This week, thousands of workers flooded onto the streets of LA in response to ICE agents raiding workplaces and neighbourhoods. Since then, Trump has tried to crush the movement by calling in the Marines and the National Guard. But in so doing, he risks provoking a mass movement similar to Black Lives Matter, which forced him into hiding in the White House bunker five years ago.

The democrats have attempted to attach themselves to this wave of protests. Posing as the ‘resistance’ and a friend to immigrants, they are attempting to direct it into safe channels. But the truth is, they are just as much enemies of immigrants as Trump’s republicans. Like all capitalist politicians, they use immigrants as scapegoats while exploiting them as extremely vulnerable labourers.

Trump is not only facing opposition from workers. The richest man in the world, Elon Musk, this week entered into a public feud with Trump over the ‘big beautiful bill’. With the American economy stagnating and debt piling up, this spat reveals the fact that Trump is in an impossible position: he cannot fulfil the promises he has made to American workers and their bosses at the same time.

To break down how communists should approach these problems, Jorge Martín and Hamid Alizadeh from the International Secretariat of the Revolutionary Communist International sat down to discuss world perspectives on a special episode of Against the Stream, the weekly podcast of the RCI, giving you a Marxist analysis of world affairs.

Against the Stream, weekly current affairs podcast of the Revolutionary Communist International, at 6pm every Thursday to discuss the latest developments in the world crisis of capitalism.Join us in building the Revolutionary Communist International! www.marxist.com/join

Articles mentioned:ICE out of LA! Workers defend themselves against Trump’s raids -- https://marxist.com/ice-out-of-la-workers-defend-themselves-against-trump-s-raids.htmA Veteran, a Construction Worker, a Communist: The Many Faces of the L.A. Protests -- https://www.wsj.com/us-news/a-veteran-a-construction-worker-a-communist-the-many-faces-of-the-l-a-protests-e429894a?mod=hp_lead_pos8Theses on the Eastern Question -- https://www.marxists.org/history/international/comintern/4th-congress/thesis-on-eastern-question.htmThe mounting pressure on bond markets -- https://www.ft.com/content/a07d5a72-2691-4da5-aee0-4af5136f737e

2025 marks a turning point in world history.

The tectonic plates of international relations are shifting, the globalised world economy is being torn apart, and the entire capitalist order is being shaken to its foundations by political, economic, environmental and social crises. An unstable new epoch – an epoch of war, revolution and counter-revolution – has opened up.

In preparation for the first congress of the Revolutionary Communist International, Jorge Martín and Hamid Alizadeh from the International Secretariat of the Revolutionary Communist International sat down to discuss world perspectives on a special episode of Against the Stream, the weekly podcast of the RCI, giving you a Marxist analysis of world affairs.

Against the Stream premieres weekly on YouTube. Tune in every Thursday at 6pm London time, or catch up on Spotify or Apple Podcasts.

Articles mentioned:

Monopoly capitalism, imperialism, and the world economy – Marxist.com

Debt is crushing the developing world – Financial Times

Matthew Miller lying compilation – X

Pakistan: URGENT SOLIDARITY APPEAL – release arrested leaders of the Awaami Action Committee Gilgit Baltistan! – Marxist.com

Pakistan: protests continue for the release of comrades in Gilgit Baltistan despite state repression – Marxist.com

0:00 Intro

1:51 The changing world relations

16:11 Ukrainian drone attack

26:32 Why Russia is winning

32:50 Sabotaging peace negotiations

36:30 Biden spokesman admits Israel commits war crimes

39:48 Gaza has unmasked Western capitalism

53:34 Austerity at home, warfare abroad

58:16 The world economy in 2025

1:11:09 Renewed interest in communism

1:14:50 Comrades in Pakistan under attack

1:24:00 Get organised!

Against the Stream, weekly current affairs podcast of the Revolutionary Communist International, at 6pm GMT every Thursday to discuss the latest developments in the world crisis of capitalism.

For a year and a half, the western imperialists have not only been defending Israel's right to massacre, starve and ethnically cleanse the population of Gaza – they have been selling them the weapons to do it. Now, all of a sudden, they’re criticising the “intolerable” suffering that Israel is causing. Does this mean that the imperialists have gained a conscience?

Certainly not. At a time when Netanyahu is escalating the genocide and explicitly declaring that Israel plans to conquer the territory and expel the Palestinians, what these blood-soaked hypocrites fear are the revolutionary implications of being associated with yet more horror. The consequences in the Middle East and beyond of Netanyahu’s policy – of recklessly dragging out the war to cling on to power – are forcing even Trump to look for other points of support in the Middle East.

Meanwhile, Trump and Putin have continued to haggle over the fate of Ukraine. In the western media, Putin has been depicted as a stubborn obstacle to peace. In reality, it is Zelensky and the Europeans who have resisted the negotiation of an end to the war, for they refuse to concede what is becoming apparent to all: that Ukraine has lost.

Finally, in Pakistan-occupied Gigit Baltistan, leaders of the Awami Action Committee – including several members of the Pakistani section of the Revolutionary Communist International – have been scandalously arrested. In response to this brazen attack, which is an attempt to behead a growing mass movement against the Pakistani regime, the Revolutionary Communist International have launched an international campaign demanding that these political prisoners be set free.

To explain where these events are leading the world, Jorge Martín and Hamid Alizadeh from the International Secretariat of the Revolutionary Communist International met for another episode of Against the Stream, the weekly current affairs podcast of the RCI.

The Revolutionary Communist International is fighting capitalism in over 60 countries – join us! www.marxist.com/join

_____

0:00 Intro

1:43 Shooting of Israeli embassy staff

16:15 Rift between the West and Israel

35:46 Kneecap member charged with terrorism

42:04 Ukraine peace negotiations

1:10:27 Comrades arrested in Pakistan

War between India and Pakistan. Revolutionary crisis in Serbia. Escalation of the genocide in Gaza. These are just a few of the mighty events piling up on one another at a breathtaking pace. Against the Stream is here to help revolutionaries navigate these tumultuous events. In Kashmir, India and Pakistan – both nuclear powers – once again briefly went to war. The countries have been in conflict since the partition of the subcontinent by British imperialism in 1947, but tensions have burst into the open again because of the profound change in the international balance of forces, and because both regimes are seeking to cut across the crises and class struggle they are facing on the home front. Against the atrocious position taken by the ‘communist’ parties of India, which have lined up behind their respective ruling class under the banner of ‘national unity’, genuine communists understand that this war serves no one but the rich, and that the elites of both countries must be overthrown if war is to be done away with altogether.Meanwhile, Israel’s genocidal imperialist rampage has escalated, with Netanyahu’s cabinet now explicitly declaring that they aim to conquer Gaza and to expel the Palestinians. Trump, however, has thrown a spanner in the works by moving to distance himself from Netanyahu. Having demoted Mike Waltz, who was one of the biggest advocates of Israel’s plan to bomb Iran, Trump is now touring the Middle East in an attempt to draw closer to the other Arab regimes.In the often rapid and complicated twists and turns in the situation, what underlies Trump’s strategy? And what position does this place Netanyahu in?In Serbia, on the other hand, a revolutionary crisis has erupted. From the student protests which emerged in response to the deaths of 16 people after the collapse of the concrete canopy at a major railway station, a powerful movement has developed which is now establishing Zborovi across the country: assemblies of students, and in some cases of workers too.These represent embryonic organs of popular power, as emerged on a higher level in the course of the Russian Revolution in the form of soviets. In embryo, as organs of power opposed to the capitalist government, they threaten the rule of not only Vučić, but the entire Serbian regime.To explain what attitudes communists should take to these dramatic events, Francesco Merli and Hamid Alizadeh from the International Secretariat of the Revolutionary Communist International met for another episode of Against the Stream, the weekly current affairs podcast of the RCI.____The Revolutionary Communist International is fighting capitalism in over 60 countries - join us! www.marxist.com/join____Articles mentioned:On the CPI, the CPIM and the war: no to Modi’s ‘national unity’!https://marxist.com/on-the-cpi-the-cpim-and-the-war-no-to-modi-s-national-unity.htmIndia and Pakistan enter another war: only class war can end all warshttps://marxist.com/india-and-pakistan-enter-another-war-only-class-war-can-end-all-wars.htmNeither India or Pakistan – for a Socialist Federation by Ted Granthttps://marxist.com/neither-india-or-pakistan-for-a-socialist-federation.htmRevolutionary crisis in Serbiahttps://marxist.com/revolutionary-crisis-in-serbia.htm___0:00 Intro2:30 Trump-Netanyahu clash21:53 India-Pakistan war48:28 Revolutionary movement in Serbia

Last week's byelections in the UK were an earthquake in British politics. For the first time since the rise of the Labour Party 100 years ago, the two-party system has been upended. Now, a new contender for power has decisively entered the race: Reform.It has been less than a year since the last general election in Britain. Since then, the Labour party has collapsed in popularity as a result of Starmer’s repeated attacks on the poor – chiefly his savage cut to winter fuel payments for pensioners and disability benefits. The Tory party, meanwhile – the oldest and most successful political party in the world – has continued to sink into irrelevance.In the meantime, Nigel Farage’s right-wing party, Reform, has shot up in popularity, and is now polling level with – even above – what have been the two main parties for at least a century. What is behind this upset? Does it mean that British people are getting more racist, more right-wing?

As this episode of Against the Stream explains, the resurgence of Farage is a product of the miserable state of broken Britain. For decades, the establishment parties have presided over austerity, privatisation and deindustrialisation. Boarded-up high streets, food banks, ambulance queues and pensioners freezing in their homes have become commonplace in Britain in 2025. As a result, anger is building against the politicians who have presided over this mess. For the time being, this anger is finding its outlet in the party of the only mainstream anti-establishment politician: Nigel Farage.

And this is not just the case in Britain. Similar right-wing populist figures like Trump, Weidel of the AfD, and Le Pen are popping up all across the western world and are gaining steam as the liberal establishment becomes more and more reviled.To uncover what is behind the rise of Reform, Niklas Albin Svensson and Hamid Alizadeh from the International Secretariat of the Revolutionary Communist International met for another episode of Against the Stream, the weekly current affairs podcast of the RCI.Join us in building the Revolutionary Communist International!

www.marxist.com/join

Since Russian tanks rolled into Ukraine three years ago, a flood of lies has gushed forth from western governments and the billionaire press alike to obscure the real nature of this war.

[Click here for a comprehensive reading list on the background to the Ukraine war: https://marxist.com/top-reads-on-the-ukraine-conflict-war-and-imperialism.htm]

Painting it as a simple battle between good and evil, they have remained totally silent about the fact that behind Ukraine is the world's foremost imperialist power, which has led Ukraine to the slaughter in pursuit of its interests.

Moreover, in their attempt to paint Zelensky as a beloved hero of democracy and Putin as a tyrant, they have concealed the real cause of the war, which did not begin in February 2022 but is the product of the aggressive thrust of western imperialism into Ukraine in the wake of the collapse of the USSR.

Today, Ukraine is shattered. Tens of thousands of young Ukrainians have been massacred in the trenches. As people around the world begin to ask, ‘What was it all for?’, it is vital that communists can explain what lies behind the conflict.

To explain who was really responsible for the destruction of Ukraine, Jorge Martín and Hamid Alizadeh from the International Secretariat of the Revolutionary Communist International met for another episode of Against the Stream, the weekly current affairs podcast of the RCI.

This episode premiered on YouTube. Tune in every Thursday at 6pm GMT, or catch up on Spotify or Apple Music.Join us in building the Revolutionary Communist International! www.marxist.com/join

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

Over the last 30 years, China has exploded from an underdeveloped country, exploited by western capitalists for its cheap labour, to a cutting-edge capitalist power in its own right. Today, it accounts for 18 percent of the world's GDP and 29 percent of the world’s manufacturing, and leads the world in some of the most advanced technologies.

As a result of this stormy development, which has made China the second most powerful country in the world, it has been able to stand firm in the face of Trump’s tariff war, whereas all other countries have meekly submitted. But no matter the balance of forces, such a conflict between the world’s biggest markets cannot fail to have devastating consequences for the whole world economy.

This trade war between the US and China – along with the negotiations over the fate of Ukraine, which are also discussed in this episode – show that we have entered a new epoch, one of economic crisis, heightened conflict between competing powers and, in consequence, class struggle.

To explain where these developments are leading the world, Jorge Martín and Hamid Alizadeh from the International Secretariat of the Revolutionary Communist International met for another episode of Against the Stream, the weekly current affairs podcast of the RCI.

This episode premiered on YouTube. Tune in every Thursday at 6pm GMT, or catch up on Spotify or Apple Music.