36 SOCIAL SCIBNTIST Capitalist Crisis and New Militarism The shift to an active policy of intervention directly resulted in a steady build up of American military power which can be used in conflicts in the Third World. This occurred against the background of a growing economic crisis of world capitalism on which a few words may be in order. Most advanced capitalist countries since the 1970s experienced a decline in growth rates, an increase in unemployment and an acceleration in the rate of inflation. By 1980 the OEGD countries experienced a 12 per cent annual rate of inflation, with Germany reaching 5.5 per cent and Japan 5 per cent rates of inflation.6 There was a revival of growth rates in some countries after nearly three consecutive years of recession in 1980-1982. But the much acclaimed recovery was not all that rapid and it did not spread evenly across all countries.7 The most significant economic improvement occurred in the U S and Japan while it was marginal in other European countries. Moreover, the recovery made no significant inroads into unemployment. In the United States unemployment declined from 12 million in January 1983 to 9 million in December 1983. But in other European countries unemployment increased by nearly one million over this period. All told, unemployment exceeded 30 million for the advanced capitalist countries, which meant that the total reduction in unemployment was not very substantial; at any rate it was still much larger than during the 1950s and 1960s, Economic recovery, however feeble, in the Western countries was not accompanied by similar improvements in the developing countries. Intact their position worsened. The World Bank noted that in 1983, "the growth of the developing countries was slower than in any year since World Warll".8 In 1981 and 1982 the growth rates of countries in Latin America and Africa had already declined quite dramatically. In a sence therefore the continuing economic crisis of developing countries stood in contrast to the economic recovery of the advanced capitalist countries which in a crucial sense was achieved at the expense of the Third World.9 During the years that the advanced capitalist countris were reeling under the impact of the crisis, their, protectionism, recession and the consequent decline in primary porduct prices had combined to push a number of Third World countries into large scale debt. Several developing capitalist countries like S Korea, Brazil and Argentina went in for commercial loans while others, such as India and Jamaica, sought, in addition to World Bank loans, IMF credit under Stand-by Arrangements or Extended Facility with heavy conditionalities. As a result, the external debt of developing countries increased to a massive 766 billion dollars in 1982, and further to 810 billion dollars in 1983. The magnitude of debt promoted dependence upon IMF and World Bank