China competition up a notch, but the implications will be felt more broadly than between just these two main belligerents in this trade war. When Trump announced his ‘Liberation Day’ tariffs on 5 April, among those countries initially set to receive the highest tariffs were many that are counted among the ASEAN bloc (Association of Southeast Asian Nations), including Vietnam (46 percent), Laos (48 percent), Myanmar (44 percent) and Cambodia (49 percent) with Malaysia on 24 percent.

What is fascism, how do we fight it, and is it a threat today? In this episode of the Spectre of Communism podcast, we discuss the history of fascism’s rise to power in the 1930s, to learn the lessons for our movement.

Wellred Books’ latest title Democracy, Bonapartism & Fascism: Class Struggle in the 1930s is available to pre-order now! This collection features crucial writings that can arm communists not only with a deeper understanding of Bonapartism and fascism, but with a method for analysing turbulent times, such as those we live in today.

I recently read the article ‘Just Stop Oil and Youth Demand: How can we build a mass movement?’ in The Communist, and it resonated with me as someone who has made the journey from Just Stop Oil (JSO) and direct action, to the Revolutionary Communist Party (RCP) [British section of the Revolutionary Communist International] and class struggle.

Since the collapse of the Novi Sad station canopy on 1 November 2024, which killed 16 people, occupations, blockades and protests led by students have been organised across Serbia. This calamity, caused by corruption, sparked a wave of indignation throughout the country. At the time of writing this article in April, over a million people across Serbia have taken part and voiced their support for the students’ demands. Demonstrations are being held throughout the country.

On Sunday 13 April, Ecuadorians went to the polls to elect their president in a second round of voting. The elections in Ecuador have been marred by irregularities, both in the first round and in the second, where the manoeuvring intensified.

On Monday 21 April, Pope Francis passed away at the age of 88. During his time at the Holy See, he had been charged with laundering the image of the Church, with giving it a ‘human face’, and stemming the crisis of that institution. Whatever else one thinks of him, he certainly executed his role with skill, but the job was itself impossible. The crisis of the Church continued apace and it will accelerate after his death.

The recent death of Pope Francis has dominated politics and the media in Italy this week. Amidst the unending chorus of Francis’ sycophants, however, the reformist left have been keen to make their voices heard, celebrating the life of this supposedly ‘revolutionary’, ‘anti-capitalist’ figure. We publish below a translation of an article by the Partito Comunista Rivoluzionario – the Italian section of the Revolutionary Communist International – explaining the truth about Pope Francis and clearly stating the communist position on the reactionary institution of the Catholic Church.

For the last century, the USA has been the undisputed master of the capitalist world. Now, all that is changing. Today, America is in decline and facing a new contender: China.

Milei and his Minister of Economy, Caputo, along with all the parties that support their government, are driving the working class into an ever-deepening abyss.

The struggle of the Baloch people in Pakistan has reached unprecedented levels, while state repression and the brutality by the Pakistani ruling class have exceeded all limits. It is hell-bent on crushing the aspirations of these oppressed people.

While workers and the poor face ever-greater hardships, the super-rich are making a killing. In response to this gaping wealth divide, left wingers in Britain like Jeremy Corbyn and Gary Stevenson are saying we should ‘tax the rich’. But does this offer a real solution?

Over the weekend, the Labour government passed emergency legislation to take control of steel – in particular Scunthorpe’s steelworks. While the union leaders breathe a sigh of relief, we say: No trust in Starmer! Expropriate all the parasites!

As the world becomes a more dangerous place, it seems we are once again being asked by our governments to love the bomb.

A month has passed since the short-lived ceasefire between Israel and Hamas came to a violent end on 18 March. Since then, Benjamin Netanyahu has once again upped the ante in his genocidal war on Gaza.