Beyond 1968 historiography? New perspectives on international solidarity movements during the Cold War. Critical reflections and comments from Belgium

To date, accounts of international solidarity movements on behalf of the Third World have remained strongly embedded in 1968 historiography: 1968 studies have understood these movements as a reaction against the Cold War, rather than as a part of it. This article aims to connect the study of international solidarity movements with the broader history of the Cold War. Building on examples drawn from Belgium, which this article identifies as a transnational site of North-South campaigns, it investigates three important issues that have remained largely unexamined in traditional accounts, namely the role of communism, Third World diplomacy, and East-West detente. It argues that cross-fertilization between research fields raises questions about some traditional wisdoms and premises of 1968 literature, opens up new perspectives, and reveals the relevance of international solidarity movements to new histories of the Cold War.