R08: * Anti‑Imperialism and Global Justice - To Infinity and Beyond

The Federation of Young European Greens (FYEG) and its members organisations
recognise imperialism did not end with the formal dismantling of colonial
empires. It has instead adapted into new political, economic, technological, and
ecological forms that continue to undermine self‑determination, democracy, and
planetary integrity. Today, imperial domination is exercised through military
occupation, economic coercion, debt dependency, control over knowledge and
technology, and the monopolisation of global commons (1), including outer space.

As Young Greens, committed to climate justice, feminism, decoloniality,
democracy, anti‑racism, peace, and international solidarity, we recognise that
these systems of domination are inseparable from the intersecting crises young
people face worldwide: climate breakdown, growing inequality, democratic
erosion, and the commodification of life itself. Historic and ongoing
responsibility for these crises demands not only acknowledgment, but structural
change.

At a time when international law is repeatedly undermined by powerful states
acting with impunity, and when multilateral institutions are weakened by
geopolitical oligarchies, the need for a renewed, principled, and enforceable
anti‑imperialist stance is urgent. The pattern is clear: modern empires want to
delegitimize international law and multilateral institutions with the goal of
presenting themselves as the only legitimate authorities capable of providing
security.

This urgency extends beyond Earth. The increasing commercialisation,
militarisation, and privatisation of space risks reproducing extractive and
colonial logics beyond planetary boundaries, threatening both ecological
integrity and global equity. In the end, international law is as effective as we
allow it to be. In fact, although we might think international law is just an
illusion, as Europeans, we are the living proof that sovereign states can
coexist in harmony within a shared framework of norms and values. Let’s
acknowledge our privilege and let’s fight for a world where this is no longer a
privilege, but rather the legal foundation of peaceful coexistence.

With this resolution, we articulate a shared Young Green analysis of
contemporary imperialism and outline concrete demands for dismantling systems of
unilateral domination on Earth and beyond it.

Imperialism today operates not only through territorial annexation and military
occupation, but through economic structures that extract wealth, impose
exploitative lending practices, and lock nations into cycles of perpetual debt.
These mechanisms systematically undermine sovereign agency by constraining
democratic decision‑making and subordinating public welfare to external
interests.

Clear contemporary examples illustrate the persistence of these dynamics.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022 represents a blatant act of territorial
annexation that violates international law and fundamental principles of
sovereignty (2, 3). Israel’s ongoing assault on Gaza, which the and UN
Commission (4) and International Association of Genocide Scholars deemed a
genocide 2025 (5) exemplifies imperial violence enacted through military
occupation, collective punishment, and the denial of Palestinian
self‑determination. At the same time, continued attacks on civilians are
unacceptable under any circumstances, and all violations of international
humanitarian law must be condemned without exception.

Imperialism is also exercised through economic warfare and political
destabilisation. The United States’ long‑standing sanctions regime against Cuba,
intensified through renewed “maximum pressure 2.0” (6) approaches, demonstrates
how economic coercion is used to punish political sovereignty and constrain
democratic choice (7). Similarly, the kidnapping and extraterritorial detention
of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro in 2026 by the United States highlight
the ongoing risk posed by unilateral interventions that bypass international
legal processes and undermine national self‑determination (8).

Control over knowledge, data, infrastructure, and critical technologies has
emerged as a central axis of imperial power (9). Monopolisation of digital
platforms, satellite systems, and surveillance infrastructure enables a small
number of states and corporations to exert outsized influence over populations,
markets, and political processes. This concentration of power deepens global
inequalities and erodes democratic accountability (10), particularly for young
people whose futures are shaped by systems they did not choose.

International institutions, originally established to foster peace and
cooperation, are too often dominated by a small group of powerful states.
Permanent veto powers and unequal decision‑making structures within bodies such
as the United Nations Security Council allow violations of international law and
human rights to continue without meaningful consequence. This institutional
failure undermines trust in multilateralism and enables imperial behaviour to
persist unchecked.

These dynamics are increasingly mirrored in outer space. Space exploration and
infrastructure development are being driven by geopolitical competition and
private accumulation rather than collective benefit.

A small number of states and private corporations controlled by individuals such
as Elon Musk, whose companies dominate satellite telecommunications and launch
infrastructure (11), and Jeff Bezos, with thousands of planned satellite
deployments, illustrate the growing concentration of power over orbital space
(12). Such monopolisation raises serious concerns around surveillance,
democratic oversight, and the privatisation of a shared global commons.

Unregulated activity in space is already compounding the ecological disruption
that defines the Anthropocene age. The exponential growth in satellite
constellations has been shown to significantly increase light pollution,
disrupting astronomical research, Indigenous sky knowledge, nocturnal
ecosystems, and humanity’s shared relationship with the night sky (13, 14, 15).
The predicted commercialisation of space further threatens to increase
greenhouse gas emissions from rocket launches, atmospheric pollution from
discarded machinery, and the dumping of rocket stages into oceans.

The accumulation of space debris, atmospheric pollution from discarded
machinery, and the escalating risk of Kessler Syndrome represent a new frontier
of ecological harm (16). Humanity’s extractive industrial practices — driven
primarily by the Global North — have already caused profound damage to Earth’s
ecosystems. Extending these logics beyond planetary boundaries constitutes both
an ecological threat and a moral failure.

This expansion is fuelled by techno‑optimist narratives that frame space
exploration as humanity’s escape route from ecological collapse. Space tourism
initiatives, including high‑profile projects such as the 2025 all‑female
commercial spaceflight, exemplify how corporate spectacle can masquerade as
progress while obscuring underlying systems of exploitation and exclusion (17).

These narratives promote the illusion of a “Planet B” for the wealthy, while
diverting attention from the urgent responsibility to repair and protect the
Earth we already inhabit.

As is often the case with techno‑optimism, these projects are sustained by a
destructive feedback loop. Mining for rare earth minerals, intensified
geopolitical competition over resources, and deeply unequal supply chains
divided along Global North and South lines, which all contribute to the very
instability used to justify further expansion into space (18). The belief that
humans will be able to escape earth before it becomes uninhabitable is a
betrayal of our role as a steward species (19). It is also a fallacy, an elite
fantasy - such extraction represents a desecration of life and demonstrates how
imperialism permeates every layer of the phenomenon.

For young people worldwide, these systems foreclose futures. They entrench
conflict, accelerate ecological collapse, and normalise domination over
ecosystems and peoples alike. Anti‑imperialism is therefore not an abstract
ideology, but a necessary framework for justice, peace, and mutual thriving.

We affirm that true global stability requires respect for the sovereign agency
of all peoples and nations, regardless of economic or military power. Economic
and technological relationships must be based on transparency, mutual benefit,
and ecological responsibility, rather than coercion or exploitation.

We reaffirm that outer space is the common heritage of humankind. Wonder and
appreciation for the beautiful strangeness of an extra-planetary space or
phenomenon must not be justified or destined to justify the colonisation of that
space (20). Any attempts to colonise, militarise, or privatise celestial bodies
or orbits constitute a dangerous extension of imperial expansion and must be
collectively resisted. Knowledge and technology must serve emancipatory and
redistributive purposes, not reinforce structural exclusion or domination.

In line with this analysis, we call on FYEG, its Member Organisations, and the
wider Green political family to:

The European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) must remain the non-negotiable
legal floor, and all states must comply with the rulings of the European Court
of Human Rights (ECtHR) without exception.

We call on governments, international institutions, and the Green political
family to move beyond rhetorical commitments and take concrete action to
dismantle imperial systems in all their forms. This includes centring
anti‑imperialist analysis in climate, economic, social, digital, and space
policy, and recognising the leadership of Indigenous and Global South
communities in shaping just and regenerative futures.

We must demonstrate leadership and creative thinking to reimagine solutions
beyond the existing capitalist systems of globalization. Not isolationism, not
nostalgia, but International solidarity. Bravery to challenge too-big-to-fail
systems and think beyond the limits of neo-liberalism.

As Young Greens, we commit to focusing our energy on addressing injustices on
Earth, resisting narratives that frame space exploration as a substitute for
ecological responsibility, and challenging colonial mindsets wherever they
arise. We urge coordinated action to ensure that humanity’s relationship with
both Earth and space is guided not by extraction and domination, but by care,
solidarity, and shared stewardship.