Yu Weihai and Shu Huiqian: Exploration and Latest Developments in the International Maoist Movement's Unification

Influenced by the "Mao Zedong craze" of the 1960s, a group of political parties emerged in various countries taking Mao Zedong Thought or Maoism as their guiding ideology. These parties attach great importance to Mao Zedong’s contributions to the development of Marxism, identify with the theory of the New Democratic Revolution ^[1], and adhere to the principle of violent revolution. In the decades since, these Maoist parties have held high the banner of Marxism-Leninism-Maoism, engaging in tenacious struggles to explore and realize socialism. On a global scale, adhering to internationalism, opposing international monopoly capitalism and imperialism, and promoting the development of world revolution are also goals that Maoist parties pursue unremittingly. Since the 1980s, world Maoist parties have carried out several rounds of exploration into unification, forming a certain momentum of aggregation. However, these efforts toward international solidarity and union were undermined by various factors, leading to the successive dissolution of two important unified organizations: the Revolutionary Internationalist Movement (RIM) and the International Conference of Marxist-Leninist Parties and Organizations (International Newsletter) [ICMLPO (IN)]. To restore and strengthen the union between Maoist parties, more than ten such parties, after a period of deliberation and preparation, founded a new international Maoist organization—the International Communist League (ICL)—on December 26, 2022, marking the 129th anniversary of Mao Zedong’s birth. The establishment of the International Communist League is a major event in the international Maoist movement and the latest achievement of the long-term unification efforts of world Maoist parties. Tracking and researching this event is of practical significance for grasping the latest trends in the international Maoist movement and for assessing the role of Maoist parties in the contemporary international communist movement.

I. Early Overview of World Maoist Parties and Their Unification

Since the 1980s, world Maoist parties can be roughly divided into three categories: first, Maoist parties engaged in armed struggle, such as the Communist Party of the Philippines, the Communist Party of India (Maoist), the Communist Party of Turkey/Marxist-Leninist, and the Communist Party of Peru (Shining Path); second, numerous Maoist parties still active in many parts of the world that have not yet launched armed struggles but persist in taking Marxism-Leninism-Maoism or Marxism-Leninism-Mao Zedong Thought ^[2] as their guiding ideology; third, Maoist parties that once carried out armed struggles but later pivoted to the parliamentary road, such as the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist). Maoist parties in various countries have made multiple attempts at alliance, successively producing two major international organizations: the Revolutionary Internationalist Movement founded in 1984, and the International Conference of Marxist-Leninist Parties and Organizations (International Newsletter) founded in 1998.

(1) Maoist Parties: The Subjective Force in the World Maoist Movement

Due to the nature of their activities, it is difficult to accurately count the total number of Maoist parties worldwide. Viewed as a whole, foreign Maoist parties are characterized by being numerous but having relatively weak political and social influence. Among them, those already engaged in armed struggle—such as the Communist Party of the Philippines, the Communist Party of India (Maoist), and the Communist Party of Turkey/Marxist-Leninist—are important forces in the contemporary international Maoist movement. The Communist Party of the Philippines is active in most provinces across the country, with its membership growing from tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands. The New People's Army (NPA) operates on more than 110 guerrilla fronts across 73 provinces, covering 18 regions of the Philippines and establishing regional operational commands in 17 of them, possessing over 5,600 high-powered rifles. The influence of the Communist Party of India (Maoist) has declined to some extent but remains active. According to data from 2019 and 2020, 80% of its activities were concentrated in only four states—Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Odisha, and Maharashtra—and its scope and intensity are far less than before. Data from 2021 shows that its range of influence has shrunk to 41 districts, a significant decrease from the 96 districts across 10 first-level administrative regions in 2010. In 2023, Maoist forces in Odisha were greatly weakened; almost all top leaders, including Gajarla Ravi (alias Uday), fled to the safer state of Chhattisgarh. On April 16, 2024, at least 29 Maoist fighters were martyred during a government encirclement and suppression campaign against the CPI (Maoist) in the Kanker district of Chhattisgarh. In April 2024, the Communist Party of Turkey/Marxist-Leninist marked its 52nd anniversary. Over these 52 years, thousands of members have been injured due to armed struggle or imprisoned by the government, yet the party continues to persist in the line of armed struggle and violent revolution.

Several Maoist parties that have not yet engaged in armed struggle are mainly distributed in Europe and Latin America, including the Marxist-Leninist Party of Germany (MLPD), the Maoist Communist Party (Spain), the Communist (Maoist) Party of Afghanistan, the Communist Party of Australia (Marxist-Leninist), the Revolutionary Communist Party of Canada (PCR-RCP) (dissolved in November 2021), the Communist Party of Ecuador – Red Sun, and the Maoist Communist Party of Italy. Most of these parties are relatively small in strength and membership, though the Marxist-Leninist Party of Germany possesses a degree of influence. Founded in 1982 with Marxism-Leninism-Mao Zedong Thought as its guiding ideology, the MLPD has established contact points in more than 450 German cities, publishes its official organ Rote Fahne (Red Flag), and received more than 30,000 votes (0.1%) in the 2017 German general election—a nearly ten-fold increase over its 1994 vote count.

(2) Early Major Unified Organizations of Maoist Parties

Since the 1980s, Maoist parties have repeatedly tried to establish international organizations. In 1980, the first International Conference of Marxist-Leninist Parties and Organizations was held, which issued the Declaration to the Marxist-Leninists, the Working Class, and the Oppressed Peoples of the Whole World, signed by 13 parties and organizations. In March 1984, at the second conference, the Revolutionary Internationalist Movement (RIM) was officially proclaimed, joined by 19 Maoist parties and organizations from 13 countries; the Communist Party of Peru (Shining Path), the Revolutionary Communist Party, USA, and the Communist Party of Nepal (Masal) ^[3] were key members. In 1982, the Communist Party of Peru (Shining Path) adopted Maoism as its guiding ideology, regarding "Marxism founded by Marx, Leninism founded by Lenin, and Maoism founded by Mao Zedong as the first, second, and third stages of Marxism-Leninism-Maoism respectively." The Shining Path subsequently promoted this concept within the RIM. On December 26, 1993, the RIM officially declared in its document Long Live Marxism-Leninism-Maoism! that "Maoism is the third stage of the development of Marxism, a higher and newer stage." This formulation of "Maoism" differed from the term "Mao Zedong Thought" used at the organization's inception, further clarifying the contribution of "Mao Zedong's qualitative development of Marxism-Leninism." The RIM took violent revolution as the means for transforming capitalism and seizing political power and democratic centralism as its organizational principle, emphasizing that all parties within the organization should be on equal footing rather than subordinate to the leadership of a "center party." From its founding until its dissolution, the RIM continued to guide and support the revolutionary struggles of its member parties, criticizing internal voices within the Shining Path that called for abandoning the revolution, and providing long-term solidarity for the movement of the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist). Due to deepening line deviations ^[4] between the Nepalese and American parties and the RIM itself, the organization dissolved in 2006.

In 1998, under the organization and promotion of the Marxist-Leninist Party of Germany, the ICMLPO (International Newsletter) was established. Guided by Marxism-Leninism-Mao Zedong Thought, it held meetings every two or three years, with over 20 member parties participating; the seventh meeting in 2004 saw 29 parties attend. In 2017, the ICMLPO (IN) and the International Coordination of Revolutionary Parties and Organizations (ICOR) jointly held an international seminar in Gelsenkirchen, Germany, to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the victory of the October Revolution. That same year, the ICMLPO (IN) dissolved.

In 2010, ICOR was founded, attracting many Maoist parties with its principles of proletarian revolution. Although the organization’s internal ideology is heterogeneous and Maoist parties make up only a portion of the 60 members—such as the MLPD, the Maoist Communist Party (Colombia), and the Russian Maoist Party (RMP)—it remains "an important platform for promoting communication, exchange, and cooperation among Maoist parties in the world today."

In addition to these major unified organizations, Maoist parties also established or participated in other international or regional organizations and mechanisms, such as the Coordinating Committee of Maoist Parties and Organizations of South Asia (CCOMPOSA), the International Communist Seminar, and the International Seminar on Mao and People's War. These organizations and mechanisms played a certain role in strengthening the unity and alliance of Maoist parties. However, most became difficult to sustain due to excessive internal differences. Some parties played a vital role in the establishment and development of these organizations, and changes within those parties themselves would in turn influence or even dictate the course of the unified organizations.

(3) Main Content of the Unification Efforts of Maoist Parties

The establishment of international Maoist organizations laid the foundation for advancing the development and unification of the Maoist movement. Since the founding of the Revolutionary Internationalist Movement in the 1980s, Maoist parties have carried out a series of international joint actions. Entering the 21st century, these Maoist parties have continued to conduct various forms of unification movements, such as issuing joint statements on International Workers' Day (May Day) to analyze the global situation and trends in capitalist development, organizing commemorative activities and mobilization work on important anniversaries of the International Communist Movement, and convening regional and international conferences. Furthermore, Maoist parties have opened new fronts in media, utilizing the internet to build communication platforms and establish "debate forum" sections in an effort to dissolve differences and build consensus.

First, they have issued major joint statements, including May Day joint statements, Women's Day joint statements, joint statements commemorating significant events in the history of the International Communist Movement, and joint statements concerning major international events and hot-button issues. Since 2012, Maoist parties have issued a joint May Day statement every year, with each signed by dozens of parties and organizations; notably, the 2016 joint statement involved as many as 30 Maoist organizations. The 2022 May Day joint statement analyzed the objective situation and subjective conditions of the world revolution, emphasizing that Maoist parties should strengthen their unity: "The objective conditions for revolution are gradually maturing, and the subjective conditions for revolution are also being actively prepared. Therefore, communists—that is, today's Marxist-Leninist-Maoists—must shoulder the tasks set before them under the new situation... and move toward the establishment of a new international organization of the proletariat."^[5] These statements are translated into multiple languages and disseminated by various parties within their respective countries. The May Day joint statements have greatly enhanced the cohesion of international Maoist parties and have become a banner of joint action for international Maoist parties in recent years. Maoist parties have recognized that under the new situation, it is necessary to hold an International Unified Maoist Conference to begin forming a new international proletarian organization.^[6]

Maoist parties also use joint statements to commemorate important anniversaries of the International Communist Movement. On significant historical occasions—such as the centenary of the victory of the October Revolution, the bicentenaries of the births of Marx and Engels, the 150th anniversary of Lenin's birth, and the passing of Abimael Guzmán Reynoso and Jose Maria Sison—many Maoist parties have issued joint statements to commemorate these events, analyze the international situation, explore the methods of socialist revolution, and express firm conviction in the realization of socialism. For example, on the centenary of the October Revolution in 2017, nine Maoist parties, including the Communist Party of Peru (Shining Path), issued a joint statement titled "Centenary of the October Revolution: Everything is Illusion Except Power!" They argued for the necessity of strengthening unity, adhering to violent revolution, and struggling against the opportunist line. They pointed out that the October Revolution should not be viewed merely as a revolution "within the scope of one country"; it was first and foremost an international and global revolution, marking the fundamental transition of human history from the old capitalist world to the new socialist world.^[7] Such joint statements issued by Maoist parties not only summarize the major historical experiences of the International Communist Movement and amplify the influence of Maoist parties but also serve as an important form of realizing new international unity, objectively promoting the unification of the Maoist movement.

Maoist parties also use joint statements to analyze the latest changes in the world situation and elaborate on the concept of "people's war"—that is, building armed forces under the leadership of the Communist Party in base areas that integrate the united front, production, and propaganda, and using people's war to lead national liberation movements and proletarian revolutionary struggles. In 2019, several Maoist parties issued a joint statement boycotting the European Parliament elections, putting forward the slogan "Revolution, Not Elections."^[8] At the beginning of 2022, several Maoist parties again issued a joint statement concerning and supporting the protest movement in Kazakhstan. They argued that imperialist plunder of Kazakhstan’s natural gas and mineral resources led to the deterioration of the domestic masses' lives and proposed launching a "people's war" to achieve the ultimate goal of seizing political power through armed force.^[9]

Second, they have convened regional and international conferences. Over the past decade, Maoist parties have frequently held regional and international meetings, issuing joint statements and resolutions to analyze new changes in the world situation and calling for strengthened unity among Maoist parties. For example, the "Resolution of the 7th Meeting of European Marxist-Leninist-Maoist Parties and Organizations" passed in 2021 pointed out: "The new situation makes us understand that we are a class with a common banner and a common ideology... there is an urgent need to establish a new international proletarian organization, and it is necessary to convene an International Unified Maoist Conference to achieve this goal."^[10] In August 2022, ten Maoist parties and organizations held an International Anti-Imperialist Conference, with main agenda items including the formation of an anti-imperialist front, the defense of the right to national self-determination, and support for anti-imperialist struggles in various countries.

Third, they use public debate to handle differences and promote unity. In January 2022, the Coordinating Committee of the International Unified Maoist Conference (CUMIC) officially released the "Proposal on Issues Worth Discussing Concerning the Current International Communist Movement and Its Political Line," inviting all Marxist-Leninist-Maoist parties to provide supplementary opinions and feedback. The goal was to reach an ideological consensus for the convening of the first Unified Maoist Conference and the establishment of the International Communist League on December 26, 2022. Multiple Maoist parties participated in this Grand Discussion, debating a series of formulations and contents within the proposal. For example, the Communist Workers Union (mlm) of Colombia opposed the phrasing that "Maoism" occupies a "principal" position within "Marxism-Leninism-Maoism," arguing that this contradicts the principles of the coherence, development, and integrity of Marxism-Leninism-Maoism.^[11] The Communist Party of Turkey/Marxist-Leninist (TKP/ML) disagreed with the analysis of the fundamental contradictions of the world in the proposal, arguing that the proposal’s general categorization of the three main contradictions in the current world ignored the specific national conditions of each country and hindered the proletariat of various nations from independently evaluating their own revolutionary processes.^[12] The CUMIC believed that such debate based on the principle of "unity-struggle-unity" was productive, because "current differences are the starting point for the emergence of new unity."^[13]

II. Theoretical Propositions and Development Overview of the International Communist League

On December 26, 2022, on the occasion of the 129th anniversary of Mao Zedong's birth, and through the unified efforts of multiple Maoist parties, the International Unified Maoist Conference was successfully convened. The International Communist League (ICL) was declared established at this meeting, with 15 Marxist-Leninist-Maoist parties and organizations^[14] from more than 10 countries joining. The member parties are mainly distributed across Europe and Latin America.

(1) Theoretical Propositions and Goals of the International Communist League

The International Communist League explains the reasons for its establishment and its theoretical propositions from two aspects: changes in the objective situation and the subjective conditions of party organization. The ICL believes that the current general crisis of imperialism and the rise of the wave of world proletarian revolution constitute the realistic basis for establishing a unified international organization. Under the scientific guidance of Marxism-Leninism-Maoism, the establishment of the ICL will greatly strengthen the links between Maoist parties and promote the development of the world socialist movement.

1. Imperialism is currently in a general crisis

Several documents of the International Communist League point out that imperialism is currently mired in an increasingly severe general crisis. Widespread poverty, frequent wars and conflicts, environmental destruction, and social decadence are all concrete manifestations of the intensification of this general crisis. The ICL believes that the moribund and decadent nature of imperialism has greatly deepened: "Imperialism is on its last legs, intensifying the exploitation and oppression of the working class and the masses, attempting to re-divide oppressed countries and preparing for imperialist world war... these are all manifestations of imperialism falling into a deep political crisis. The world situation is complex, and all basic contradictions, especially the contradiction between imperialism and oppressed peoples and nations, are intensifying."^[15]

The International Communist League points out that the intensification of three pairs of major world contradictions is the root of the general crisis of imperialism. The first contradiction is between imperialist superpowers and powers and the oppressed nations; this is the contradiction that plays the primary role among the three. The world is divided into a majority of oppressed nations and a minority of imperialist nations, with the United States being the sole hegemonic superpower. Imperialist countries transfer the global crisis to oppressed nations through military threats and economic colonization, and legitimize their interests through various "treaties" and "peace agreements." Therefore, the ICL believes that the vast number of oppressed nations in Asia, Africa, and Latin America are the foundation of the world proletarian revolution. The second contradiction is that between the bourgeoisie and the proletariat existing in all countries. In oppressed countries, this contradiction manifests as the contradiction between the proletariat and the bureaucratic-comprador bourgeoisie: "These semi-feudal and semi-colonial countries correspondingly evolve bureaucratic capitalism and its corresponding political and cultural ideologies, which exploit the proletariat, the peasantry, and the petty bourgeoisie and shackle the national bourgeoisie, systematically obstructing the development of these countries."^[16] In imperialist countries, "the contradiction between the bourgeoisie and the proletariat and all other contradictions within imperialist countries are intensifying."^[17] After the 2008 international financial crisis, in order to achieve economic recovery, imperialist countries hyper-exploited their own proletariats while utilizing chauvinistic and racist policies to divide the proletariat into native workers and immigrant workers, attempting to destroy and prevent the unification of the working class. The third contradiction is among the imperialist countries themselves. The ICL believes that among imperialist countries, competition is absolute and alliance is relative. As the sole hegemonic superpower, the United States uses a "divide and rule" strategy against other imperialist countries. Other second-rate imperialist countries also delusionally aim to develop into new superpowers, competing with the United States for world hegemony to re-divide the world.^[18]

2. The establishment of the International Communist League will promote the wave of world proletarian revolution

The International Communist League believes that a wave of proletarian revolution is rising in the world today, and the world is entering a new revolutionary period: "The International Communist Movement and the national liberation movement are experiencing a decisive and important moment; the turning point between revolutionary struggle and counter-revolutionary struggle is approaching, and a new period of world proletarian revolution is arriving."^[19] Regarding the concrete manifestations of the proletarian revolutionary wave, the ICL believes that under the leadership of Maoist parties, armed struggles are being carried out in four countries—India, Peru, Turkey, and the Philippines—while various struggles and resistance movements are surging in other countries. "In oppressed countries, the peasant movement continues to develop on a large scale. In regions where the proletariat plays a leading role, the peasants' role as the main force against imperialism, feudalism, and bureaucratic capitalism in the New Democratic Revolution is very evident. With the ongoing Palestinian national resistance movement, the Palestinian struggle for freedom and self-determination has not only entered a new stage, but its spirit of struggle has also inspired anti-imperialist struggles worldwide."^[20]

Based on the judgment of the rising wave of world proletarian struggle and revolution, the ICL believes that the urgent task is to promote and lead the wave of world proletarian revolution—that is, to implement the political line of Maoist parties, ignite revolutionary sparks in various countries, launch people's wars, and advance the proletarian struggle and revolution in today's world, thereby achieving socialism and communism.^[21]

3. Marxism-Leninism-Maoism is the guiding ideology and guide to action for revolution and struggle

The International Communist League (ICL) believes that Marxism-Leninism-Maoism (MLM) is the guiding ideology for the struggle of Maoist parties and the action guide for advancing a new revolution. “We Communists have three great swords—our founder Marx, the great Lenin, and Chairman Mao Zedong. Our great task is to uphold, defend, and apply Marxism-Leninism-Maoism as the guiding ideology and action guide of the world revolution” (34). The ICL maintains that Marx and Engels expounded the philosophical principles of dialectical materialism, systematically analyzed the characteristics, operation, and development laws of capitalism, and revealed the scientific theory that capitalism will inevitably be replaced by communism. Lenin proposed the theory of a new type of party under armed violence—that is, the proletariat must complete its primary task of changing the world by establishing an organized vanguard. Mao Zedong proposed theories such as “political power grows out of the barrel of a gun” and the “three great magic weapons” of revolution. These three magic weapons include the united front, armed struggle, and Party building, with Party building as the core.

4. The Union of Maoist Parties will Overcome the Fragmented State of the International Communist Movement

The ICL believes that the newly established international organization has its own historical mission, and that its founding is the result of continuous attempts to unite and overcome divisions since the establishment of the Revolutionary Internationalist Movement (RIM) more than 40 years ago. As a fighting tool of the international proletariat and all oppressed people exploited by imperialism, the founding of the ICL will allow Marxist-Leninist-Maoists to once again advance as a “world army.” Only through union can the unity of the world's communists be won and the historical mission of Marxist-Leninist-Maoists be completed—namely, “the historical mission of the proletariat as the gravediggers of the bourgeoisie along with all bureaucratic capital and feudal forces under the leadership of the Communist Party” (35), ultimately realizing socialism and communism.

The ICL points out that the main problem facing the current international communist movement is that its forces are too scattered. Only through struggle can the current fragmentation be overcome, thereby promoting the union of Marxist-Leninist-Maoists. To overcome the fragmented state of the international communist movement, the ICL proposes that it is necessary to struggle against revisionism and use struggle to promote union, pushing the international communist movement forward.

(2) Major Practical Activities of the International Communist League

Since its establishment, the ICL has held hundreds of celebrations and demonstrations in more than 20 countries, issued over a dozen declarations and resolutions, and launched multiple solidarity actions. Compared to the evolution of the Maoist movement since the 21st century, the ICL has made greater progress in coordination and planning, significantly increasing the frequency of activities. Through organizing solidarity actions, conducting a series of celebrations and demonstrations, and issuing joint declarations, it has built a new international platform for the development of the Maoist movement.

In terms of celebrations and demonstrations, on the occasion of the 129th anniversary of Mao Zedong’s birth and the founding of the ICL, Maoist parties in more than 20 countries organized activities such as flag-raising, hanging banners, posting posters, distributing flyers, and holding large-scale displays. For instance, the Communist Party of Turkey/Marxist-Leninist (TKP/ML) and others distributed the ICL's Political Declaration and Principles (37) to the masses during the LLL ^[22] demonstration in January 2023. On December 26, 2023, the 130th anniversary of Mao Zedong’s birth, the ICL called on member parties to hold various forms of commemorative activities. In Colombia, more than 150 representatives from over ten countries responded to the ICL's call, participating in commemorations for Mao’s 130th birthday, collectively studying Mao Zedong’s works, and emphasizing the practical significance of the theory of New Democratic Revolution (38). Participants in the Maoist movement in the United States, Germany, Brazil, Denmark, and other countries took part in a series of offline commemorative activities, painting and posting posters commemorating the 130th anniversary of Mao’s birth on the main streets of several cities, which was promoted and reported by various Maoist media outlets (39). In April 2024, as part of the activities commemorating the 130th anniversary of Mao Zedong's birth, Turkey’s Umut Publishing held an International Maoist Symposium, reading messages from “comrades of the ICL and from Spain, India, and the imprisoned guerrillas” (40).

Regarding declarations, the ICL issued a joint statement for International Workers' Day 2023, noting that the establishment of the new international organization was a significant leap: “The establishment of a new organization of the international proletariat is a significant and far-reaching leap we have achieved in the process of the struggle to reconstruct the Communist International. We unswervingly unite under the banner of Maoism and begin to step-by-step halt the fragmented state of the international communist movement” (41). On International Workers' Day 2024, the ICL once again issued a joint statement, asserting that the total crisis of imperialism has intensified all fundamental contradictions in the world; the revolutionary situation is brewing and developing worldwide, and contradictions between imperialists will eventually lead to the outbreak of a world war. The sharpening of contradictions has triggered a new wave of anti-imperialist movements and a high tide of struggle supporting the international proletariat, oppressed peoples, and nations, reaching new levels in frequency, range, and scale (42).

Furthermore, the ICL launched solidarity actions for the Palestinian people, calling on progressive organizations throughout the world to mobilize the masses to vigorously support the Palestinian people’s national resistance movement, and urging “all Communist parties and organizations, all democratic and revolutionary organizations to broadly mobilize the masses to defend the Palestinian people’s armed struggle for national resistance” (43).

III. Analysis and Evaluation of the International Communist League

The establishment of the ICL is a major event in the Maoist movement and the latest result of efforts to unite international Maoist forces in recent decades. Therefore, both its founding and its subsequent theoretical and practical explorations hold significant international importance.

First, the ICL is a vanguard and an important force in the global struggle against imperialism and hegemonism. The ICL takes a clear-cut stand against imperialist forces represented by the United States, believing the U.S. is the only hegemonic superpower in the world today. It argues that the current international tension is caused by the U.S. imperialists' plans for war and aggression; that the US forms alliances with Germany, France, the UK, and others to conduct colonial penetration in oppressed regions, establish global military bases, launch wars, and manufacture regional political conflicts; and that the US is responsible for the tension worldwide. At the same time, the organization believes that imperialist forces continue to oppress their own people, striving to support war and expand military spending while turning a blind eye to domestic economic decline, high inflation, and poverty. Therefore, even before the ICL was founded, international Maoist parties held anti-imperialist conferences and issued numerous anti-imperialist statements, uniting and mobilizing Maoist parties of various countries and demanding that member parties prepare for a rainy day ^[23], working hard to develop and grow their forces to meet the threat of war.

Second, the ICL has played an important role in strengthening the unity of international Maoist parties. As the changes unseen in a century accelerate, Maoist parties have shown a new trend of union, “virtually coalescing into a ‘socialist community’ around the world, together lighting the ‘single spark’ ^[24] of the contemporary international communist movement” (44). The ICL adheres to the principle of “unity-struggle-unity” and “criticism and self-criticism,” promoting and consolidating international solidarity through conferences, activities, forums, and debates (45). Although the member parties of the ICL are individually small and weak, the ten-plus parties have strengthened the momentum of the Maoist movement by forming an alliance and concentrating their voices. “The establishment of the ICL is a ‘significant peak in 40-plus years of overcoming the division of Communists and uniting in solidarity under the banner of MLM,’” which “will change the face of the world proletarian revolution” (46).

Finally, the founding and rise of the ICL will further enrich the struggle practices of the contemporary international communist movement. Today, there are significant differences in the guiding ideologies of foreign communist parties, resulting in various types of parties guided by Marxism, Leninism, Marxism-Leninism-Maoism, Trotskyism, Hoxhaism, etc. (47), which gives the international communist movement a more fragmented and diverse character. As a Maoist international, the ICL believes that “imperialism is moribund” and the “wave of world proletarian revolution is coming,” proposing the theory of people's war and organizing national liberation movements and proletarian revolutionary struggles. Although many communist parties have abandoned this revolutionary line, the Maoist movement and the ICL have once again unified a consensus, pointing out a path for the contemporary international communist movement that differs from the parliamentary election path taken by most communist parties in European and American capitalist countries, thereby promoting the multi-dimensional and three-dimensional development of the contemporary international communist movement from another level.

At the same time, it must be noted that in the two years since its founding, the ICL has also exposed many problems, such as erroneous perceptions and evaluations of China, internal sectarian tendencies and disagreements, and the idealization and emptiness of theoretical claims. These problems are chronic ailments within the Maoist movement, and their negative impacts warrant vigilance.

First, the ICL has an erroneous perception of the current state of world socialism. It denies the practical achievements of various countries in independently exploring the Sinicization and modernization of Marxism, and mistakenly believes that no socialist countries exist in the world today. Clearly, such a view does not conform to objective reality and violates the general principles of scientific socialism. It rigidly and dogmatically applies the assertions of Marxist classics and fails to advance with the times by combining Marxism with actual conditions, denying the efforts and great achievements of socialist countries in independently exploring the socialist road.

Second, sectarian tendencies exist, and the effectiveness of unification remains to be improved. In handling relations with various Maoist parties, the ICL exhibits sectarian tendencies. Before the ICL's founding, its founding declaration was submitted to Maoist parties in various countries for discussion and revision in the form of a proposal. Parties such as the Communist Party of Nepal (Revolutionary Maoist), the Revolutionary Communist Party of Canada, and the Communist Party of Afghanistan (Maoist) held differing opinions on the founding declaration and did not agree with some of its expressions and theoretical claims. Meanwhile, the founding of the ICL also triggered a split in the Communist Association of Sweden (Kommunistiska Föreningens). In November 2022, the newly formed Communist Workers' Union of Sweden split from the Communist Association of Sweden due to opposition to the ICL’s founding, believing that Gonzaloites had taken a dominant position within the ICL and that the ICL essentially follows a “Left” revisionist line that undermines the unity of the international communist movement (48). To this day, several Maoist parties that have not joined the ICL still believe it has sectarian tendencies and that its member parties only represent the views of a segment of Maoist parties.

Since its founding, the ICL has issued multiple declarations calling for Marxist-Leninist-Maoist parties and organizations from all countries to join. However, in the two-plus years to date, the number of member parties has not increased. The influential Communist Party of India (Maoist) and the Communist Party of the Philippines have both chosen not to join. The "International Coordination of Revolutionary Parties and Organizations" (ICOR) also has major theoretical differences with the ICL. The road toward a grand union of the world's Maoist parties remains fraught with difficulties.

Finally, the theoretical propositions have become idealized and hollow, making them difficult to adapt to the specific national conditions of various countries. At present, the strength of most Maoist parties remains relatively weak, and the theoretical blueprint prematurely drawn by the International Communist League (ICL) for these parties does not conform to their respective national realities. For instance, the ICL maintains that people's war is the sole path to revolution, arguing that regardless of the stage of development in which a country finds itself, the struggle must be advanced through the means of people's war. However, the ICL has failed to clarify the specific strategies and programs for people's war, failed to explain how to conduct people's war in developed capitalist countries, and failed to conduct a "concrete analysis of concrete conditions" ^[25] for different national contexts. The Communist Party of India (Maoist) believes that "all propositions regarding people's war are applicable only to semi-colonial and semi-feudal societies in Asia, Africa, and Latin America, and are not applicable to developed capitalist countries; if imposed upon the Maoist parties of all countries, it will not only fail to benefit the ICL but will instead become an obstacle to its future development" (49). The Communist Party of the Philippines considers the founding of the ICL to be untimely, as it will stifle the independent exploration by various countries of Marxist developmental paths suited to their own national conditions: "We currently do not see the conditions for establishing an international central organization that assumes the role of the vanguard of the world proletariat... We believe that the most urgent task currently facing Communist parties and communist organizations worldwide is to apply Marxism-Leninism-Maoism to conduct class analysis and social investigation of the different situations in each country, in order to formulate specific developmental strategies and tactics... However, subordinating oneself to a specific international central organization will counterproductively cause various parties and organizations to lose their independence and initiative in carrying out revolutionary work" (50).