progressive international

The Cabinet of the Progressive International firmly condemns the US military attack against Venezuela, the bombing of Caracas, and the kidnapping of President Nicolás Maduro and his wife Cilia Adela Flores de Maduro.

On 2 January, US military forces launched an illegal and unprovoked military assault against Venezuela — bombing Fuerte Tiuna, La Carlota Air Base, the port of La Guaira, residential neighborhoods across Caracas, and military and civilian installations in the states of Miranda, Aragua, and La Guaira. Missiles fired from US helicopters killed military personnel and civilians, left entire neighborhoods without power, and terrorized the Venezuelan people.

The International Seabed Authority (ISA) will bring governments together in Kingston to discuss whether to allow deep sea mining to go ahead, in a meeting starting today. Because of a failure to reach an agreement on mining regulations in previous meetings, starting on 9 July any company can present a plan to mine the seabed without those regulations in place.[1] A coalition of governments pushed back and for the first time in history requested that the ISA negotiate a proposal for a long term suspension on this dangerous activity.

“Governments must put an immediate stop to this risky industry in order to secure long-term protection for the oceans. Reckless companies were hoping that by now a new dawn for this industry would’ve been seen, as the ISA has left the backdoor open for deep sea mining to start operating. But their bet backfired as deep sea miners have seriously underestimated the level of controversy and resistance to their attempt to force through the start of this destructive practice”, said Greenpeace France Oceans campaigner François Chartier, who is attending the meeting.

The Progressive International salutes the people of Chile for their courage in the struggle against Pinochetismo and their determination to overcome efforts to suppress their vote in Sunday's election to elect Gabriel Boric to the presidency with the most votes of any president in the country's history.

We are proud to stand with our Council member Giorgio Jackson, our organizational member Convergencia Social, and their president-elect Gabriel Boric as they prepare to lead Chile on the long road out of neoliberalism and into a new constitutional order defined by social, economic, and environmental justice.