Towards the XXVII Congress of the CPSU (LATE 40's-MID 80's)

"The question of peace is a burning question, a painful question of our time." 1 These Leninist words, uttered on November 8, 1917, and today, in the mid - 80s, accurately characterize the core problem of the international situation, as well as the situation of the 50s, 60s, and 70s. Historical conditions have changed, new generations of people have entered active life, but the problem of ensuring peace, the struggle for peace, and therefore for the preservation of life on Earth, remains the most urgent for humanity.

The social movement for peace - a complex political phenomenon of our time, which has an ever-increasing impact on international relations-in turn depends on the international situation. In the 1980s, it took on an unprecedented scale and became one of the leading factors determining the situation in the world. The study of the history of the anti-war movement of the Soviet public is necessary to understand and objectively assess the current stage of the World Peace Movement. The political urgency of studying this problem is dictated by the acute struggle around it, attempts by militaristic forces to bring discord into the ranks of fighters for peace. Imperialist anti-Soviet propaganda, on the one hand, tries to belittle and silence the facts of the mass social movement for peace in the U.S.S.R., and on the other, it insists on Moscow's "leadership" of the World Peace Movement. Bourgeois authors, especially Sovietologists, as well as representatives of various schismatic organizations such as the" non-aligned " peace movement, claim that the movement of Soviet public opinion for peace is not independent and artificial, and portray it as an instrument of Soviet power .2 The history of this movement is a convincing argument in favor of the Marxist - Leninist position on the decisive role of the masses of the people in the progress of mankind, on the right and duty of peoples to decide the fate of the world for themselves.

1 Lenin V. I. PSS. Vol. 35, p. 13.

2 See about this: Orel V. The anti-war movement: its friends and opponents. - Mezhdunarodnaya zhizn, 1983, no. 3; his. The anti-war movement: achievements and prospects. - Kommunist, 1984, N 12; Lokshin G. Movement for peace and ideological struggle. - Mezhdunarodnaya zhizn, 1984, N 5; Zhukov Yu. The current international situation and the movement of supporters of peace. - Mezhdunarodnaya zhizn, 1985, N 6; Kharkhardin O. Obshcharodnoe dvizhenie proponentov mira [National movement of peace supporters]. - Kommunist Publ., 1985, No. 8.

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The history of the World Peace Movement as a whole, as well as the history of the struggle for peace of the public in Western Europe and the United States , was studied in Soviet scientific literature, 3 but the formation and development of the peace movement in the USSR was not the subject of special study until recently. The first years of its history are particularly poorly studied. Meanwhile, the Soviet public, together with the public of the countries of the world socialist community, and with the democratic public of the whole world, has always actively participated and participates in the international peace movement, in the movement of solidarity with the national liberation and anti - colonial struggle of peoples, and consistently advocates the peaceful solution of all international problems, the complete prohibition of nuclear weapons, and the cessation of the arms race. The formulation of this problem is reflected in general works 4 .

The article is devoted to the analysis of the main features of the peace movement in the USSR from its inception in 1949 to the mid-80s. It examines the role of the Soviet public on the world stage, the forms of its interaction with the peace-loving forces of the planet. This is one aspect of the multifaceted problem of the USSR's struggle for peace.

The history of the peace movement in the USSR - an integral part of the World Peace Movement - spans more than 35 years and is filled with a selfless struggle for peace, for the humane ideals of humanity. The movement emerged as a direct response of peace-loving peoples to the growing militarization and aggressiveness of the US foreign policy, the creation on their initiative of the NATO military - political alliance directed against socialist countries and the national liberation movement, and the attempts of imperialism to unleash World War III. Although in 1945, during the Crimean and Potsdam conferences of the heads of government of the USSR, the United States and Great Britain, agreements were reached on the post-war structure of the world, even then aggressive, militaristic plans were maturing in reactionary circles of the imperialist powers, anti-Soviet military hysteria was growing, and the "cold war" was unfolding, the ideas of which found concentrated expression in Churchill's Fulton speech (March 1946), and their embodiment - in the creation in 1949 of the aggressive NATO bloc.

In all periods of the history of the Soviet State, the Communist Party and the Government consistently pursued and continue to pursue Lenin's peaceful policy, the principles of which were proclaimed in the Decree on Peace of November 8, 1917.5 Lenin's ideas were implemented in the Peace Program developed by the XXIV-XXVI Congresses of the CPSU. At the XXVI Congress, it was stated that in an age of unprecedented development of weapons and means of mass destruction, the most essential thing is "ensuring the first right of every person - the right to life." 6 Contributing to the maintenance and strengthening of universal peace-internazio-

3 Anti-war traditions of the international labor movement, Moscow, 1972; Chkhikvadze V. M. Struggle for Peace - the irresistible movement of Modernity, Moscow, 1969; World History. Vols. XI-XIII. M. 1977, 1979, 1983; Public and problems of war and peace. M. 1978; Orel V. N. World Peace Council. M. 1978; Ershova E. N. Movement for peace, against militarism and war in the USA. 1965-1978. M. 1980; History of the anti-war movement in the United States. capitalist countries of Europe (1945-1976). Moscow, 1981; et al.

4 History of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. Vol. 3-5. M. 1967-1980; Public and problems of war and peace; see also: Public in the struggle for peace. Index of Literature 1973-1979, Moscow, 1980; Chronicle of the Struggle for Peace. Movement of Peace Supporters in the Soviet Union, Moscow, 1984; 60 years of Struggle of the USSR for Peace and Security, Moscow, 1979; History of Foreign Policy of the USSR, vol. 2, Moscow, 1981; et al.

5 Lenin V. I. PSS. Vol. 35, pp. 13-18.

6 XXVI Congress of the CPSU. Stenogr. otch. T. I. M. 1981 p. 22.

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tax debt of a citizen of the USSR. This is defined in Article 69 of the USSR Constitution of 1977. The CPSU's loyalty to Lenin's peace policy is consistently confirmed in party documents. The draft of the new edition of the Program of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union emphasizes: "A world without wars, without weapons - the ideal of socialism" 7 .

The course of the CPSU and the Soviet State towards peaceful coexistence of States with different social systems and towards achieving lasting peace fully reflects the interests of the Soviet people and all peace-loving humanity and is therefore unanimously supported by them. The entire Soviet people practically participate in the peace movement. The social homogeneity of Soviet society determines the coincidence of the goals of the CPSU, the socialist state and the entire people. This unity is the main feature of the activities of the Soviet supporters of peace and their associates in the countries of the socialist community.

Representatives of the Soviet public began to play a prominent role in the anti-war, anti-fascist movement as early as the 1930s, 8 but at that time the struggle against the threat of war had not yet taken the form of truly mass actions. The qualities that the anti-war organizations of the 1930s lacked-mass participation and activism of all participants-became the main principles of the World Peace Movement.

In the second half of the 1940s, many international democratic organizations (women's, trade unions, youth, etc.) opposed the threat of World War II. The experience of these anti-war speeches showed the need to unite and activate the public. Held in 1948, the Wroclaw Congress of Cultural Figures in Defense of Peace was largely devoted to discussing ways to restore ties between peoples disrupted by the Second World War9 . After that, world-famous cultural figures from 17 countries initiated the convening of the First World Congress of Peace Advocates. Among the 75 signatures under the Appeal for the convocation of the congress were the names of Soviet writers V. L. Vasilevskaya, A. A. Fadeev, M. A. Sholokhov, scientists S. I. Vavilov, P. N. Fedoseev, and public figure N. V. Popova. The Congress was held in April 1949.10 with the motto "Defending peace is the cause of all the peoples of the world". It marked the beginning of the World Peace Movement, which unites the public of different countries, regardless of nationality, political or religious views. The continuous expansion of the peace cooperation platform is the key to the success of the Global Peace Movement. Numerous Soviet public organizations participate in it. An indicator of the achievements of the peace movement in the USSR is the breadth of contacts with foreign public organizations and movements, the participation of Soviet people in international peace actions, their representatives in international peace-loving public forums, and in the activities of the World Peace Council (WCC).

The beginning of the organized movement of peace supporters in the USSR is connected with the work of the First All-Union Conference of Peace Supporters (Moscow, August 1949), prepared on the initiative of representatives of

7 Program of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (New edition). Project, Moscow, 1985, p. 61.

8 See: Zak L. M. The struggle of the Soviet intelligentsia against fascism and War (1933-1937). Istoriya SSSR, 1963, N 3; Anti-war traditions of the international labor movement; Kumanev V. A. Figures of Soviet culture in the anti-war and anti-fascist movement (30s). Voprosy istorii, 1984, No. 6.

9 Congres Mondial des intellectuels pour ia paix. Wroclaw - Pologne, 25 - 28 aout 1948. Varsavie. 1949.

10 Pravda, 25. II. 1949; First World Peace Congress. Paris - Prague, April 20-25, 1949. Moscow, 1950, p. 491.

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mass Soviet public organizations, Academy of Sciences of the USSR, creative unions 11 . The speeches of the leaders of public organizations and representatives of various strata of Soviet society expressed full support for the consistently peaceful foreign policy of the USSR, which meets the vital interests of progressive humanity. The conference participants expressed their readiness to actively join the rapidly growing Global Peace Movement. The Soviet Peace Defense Committee (SKZM) elected by the conference included 79 people-authoritative public figures, heroes of the Great Patriotic War, innovators of production and heroes of labor, famous scientists, writers, artists, and artists 12 . The SKZM was headed by the poet N. S. Tikhonov, who remained its chairman until his death in 197913 . Many thousands of meetings and meetings of the Soviet public supported the decisions of the conference. Since that time, forms of mass activity of Soviet peace fighters began to take shape. One of the first mass actions of Soviet peace supporters was their participation in the International Day of Peace on October 2, 1949, when the working people of the USSR demonstrated, participated in rallies and meetings dedicated to the struggle for peace, supporting the foreign policy of the CPSU and the Soviet state, and condemning the aggressive NATO bloc14 .

Imperialist propaganda, seeking to stop the new movement of peoples, tried to portray the goals of the World Peace Movement as supposedly beneficial only to the Soviet Union in the conditions of the temporary atomic monopoly of the United States. However, these insinuations were refuted by the USSR's advocacy for the prohibition of weapons of mass destruction even after it was officially announced that it had an atomic bomb15 .

The results of the first major international peace campaign, the gathering of half a billion signatures for the Stockholm Appeal of the Standing Committee of the World Peace Congress, were eloquent. The appeal called for the unconditional prohibition of atomic weapons as weapons of mass destruction and suggested that the government that decides to use them first should be considered a war criminal. The Stockholm appeal was supported by the session of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR 16 . The collection of signatures in the country began on June 30, 1950 (the US government at that time unleashed armed aggression in Korea). Signatures were provided by all adult citizens (over 115.5 million people).17 . This global campaign should be considered as the first powerful wave of the popular movement, which had a significant impact on world politics.

In the first half of the 1950s, Soviet peace advocates did considerable work. Its results were summed up at regularly convened All-Union conferences. Conference participants expressed their support for the foreign policy of the USSR, accepted instructions to delegates who were elected to international forums of peace fighters, instructing them to re-evaluate the country's foreign policy.-

11 TsGAOR USSR, f. 9539, op. 1, d. 8, ll. 13, 69-71.

12 All-Union Conference of Peace Supporters. Moscow, August 25-27, 1949, Moscow, 1950; Soviet Peace Defense Committee. Booklet. Ed. 1-2-E. M. 1972, 1978.

13 He was replaced in this post by Academician E. K. Fedorov, after his death since 1981, the chairman of the SKZM is Hero of Socialist Labor, political commentator of the newspaper "Pravda" Yu.A. Zhukov.

14 Pravda, 1, 31. VIII, 2-5. X. 1949.

15 Pravda, 25. IX. 1949; see Supporters of Peace, 1950, No. 9, p. 48.

16 Session of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR (first session, June 12-19, 1950). Stenogr. otch. [Moscow] 1950, p. 381. For the text of the appeal, see Pravda, 20. III. 1950.

17 Second All-Union Conference of Peace Advocates. Moscow, October 16-18, 1950 [Moscow], 1951, p. 7.

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It is imperative to advocate for ensuring lasting peace and to put forward and support proposals aimed at preventing the threat of war.

In the early 1950s, it was a tradition in the USSR to celebrate the opening of conferences, and later other significant events for the peace movement, with labor achievements. Labor shifts, increased production obligations of individual workers and entire collectives were the business support of the peace movement. Soviet people always associate their main contribution to peace with creation. "My weapon is labor," said weaver E. I. Podsoblyaeva, a delegate to one of the conferences of Soviet peace supporters .18
Representatives of the Soviet peace supporters always actively participated in the events and meetings held by the Supreme Soviet. It was established in 1950 at the Second World Peace Congress. Among the 222 elected public figures from 64 countries, there were 12 Soviet representatives. At the suggestion of A. A. Fadeev, the congress participants addressed the permanent members of the UN Security Council-the USSR, the USA, Great Britain, France and China-with a proposal to make a progressive, simultaneous and proportional reduction of all armed forces in the range from one third to one half in 1951-1952, to establish control over the reduction of weapons and the implementation of the prohibition of atomic, bacteriological chemical and other types of weapons of mass destruction. "Peace is not expected, peace is won," the Manifesto of the Congress read 19 .

In response to the appeal of the World Congress to the parliaments of all countries, on March 12, 1951, the Supreme Soviet of the USSR adopted the Law on the Protection of Peace, which declared propaganda of war the gravest criminal offense against humanity. 20 Article 28 of the 1977 Constitution of the USSR states: "In the USSR, propaganda of war is prohibited." European socialist countries have also adopted laws on the protection of peace.

The restoration of international public relations, which had been disrupted by World War II, in the atmosphere of cold War politics, required enormous efforts. This daily, persistent, patient work has brought visible results. SKZM is constantly working to establish and maintain friendly relations and cooperation with an increasingly wide range of social forces of the world - with international and national organizations, movements, individual groups that are aware of the need to preserve peace on the planet. Its relations with the public in socialist countries are particularly strong.

Soviet peace advocates have always been aware that the best form of agitation in favor of socialism can be the widest possible familiarization of the peoples of foreign countries with the life of the USSR. This principle permeates the entire history of the Soviet peace movement, which pays great attention to strengthening international cultural contacts as the most accessible to the broad masses. SKZM actively participated in the celebrations of the great cultural anniversaries announced annually by the Supreme Soviet. The first such anniversary was the 150th anniversary of the birth of Victor Hugo (1952)-his speeches in the second half of the XIX century in favor of universal peace were distinguished by realism and went beyond traditional bourgeois pacifism. Personal contacts of Soviet representatives with representatives of many countries, meetings and negotiations at international forums of supporters of peace, democratic organizations (women, youth) became important.,

18 The Fourth All-Union Conference of Peace Advocates. Moscow, December 2-4, 1952. Moscow, 1954, p. 228.

19 Second World Peace Congress. Warsaw. November 16-22, 1950 [Moscow] 1951, pp. 513-514.

20 Izvestiya, 13. III. 1951.

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scientists, specialists), at world festivals of youth and students. The exchange of delegations has steadily expanded. Since 1952, there has been an increase in the number of foreign workers ' and trade union delegations visiting the USSR: in 1951 - 39 delegations from 33 countries, in 11 months of 1952-114 delegations from 46 countries21 . Joint statements, communiques, and other documents that crowned such meetings revealed the commonality of views on the problems of defending peace between Soviet and foreign peace advocates. In 1952, the ICSM received 16 delegations (up to 200 members) and 24 prominent figures of the World Peace Movement22 .

The creation of Peace Defense Committees (CMC) in the Union and autonomous republics, territories, and regions of the USSR in 1951 was of great importance for strengthening the activities of Soviet peace advocates. Representatives of trade unions, Komsomol, organizations of the Znanie society, creative unions and other associations are elected to their membership. From year to year, the KZM expands propaganda work on the foreign policy of the USSR and the international situation, receives foreign delegations of peace supporters who get acquainted with the USSR, develops mass work among the population, organizing rallies and meetings, and participates in anti-war actions of the SCM and SKZM. KZM activists are part of Soviet peace delegations traveling abroad. Together with other organizations, KZM participates in the international education of the population. By the beginning of the 80s, the number of republican, regional, regional, and city KZM reached 120 23 . One of the first large-scale actions carried out by local KMZ was the collection of signatures in 1951 under the call of the Berlin session of the Supreme Soviet for the conclusion of a peace pact between the five great Powers. In the USSR, the draft was signed by almost 118 million people - almost the entire population over the age of 16 .24
At world congresses and other international peace forums, Soviet delegates actively cooperate with an ever-expanding circle of representatives of other countries and peoples. In 1952, the Congress of Peoples for Peace in Vienna was attended for the first time by delegates from a number of countries in Asia, Africa and Oceania. At the suggestion of the Soviet delegation, the congress participants expressed their support for the inalienable right of all peoples to national independence. 25 At the rallies and meetings held by the CMC throughout the country, the decisions of the congress were approved, its calls were supported to fight against the preparation of a new world war, for the cessation of hostilities in Korea, Vietnam and other Southeast Asian countries, and for the prohibition of all means of mass destruction. The Soviets welcomed the demand that the Governments of the five Powers sign a Peace Pact. However, only the Governments of the U.S.S.R. and the socialist countries expressed their readiness to do so immediately .26
The second half of the 1950s and early 1960s were marked by a consistent struggle for the Global Movement of Peace Advocates and Soviet fighters for Peace to reduce international tensions, solve disarmament problems, and stop nuclear testing. It was a time to overcome internal difficulties in the movement, which arose as a result of attempts to split its ranks.

21 Fourth All-Union Conference of Peace Supporters, pp. 38-39.

22 TsGAOR USSR, f. 9539, op. 1, d. 195, l. 14.

23 Zhukov Yu. An irresistible force. - Kommunist, 1983, N 7, p. 91.

24 Pravda, 28. XI. 1951; Third All-Union Conference of Peace Supporters. Moscow, November 27 - 29, 1951, Moscow, 1952, p. 12.

25 Congress of Peoples in Defense of Peace. Vienna, December 12-19, 1952, Moscow, 1954, p. 118.

26 Pravda, 28. IV. 1953; Izvestiya, 4, 5, 7. 19. V. 1953.

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The Soviet government, guided by the decisions of the XX - XXII Party congresses, consistently put forward proposals in the UN, during negotiations with the capitalist powers, on real measures to reduce the danger of a new world war. 27 A number of important measures were taken unilaterally by the USSR 28 . It has established diplomatic relations with several dozen independent states that have sprung up in Asia, Africa, and Latin America. The strengthening of the international influence of the USSR and the countries of the socialist commonwealth and their consistently peaceful policies led in the 1970s to a turn from the cold War to defusing tensions, to a broad recognition of the Principles of peaceful coexistence as the norm of relations between states.

Participants of the Fifth All-Union Conference of Peace Advocates expressed their support for the struggle of the peoples of Asia and Africa for freedom and independence, instructing the delegates elected to the World Peace Assembly in Helsinki (1955) to fully support the five principles of peaceful coexistence adopted in April 1955 at the Bandung Conference .29 In April-June, 123.5 million signatures were collected in the USSR during the international campaign to collect signatures under the Vienna Appeal of the Supreme Soviet against the Threat of War .30
At the World Peace Assembly in Helsinki, Soviet delegates emphasized that the representatives of the democratic public of 68 countries gathered there were intended to ease the way to negotiations between heads of State and diplomats. During this period, there were a number of major international complications provoked by imperialist circles. The influence of the Cold war was manifested, in particular, in the fact that delegates from the United States, British Labor, West German Social Democrats and some other representatives of capitalist countries were unable to participate in the Assembly.

Since 1956, the work of the SCSM on establishing and expanding cultural contacts has significantly expanded. In February 1957, at the session of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, a group of deputies-members of the SKZM made a request to the Soviet Government regarding the prospects for developing cultural ties with foreign countries. SKZM also announced its plans to participate in the celebration of cultural anniversaries and exchange delegations of cultural figures .31
The multiplication of the ranks of war opponents, the influx of representatives of new social groups and strata and organizations into the World Peace Movement, and the expansion of the national spectrum of the movement set the Soviet public the task of more active interaction with foreign organizations and public associations. New public organizations, which were especially intensively created in the USSR in the second half of the 50s, helped to solve this problem. They established contacts with related foreign public organizations and cooperated with them .32
In May 1956, the Soviet Committee for Solidarity of Asian Countries was established, which was later transformed into the Soviet Committee for Solidarity of Asian and African Countries (SCSSAA)33.-

27 Izvestia, 22. XII. 1957; Pravda, 1. XI. 1959.

28 Izvestiya, 1. IV. 1958; 60 years of the USSR's struggle for Peace and Security, pp. 279, 281.

29th All-Union Conference of Soviet Peace Supporters. Moscow, May 10-12, 1955, Moscow, 1956, pp. 235-237.

30 Pravda, 1. VII. 1955.

31 Chronicle of the Struggle for Peace, p. 42.

32 For more information, see: Bregadze A. A., Zakharikov A. N. Internatsionalnaya deyatel'nost ' sovetskikh trudovykh (1956-1966). Moscow, 1967.

33 Pravda, 22. V. 1956; Izvestiya, 30. IX. 1956; In the Struggle for Peace and Freedom (Soviet Committee of Solidarity of Asian and African Countries. XXV years). B. M. 1981.

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public representatives of the Union Republics of Central Asia and Transcaucasia. In the same year, the Soviet Committee of War Veterans (SKVV)was formed34 . In 1956, the Committee of Youth Organizations of the USSR was created on the basis of the Anti-Fascist Committee of Soviet Youth to coordinate its international relations. One of its most important tasks is to activate the efforts of young people in the struggle for peace. In 1958, the Union of Soviet Societies of Friendship and Cultural Relations with Foreign Countries (SSOD)was founded35 . This gave an impetus to the creation of friendship societies of the USSR with individual countries (by the mid-80s, their number was close to one hundred and 36 ) and actively cooperating societies of friendship with the USSR in countries of all continents. The creation of the SSOD contributed to an increase in the number of foreign delegations visiting the USSR. Already in 1956-1957, 2,625 delegations (25,000 delegates) from 89 countries visited the USSR, not counting 34,000 participants of the VI World Festival of Youth and Students in Moscow in 1957, and 500,000 delegates during 1960. A large number of delegations arrived at the invitation of the SCMR. They met with activists of the movement, participated in negotiations, and worked out joint documents. The scope of travel abroad by delegations of the SKZM and other Soviet public organizations grew 37 . A lot of work was done by the Committee of Soviet Women (CSW). By 1985, it had connections with 300 organizations from 128 countries38 .

In the late 1950s, UN Associations and the Soviet Pugwash Committee of Scientists were formed, whose members are actively involved in the Pugwash Movement of Scientists for Peace. 39 The increased activity of Soviet scientists in defense of peace was expressed, in particular, in the call to unite scientists from all over the world against the danger of nuclear war, voiced in September 1957 at meetings of scientists in Moscow, Leningrad, Tashkent, Sverdlovsk, and other major cities of the country40 .

In April 1961, the Soviet Peace Foundation (SPF)was founded41 . Its founders were SKZM, SSOD, SKSSAA, CSW, KMO, Soviet Pugwash Committee of Scientists, SKWV, UN Assistance Association, Executive Committee of the Union of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (SOCCIC), Centrosoyuz. Soviet public organizations, labor collectives, and individual citizens participate in the activities of the SPS on a voluntary basis. Expressing the patriotism and internationalism of the Soviet people, guided by the goals and principles of the peaceful foreign policy of the USSR, the SFM, according to its charter, " provides financial support to organizations, movements and individuals fighting for the consolidation of peace, national independence and freedom, the development of friendship and cooperation between peoples, the prohibition of all types of nuclear weapons and other means of mass destruction, achieving general and complete disarmament". The SPS allocates funds to Soviet non-governmental organizations for developing contacts with the peace-loving foreign public, scientific research of peace problems, and finances the publication of publications reflecting the theme of peace and security.

34 Batov P. I. Sovetskie veterany voiny [Soviet War veterans]. In: Public and Problems of War and Peace, pp. 317-329.

35 Pravda, 18. II. 1958; Information Bulletin of SKZM, 1958, N 1-2, p. 20-23.

36 Kruglova Z. M. The Union of Soviet Societies of Friendship and Cultural Ties with foreign countries. A new stage of development. Voprosy istorii, 1981, No. 12.

37 Information Bulletin of SKZM, 1958, N 1-2, p. 22; Pravda, 31. V. 1958; 8. XII. 1960.

38 Tereshkova V. Growing activity of women in the movement for peace. - Party Life, 1985, N 10, p. 37-38.

39 Obshchestvo i problemy voiny i mira [Public Opinion and Problems of War and Peace], Izd. II, Moscow, 1978; Buzuev V. M., Pavlichenko V. P. Scientists in the struggle for Peace and Progress. From the History of the Pugwash movement, Moscow, 1967; Voprosy istorii, 1974, No. 12.

40 Pravda, 6, 7. IX. 1957.

41 Pravda, 28. IV. 1961.

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friendship between peoples 42 . The first chairman of the SFM was N. S. Tikhonov, in the 70s-the writer B. N. Polevoy, since 1979 the chairman was the world chess champion A. E. Karpov. The participation of Soviet citizens in the replenishment of the SFM is one of the most important forms of their active struggle for peace. In the 1980s, more than 90 million people became SPS depositors43 .

The SCSM's activities are based on the decisions of the peace congresses and sessions of the SCM. The initiatives put forward by the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet always find the support of Soviet supporters of peace. Meetings, meetings of workers, conferences and plenums of the SCSM and its local bodies, speeches of leaders and activists of the movement in the press and on the radio, reception of foreign delegations and trips abroad of Soviet delegations, practical measures to implement the decisions of the SCM - such is the business response of the SCSM to the decisions and initiatives of the SCM. SKZM pays great attention to contacts and negotiations with representatives and heads of foreign peace organizations. Bilateral and multilateral ties are constantly expanding.

In 1957, at rallies and meetings held throughout the country, Soviet people supported the Statement and Appeal of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR to the US Congress and the British Parliament to stop testing nuclear weapons adopted by the SCM in accordance with the decisions of the Berlin session of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR .44 In the period leading up to the World Congress for Disarmament and International Cooperation (Stockholm, 1958), a citywide rally in Tallinn organized by the Estonian SSR KZM was attended by 70,000 people, 45 that is , more than 25% of the city's residents. At the congress, the Soviet delegation introduced a project to create nuclear-free zones. The Congress participants ' address to the peoples of the Middle East condemned imperialist aggression in the region .46
Since the mid-1950s, new forms of direct communication between representatives of the Soviet and foreign public have appeared: trains and motor ships of peace and friendship, days, weeks, and months of friendship. They helped establish personal contacts between Soviet peace supporters and peace supporters from other countries. In July 1958, a delegation of Soviet peace supporters took part in the first Baltic Peace Week held in Rostock, GDR. In August, the Soviet motor ship Georgia made a peace cruise across the Baltic Sea, which was attended by 600 peace supporters from the USSR, the Scandinavian countries, Poland, the GDR, and Germany .47 In the same year, Moscow, Kiev, and Leningrad were visited by 310 peace supporters from Czechoslovakia on the friendship train. The joint communique of the Soviet and Czechoslovak peace supporters confirmed the commonality of their goals .48 In the future, the forms of contacts were further expanded and became traditional. The purpose of such events is to fight for easing international tensions, stopping nuclear tests and the arms race, and consolidating peace.

In 1959, Moscow became the venue for the first representative meeting of the HSR Bureau with the participation of delegations from 45 countries. Foreign guests met with wide circles of the Soviet public, and were received by the leaders of the CPSU and the Soviet state . 49-

42 Charter of the Soviet Peace Foundation, Moscow, 1978, art.

43 Karpov A. Sovetskiy fond mira [Soviet Peace Fund]. In: Peace and Disarmament. Scientific research. 1984. M. 1984, p. 274.

44 Pravda, 4, 10, 11, 23. V. 1957.

45 Information Bulletin of SKZM, 1958, N 1-2, p. 37.

46 Chkhikvadze V. M. Uk. soch., pp. 79-80.

47 Pravda, 15. VII. 1958; Information Bulletin of SKZM, 1958, N 8, p. 33; N 9, p. 13-21.

48 Pravda, 10. XI. 1958.

49 Pravda, 22-27. II. 1959.

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The SCM delegation participated in the anniversary session of the SCM in Stockholm, the decisions of which determined the direction of the movement's further" activities. The declaration adopted by the session reaffirmed the basic principles of the World Peace Movement, and once again called on people of good will to join forces to cooperate in the struggle for peace. 50 The 10th anniversary of the World Peace Movement was widely celebrated in all the Union republics. A large group of Soviet activists were awarded medals and honorary certificates of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR .

In the early 60s, the arms race intensified, and international tensions escalated. Imperialist circles provoked the so-called Berlin crisis, which brought the world to the brink of nuclear conflict. Supporters of peace in the USSR, together with peace fighters from other countries, protested against the attempts of the American imperialists to strangle revolutionary Cuba, against the intervention of the Belgian colonialists in the Republic of the Congo, against France's atomic bomb test explosions in the Sahara, took part in discussions on disarmament, the conclusion of a peace treaty with the German states, the status of West Berlin, stopping the production of nuclear weapons 52 .

The delegates of the Conference of Soviet Public Representatives for Disarmament (February 1960), convened by the SCSM with the participation of the All-Russian Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, the SCSSAA, the CSJ, the KMO and other public organizations, and the participants of the conference of representatives of the Soviet public for general disarmament and peace (May 1962) unanimously expressed support for the foreign policy line of the CPSU and the Soviet state for the prohibition of nuclear weapons testing in perpetuity, and for general and complete disarmament. Delegates from both conferences appealed to the world's peace-loving forces to support these urgent demands of humanity .53
A major event for the Soviet people was the holding in Moscow (July 1962) of the World Congress for General Disarmament and Peace - the most representative in comparison with all the previous forums: representatives of 121 countries took part in it, and, for example, in the Stockholm Congress (1958) - 78 countries. On the eve of the Congress, the Governments of the U.S.S.R. and other socialist countries, as well as of India, expressed their unqualified support for the peoples ' struggle for general and complete disarmament. This was a response to the call of the head of the HSR, J. P. Blavatsky. Bernal appealed to the heads of several states with a request to state their positions on the issues they discussed at the Geneva talks at that time. The US Government did not respond to this call, and the Governments of Great Britain and France did not express their support for the struggle of peoples for peace. The Moscow Congress was notable for the wide participation of delegates from African countries. In the early 1960s, the processes of decolonization in Africa, Asia, and Latin America became more active, so the SCM paid much attention to these problems, especially considering the relationship between the struggle for general disarmament and the struggle for freedom and national independence as components of the struggle for peace .54 The overwhelming majority of the congress participants voted for the final document - "Message to the peoples of the World". It called for strengthening the struggle for peace, for general and complete disarmament under strict international law.

50 Pravda, 9-16. V. 1959.

51 Pravda, 1. IX. 1959.

52 Pravda, 17. IX; 10, 21, 30, 31. XII. 1960; 18. I, 12. II, 20. VII. 1961; 15. IX, 26. X. 1962; and others.

53 Pravda, 16, 17. II. 1960; 30, 31. V, 9. VII. 1962; Information Bulletin of SKZM, 1962, N 6, pp. 1-2.

54 For more information, see: World History, vol. XIII, pp. 596-598.

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invitation to the nuclear Powers to conclude a treaty banning all nuclear tests 55 .

In the second half of the 60s, there were signs of a weakening of the cold war, a positive process of transition of a number of realistic-minded leaders of Western countries from confrontation to negotiations with the USSR and the countries of socialism on a number of issues. Even earlier, on August 5, 1963, the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons Testing in Three Environments was signed in Moscow, and on July 1, 1968, the Treaty on the Non - Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons was signed in Moscow, London, and Washington .56 These important acts did not exclude, however, the possibility of the emergence of new acute international conflicts, which in the second half of the 60s more than once posed a direct threat to peace. The greatest danger was the US aggression in Vietnam, which later spread to other Indochina countries and brought suffering to the peoples of Vietnam, Laos, and Kampuchea, who heroically defended the right to their national independence and sovereignty with the support of the progressive forces of the planet. Another persistent hotbed that threatens to develop into a global military conflagration was (and still is) the Middle East. The aggression of the State of Israel against Arab countries in June 1967 brought the world to the brink of a military catastrophe.

The Soviet peace supporters, together with the World Peace Movement that continued to expand, responded actively to any adventures of imperialism that were fraught with military conflicts. In the second half of the 50s and early 60s, many mass actions were carried out: in 1957, the campaign for reaching an agreement to stop nuclear weapons testing; in 1958, the Week of Peace held on the eve of the World Congress in Stockholm; in the early 60s, spring speeches for disarmament, held by conscription SCM, as well as against the creation of a multilateral NATO nuclear force, for the elimination of NATO military bases in foreign territories, etc.

Qualitative changes in the world social movement for peace in the 60s are mainly related to the consolidation of the international community's efforts to fight for an end to the American aggression in Vietnam. Soviet supporters of peace gave all possible support to the heroic people of Vietnam, fought to curb the aggressor. Delegates of the All - Union Conference for Peace, National Independence and General Disarmament (June 17-18, 1965) heard and discussed N. S. Tikhonov's report "The struggle of the Soviet people against imperialist aggression, in support of the national independence of peoples, for peace and disarmament". The "Declaration on Vietnam" was adopted unanimously, expressing unconditional support for the struggle of its heroic people for independence. The Conference resolution emphasized the inextricable link between the national liberation struggle and the struggle for peace and disarmament .57
From the beginning of the American aggression in Vietnam in 1964 to its end in 1973, the Soviet state, the party, and the entire people focused on providing support and assistance to the struggling people. The XXIII and XXIV Congresses of the CPSU called the cessation of American aggression and the elimination of military hotbeds in Southeast Asia, as well as in the Middle East, an indispensable condition for improving the international climate, strengthening peace and developing peaceful cooperation between peoples .58
55 Pravda, 10-17. VII. 1962.

56 Pravda, 6. VIII. 1963; For peace, disarmament and Security of peoples. Annals of Foreign Policy of the USSR, ed. 2-E. M. 1984, p. 215.

57 Pravda, 18, 19. VI. 1965.

58 See the CPSU in resolutions and decisions of congresses, conferences and plenums of the Central Committee. Ed. 8-E. T. 9, pp. 21-22; vol. 10, pp. 347-348.

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Representatives of Soviet public organizations were active participants in international conferences of solidarity with the struggle of the people of Vietnam. SKZM was one of the initiators of the first Stockholm Conference on Vietnam (1967)59 . Thus was born the Stockholm movement in support of the struggle of the peoples of Vietnam, in which various international and national public organizations and movements that had not previously come into contact collaborated. This fruitful experience largely determined the subsequent cooperation of peace-loving forces, its success in the 70s and 80s.

Soviet public organizations and the people of our country responded with real actions to each new escalation of the Vietnam War .60 Under the leadership of the SKZM, Soviet peace supporters participated in all the mass actions, days, weeks, and months of solidarity with the struggle of the people of Vietnam declared by the Supreme Soviet; many of these forms later became traditional (for example, solidarity actions were held annually to mark the anniversary of the signing of the 1954 Geneva Agreement on Vietnam, the Day of the Declaration of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam - September 2, etc.).

Every time the United States stepped up its aggressive actions in Vietnam, public statements in support of the struggle of the Vietnamese people increased in the USSR. The Soviet public demanded an end to the barbaric bombing of the territory of the DRV, an end to American aggression in South Vietnam, and an opportunity for the Vietnamese people to exercise their right to self-determination in practice. Participants of the rallies held in cities and villages of the country severely branded the arrogant aggressors, expressed their solidarity with the courageous people of Vietnam. On December 16, 1965, a mass rally of solidarity of workers of the Sverdlovsk region of the capital with heroic Vietnam was held in Moscow in front of the building of the Bolshoi Theater of the USSR. Mass rallies and meetings were held in Ukraine, Belarus, Latvia, Moldova, Armenia, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, and Georgia.

Along with political forms of support for Vietnam, material assistance to its people reached a large scale: labor shifts, subbotniks, Sundays, regular and one-time voluntary fees and contributions to the fund for assistance to the people of Vietnam, especially children, were carried out by the Soviets throughout its many-year struggle against the invaders. So, in just one week, 100 thousand rubles were collected in Ukraine, the Leningrad KZM sent 60 thousand rubles worth of medicines to Vietnam, the Moscow KZM - equipment for the disabled home, Tula workers-5 thousand bicycles 61 . During the Week of Solidarity with the People of Vietnam, which was held at the call of the Supreme Soviet on March 13-19, 1967, mass demonstrations were supplemented by ever-expanding material assistance from the Soviet public to the people of Vietnam. SKZM and the Soviet Vietnam Support Committee, together with other non-governmental organizations, purchased medicines, food, clothing, ambulances, tractors, and industrial goods with voluntary contributions. On May 31, the Solnechnogorsk motor ship 62 sailed for Vietnam with cargo for its population . Soviet trade unions repeatedly provided material assistance to Vietnamese citizens. The XIV Congress of Trade Unions of the USSR adopted a resolution on supporting the Vietnamese people 63 . On April 15, 1968, the Razdolnoye motor ship left the port of Vladivostok with parcels for 10 thousand Vietnamese-a gift from the Soviet people to

59 The truth, 6, 7, 8, 10, 13, 20.VII. 1967; see also: World History, vol. XIII, pp. 603-605.

60 Pravda, 15. I, 13. II, 18, 26. III, 12. V, 3. IX, 14. X, 26. XI, 14, 20. XII. 1965.

61 Pravda, 19. XII. 1966.

62 Pravda, 2, 5.VI 17. VIII. 1967; TsGAOR USSR, f. 9605, op. 1, 23.

63 Pravda, 2, 7. III. 1968.

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May 1, 64 . In October, during the Week of Solidarity with the Vietnamese People, held in the USSR in connection with the appeal of the Supreme Soviet and the Organization of Solidarity of the Peoples of Asia and Africa (OSNA), the flow of funds for the people of Vietnam increased again65 . They were made up of earnings during non-working hours, on subbotniks and Sundays, and from voluntary contributions from workers. Schoolchildren also participated in the campaign: they collected waste paper, scrap metal, etc. to buy gifts for their Vietnamese peers.

The heroic struggle of the Vietnamese people, the support given to them by the USSR, other countries of the socialist community, and the entire peace-loving public, forced the United States to stop bombing the DRV in November 1968. The struggle of the peoples of the world against American aggression in Vietnam continued. The World Peace Assembly (Berlin, June 1969) was held under the slogans " USA-get out of Vietnam!", " Vietnam - to the Vietnamese!". The Assembly has become a new stage in the consolidation of the world's peace-loving forces. 66 N. S. Tikhonov, speaking at a meeting of peace supporters of European socialist countries, called 1969 the year of international mobilization in support of Vietnam, the year of fruitful active actions of peace-loving forces against reaction and war. 67 Serious attention was also paid to other problems of global development that posed a threat to a stable world, as well as to the situation in the Middle East. In those years, the Soviet public, together with all peace-loving humanity, put forward a demand for the withdrawal of Israeli troops from the Arab territories captured in June 1967. The issues of strengthening security and cooperation in Europe, disarmament, and the struggle for national independence were constantly on the agenda of international peace forums.

The issue of the need to ban the bacteriological and chemical weapons that the United States used during the Vietnam War has become acute. Soviet lawyers and doctors actively cooperated in the International Commission to Investigate such Crimes of American Imperialism in Indochina. The selfless struggle of the courageous people of Vietnam, supported by the progressive forces of peace, and the unpopularity of the war in the United States itself led to the signing of the agreement on ending the war and restoring peace in Vietnam in Paris on January 27, 1973 .68 The peace-loving forces of the world and the Soviet public made a significant contribution to the victory of the just cause of the Vietnamese people.

A new period of social movement in defense of peace is connected with the de-escalation of international tension achieved in the 70s. The positive processes promoted by the world peace movement created favorable conditions for the expansion of various international relations of the Soviet public with the public of most countries of the world. The Soviet State provides the public with ample opportunities for international activity 69 .

In parallel with the struggle against American aggression in Vietnam, Soviet peace advocates continued their actions in other areas that were equally important for maintaining peace on the planet, with increasing concern from the end of the 60s-

64 Pravda, 12, 16, 29, 30. IV. 1968; TsGAOR USSR, f. 9605, op. 1, d. 30, ll. 45-46, 50.

65 Pravda, 20. X. 1968.

66 World History, vol. XIII, pp. 606-607; Fedorov E. K. A significant event. - Vek XX i mir, 1969, N 8, p. 2 - 9.

67 Cm. XX Century and the World, 1970, N 1, p. 2.

68 For Peace, Disarmament and Security of Peoples, p. 246.

69 For more information, see: Tarle G. Ya. International activity of the Soviet public at the present stage. - Voprosy istorii, 1980, N 2.

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The task of ensuring security and cooperation in Europe was solved. The activities of the Soviet Committee for European Security and Co-operation played an important role in this respect70 . The struggle for the prohibition of nuclear weapons, for general and complete disarmament, support for peoples fighting against neo-colonialism, for national independence, and for eliminating the consequences of Israel's aggression against the Arab peoples remained relevant.

Since the beginning of the 70s in the USSR, the activity of local KZM has noticeably intensified. They became more organized, and their work became more regular. QMS were created in a number of areas where they did not exist before. SPS assistance commissions were also established in the republics, territories, and oblasts. For example, the commissions work in close contact with trade unions and other public organizations under the leadership of party organizations. Thus, the Rostov Regional Commission for the Promotion of SPS was established in 1971, then there were city and district commissions, support groups at enterprises, collective farms and institutions. The Rostov Regional Council of Trade Unions adopted special resolutions on the participation of trade union organizations in the collection of voluntary contributions to the SPS. All these measures did not slow down to affect the amount of contributions: from 1971 to 1979. it has grown more than 8 times 71 .

The World Congress of Peace-Loving Forces (Moscow, 1973)72 demonstrated successful public cooperation in the search for lasting peace . Preparation for it was largely carried out by the SKZM forces. At the congress, a fruitful dialogue was held between representatives of public and political forces of various socio-political orientations. The Congress showed that the efforts of Governments that consistently advocate for peace, freedom and security of all peoples must be supported by an increasingly strong public support, by the active masses of the people, who show a will to peace and an acute intolerance of arbitrariness and aggression; that there is an opportunity to develop a common platform for cooperation in the struggle for peace. The principles and forms of such cooperation were defined. The Congress demonstrated the success of consolidating the anti-war peace-loving forces of the planet and at the same time gave an important impetus to the further development of this process .73
In 1974, the Soviet Peace Conference was held to mark the movement's 25th anniversary. For his great contribution to the struggle for peace, international security and cooperation, and for his fruitful activity in the World Movement of Peace-loving Forces, SKZM was awarded the Order of Friendship of Peoples 74 .

At the beginning of the 1970s, the struggle of the peoples for the transformation of the process of detente into a permanent factor, for its irreversible character and spread to all parts of the world, for the cessation of the arms race, which, through the fault of imperialism, did not weaken. At the conference of Soviet peace supporters in 1974, the results of their activities in providing political, moral, and material assistance to the heroic people of Vietnam were summed up, and the results of a large-scale war were revealed.

70 For more information, see: Grossman A. S., Pankov N. A. Struggle for security and cooperation in Europe and the role of the public. - Voprosy istorii, 1974, N 5; Stepanov A. I. The USSR and the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe. - Ibid., 1976, N 2.

71 Current archive of the Rostov Regional Peace Protection Committee. Reports for 1971-1979.

72 See for more details: Zimyanin M. A new stage of activization and consolidation of peace-loving forces, Kommunist, 1973, No. 18; Tikhvinsky S. Dvizhenie za mir - moguchaya sila sovremennosti. - New and recent history, 1974, N 4.

73rd World Congress of Peace-loving Forces. Moscow, October 25-31, 1973 Doc. m. 1973.

74 Pravda, 9. X. 1974.

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political and organizational work of the SCSM to launch in the USSR a broad campaign of solidarity with the Arab peoples, for a just settlement in the Middle East, and participation in the preparation of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe. The conference positively assessed the importance of developing contacts between the public of the USSR and the public of the United States, Germany and other capitalist countries that contributed to the improvement of interstate relations. By the 25th anniversary of the SKZM, Soviet peace advocates ' ties with the peace-loving public of Asia, Africa, and Latin America, in particular the young independent states, had become broad and diverse. In those days, the Soviet public's attention was focused on protesting against the rampant fascist reaction and terror in Chile, and on helping victims of repression in this Latin American country. In the USSR, the Committee of Solidarity with the Chilean Democrats was founded. In the mid-70s, SKZM cooperated and maintained contacts with peace-loving organizations and movements in 118 countries75 . N. S. Tikhonov said at the conference: "The Peace Movement has entered a new stage of its development. Its essence lies in the fact that much broader social and political forces are involved in active actions aimed at supporting the positive processes taking place in the world than it was just a few years ago. The policy of peace and cooperation is gaining a truly massive base. " 76
As the process of detente deepened, the struggle for disarmament became the central task of the proponents of peace. In the 70s, the mass actions of peace advocates in the struggle for disarmament reached a peak during the collection of signatures for the Stockholm Appeal of the SCM of June 2, 1975. It was addressed to all parliaments, Governments, political parties, trade unions, movements and public organizations, to all the peoples of the world, and called for a new mass campaign against the arms race and for disarmament .77 SKZM at its extended meeting with the participation of the heads of republican, regional, regional KZM and representatives of other public organizations supported the appeal, discussed the plan of participation in this campaign, and issued a statement: "We warmly support the appeal of the World Peace Council!"78 . Soviet support for the Stockholm Appeal, expressed at rallies and public meetings held across the country, was supported by the signatures of more than 185 million people .79 It was a protest of the Soviet people against the full-scale production and deployment of neutron and other types of nuclear weapons in Western Europe, projected in 1975 by the US government. Under the influence of public opinion (500 million people from all over the world signed up to the Stockholm Appeal)80 aggressive figures had to resort to maneuvering.

At the turn of the 70s and 80s, humanity once again faced the threat of a thermonuclear catastrophe. From the rostrum of the All-Union Peace Conference in 1979, a call was made to strengthen the fight to prevent this threat, which increased in connection with the decision of the United States and NATO to produce and deploy new types of American nuclear missile weapons in Western European countries. 81
75 Materials and documents of the Soviet Peace Conference. Moscow. October 9-10, 1974, Moscow, 1975, p. 26.

76 Ibid., p. 22.

77 Pravda, 4. VI. 1975.

78 Pravda, 13. XII. 1975; see also: Chronicle of the Struggle for Peace, pp. 153-158.

79 Chronicle of the Struggle for Peace, p. 165.

80 For more information, see: Zhukov Yu. The Irresistible Force, p. 89.

81 Materials and documents of the All-Union Conference of Peace Supporters. Moscow, December 12, 1979, Moscow, 1980.

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The Soviet public is constantly looking for and finding new forms of effective struggle for peace. On the eve of and after the deployment of American intermediate-range missiles in Western Europe, the anti-war movement, which has swept the world and especially Western European countries on an unprecedented scale, is constantly hearing the resolute voice of the Soviet supporters of peace. Voluntary contributions to the SPS have steadily increased in the 1980s. Traditional rallies and gatherings have been supplemented by demonstrations, broad demonstrations, and street processions, in which, at the call of public organizations, hundreds of thousands of people, as in previous years, no longer take part, but hundreds of thousands, millions of Soviet citizens of all ages. Demonstrations and marches are held under the anti-war slogans proclaimed by the Supreme Soviet. In May - June 1982 alone, Soviet peace supporters held more than 20,000 demonstrations and rallies with the participation of more than 60 million people, who called for the adoption of effective decisions by the Second Special Session of the UN General Assembly on Disarmament (June-July 1982) .82 The NCSM decided to carry out its work within the framework of the World Campaign for Disarmament, proclaimed at the XXXVII session of the UN General Assembly. Since the beginning of the 80-ies in the USSR, Victory Days began to be celebrated annually by mass actions of supporters of peace. In 1982-1984, the Week of Actions for Security and Cooperation in Europe was timed to coincide with them.

The International Day of Peace, celebrated in all countries on September 1, took on the character of mass actions in the USSR in 1981-1984. It has become a tradition to start the school year with a Peace Lesson. Since 1978, Weeks of Action for Disarmament have been especially widely held in the USSR: in 1982, over 50 million people took part in 80 thousand events, according to SKZM estimates; in 1983, more than 90 thousand mass anti - war rallies and demonstrations were held, in 1984-over 100 thousand people . In 1983-1984, mass actions of Soviet peace supporters covered the entire territory of the country, and all public organizations participated in them .84
On October 1, 1983, 800,000 Muscovites demonstrated in support of the Statement of the Central Committee of the CPSU, the Soviet government, about the world-threatening plan to deploy American nuclear missiles in Western Europe .85 According to SKZM, from January to September 1983, 140,000 anti-war demonstrations were held in the USSR (about 160 million participants). In addition, 70 million young Soviet citizens participated in the All-Union referendum "I vote for Peace"86 .

The World Assembly "For Peace and Life, against Nuclear War" (Prague, June 1983) proved the necessity and possibility of uniting all forces for peace on Earth under common slogans. Its participants, putting aside ideological, political, and ideological differences, reached an agreement on joint and parallel actions of various social forces. Soviet peace supporters actively participate in the anti-war movement under the slogans put forward by the Prague Assembly. The mass media are the basis for realizing the growing political activity of the Soviet people. With the help of television, the effect of mass anti-war actions is multiplied.

82 Zhukov Yu. The Irresistible Force, pp. 90-91.

83 Pravda, 6. XI. 1982; Karpova N. K. Struggle for peace - struggle for the future. On the actions of the Soviet public dedicated to the Week of Actions for Disarmament (review). - Vek XX i mir 1983, N 1, p. 25-26; N 12, p. 4-5; 1985, N 3, p. 4.

84 For reviews of the activities of major Soviet public organizations in the struggle for peace and disarmament in the 1980s, see: Peace and Disarmament. Scientific research. 1982. M. 1983; Also. 1984.

85 Moskovskaya pravda, 2. X. 1983.

86 Pravda, 19. X. 1983.

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It has made tens of millions of people complicit in events such as the March of Peace-82.

Public organizations, through the press, radio and television, act as energetic organizers of mass work. The huge amount of mail received from Soviet workers to the SCZM, other public organizations, and newspaper editorial offices can be described by the definition of the June (1983) Plenum of the Central Committee of the CPSU as a sensitive barometer of public opinion, a full-flowing source of thoughts, experience, and initiative of the masses .87
The deepening of the democracy of the socialist state, the growth of the political and cultural level of the population expanded the direct participation of Soviet people in the socio-political life of the country. Their letters and telegrams, appeals, appeals and resolutions adopted at rallies and meetings express their thoughts on ways to strengthen peace, their unconditional support for the foreign policy of the CPSU and the Soviet state, their protest against the militaristic course of capitalist states, and their condemnation of irresponsible US politicians responsible for increasing international tension.

The XXVI Congress of the CPSU put forward the idea of creating an authoritative international committee of scientists, which will be able to demonstrate the vital necessity of preventing a nuclear catastrophe and inform the whole world about its conclusions. 88 In the early 1980s, public associations of Soviet scientists and medical specialists emerged who were able to competently assess the devastating consequences of the arms race. On May 17-19, 1983, Moscow hosted the All-Union Conference of Scientists" For the liberation of mankind from the threat of nuclear war, for disarmament and peace", convened by the decision of the Presidium of the USSR Academy of Sciences. To coordinate the efforts of scientists in the fight against the threat of thermonuclear war, the Committee of Soviet Scientists in Defense of Peace, against Nuclear War was established. It was headed by the Vice-president of the USSR Academy of Sciences, Academician E. P. Velikhov. More than 500 participants of the conference appealed to scientists from all over the world to "join forces to protect the universal heritage of universal peace from the threat of nuclear annihilation"89 .

The international organization "Doctors of the World for the Prevention of Nuclear War" has gained considerable influence. The Soviet committee of this organization was headed by Academician E. I. Chazov. At its All-Union Conference (Moscow, December 6, 1982), scientific reports on the disastrous consequences of a nuclear catastrophe, on the medical and social aspects of the arms race were discussed. The conference participants came to a harsh conclusion: in the conditions of nuclear war, world medicine will not be able to help 90 million victims .

It was not possible to prevent the deployment of American missiles in Western Europe, but the anti-war, anti-missile movement continues, with new influential forces joining its ranks: major political parties and trade unions, youth and women's organizations, prominent political, public and religious figures who had not previously participated in it. Militaristic forces are trying to create discord among the members of the movement, discredit it, and undermine its growing authority. At the All-Union Conference of Soviet Peace Advocates (January 1985), Yu .A. Zhukov analyzed in detail these actions of the enemies of the movement. 91 Contrary to their aspirations, the World Movement of Supporters-

87 Proceedings of the Plenum of the Central Committee of the CPSU, June 14-15, 1983, Moscow, 1983, p. 44.

88 Proceedings of the XXVI Congress of the CPSU, Moscow, 1981, p. 30; see also Baroyan O., Usachev I. Scientists and prevention of nuclear war. - Vek XX i mir, 1981, N b, pp. 29-32.

89 Pravda, 18, 19, 20. V. 1983.

90 Pravda, 7. XII. 1982.

91 Century XX and the World, 1985, N 3, pp. 2-7.

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the peace movement and its integral part-the anti-war movement of the Soviet public-is expanding and growing stronger. The activity of the Soviet public in the struggle for peace was highly appreciated by the Central Committee of the CPSU. The greeting to the conference participants emphasized:: supporters of peace in the USSR "demonstrate unbreakable moral and political unity, high civic consciousness, and an active life position of Soviet people-patriots and internationalists. The role of the Soviet peace movement is becoming increasingly important and responsible today. " 92
Since 1983, having decided to carry out its work within the framework of the World Campaign for Disarmament declared by the UN, the SKZM has submitted monthly reports to the UN on the participation of the Soviet public in the struggle for peace, forwarded letters and appeals from Soviet people. The unanimously adopted resolution of the conference reads: "It is the sacred duty of every member of the movement to" tell the people of the Earth the truth about the world's first country of victorious socialism and its peaceful policy. " 93
The Conference adopted a Regulation on the SKZM, which determined its place in the socio-political system of the USSR: "As an elected body, the SKZM represents a mass movement of Soviet citizens who advocate eliminating the threat of war, primarily nuclear, and preserving and consolidating peace. Within the framework of this movement, a wide field of activity is open for every person who wants to make a personal contribution to the struggle for achieving these goals"; the main task of the SKZM is "to implement in practical forms and concrete actions that correspond to its social character, the contribution of Soviet people to the struggle of peoples for peace, for free independent development"94 .

On the eve of the 40th anniversary of the Great Victory over Fascism, Moscow hosted a session of the Supreme Soviet Presidium, which was attended by delegations from 105 countries and 29 international organizations .95 Welcoming its opening, the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR noted: "Today's dangerous situation requires even more powerful and solidary actions by anti-war forces in order to translate the will of peoples to live in peace into practical solutions." 96 "Let the year of the 40th anniversary of the Victory over fascism become the year of victory over the threat of nuclear war!" - called for the Declaration of the session of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet. The consistent desire of the CPSU and the Soviet state to achieve the return of the world community to the path of detente fully meets the content of the appeal of the session of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet to the peoples of the world: "Raise your voice in the mighty global campaign against the militarization of outer space." 97 Soviet peace advocates, together with all peace - loving humanity, support and welcome the series of new peace initiatives of the USSR put forward to make progress at the Soviet-American negotiations in Geneva, which began in January 1985. "Right now, there is no more important task in the world than to avert the threat of nuclear annihilation from humanity," Mikhail Gorbachev stressed. "And the more actively and resolutely members of the public advocate for this task, the greater the chances of success." 98
Mass participation in the anti-war movement of our time has become a new stage in the growth of political activity of citizens of the Soviet Socialist State.

92 Pravda, 23. I. 1985.

93 Ibid., p. 10.

94 Ibid., pp. 11, 45.

95 Zhukov Yu. Modern international situation and the Peace Movement, p. 45.

96 Pravda, 23. III. 1985.

97 Pravda, 26. III. 1985.

98 Pravda, 7. V. 1985.

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