Russian imperialism
![Hands of Ukraine](/sites/default/files/styles/thumbnail_medium/public/2023-07/friedensdemonstration-statt-rosenmontagszug-solidaritat-ukraine-koln2022-02-28.jpg?itok=zqy8suyd)
Russia’s war on Ukraine and the European lefts
Murray Smith — The war in Ukraine has cast a harsh light on the radical left in Europe, revealing the best and the worst.
![Russian airforce](/sites/default/files/styles/thumbnail_medium/public/2023-06/army-russian-airborne-troops-holiday-vdv.jpg?itok=aCPfNrEe)
The war in Ukraine and Russian capital: From military-economic to full military imperialism
Ilya Matveev — Russian imperialism does have its own logic that is not reducible to the interests of the ruling class. The appearance of the non-economic roots of Russia’s aggressive expansionism since 2014 raises questions about the contemporary validity of classical theories of imperialism.
![Putin meeting workers](/sites/default/files/styles/thumbnail_medium/public/2023-06/Meeting_with_nuclear_industry_workers_2020-09-23_%2818%29.jpg?itok=l5OogIcu)
The class conflict behind Russia’s war
Volodymyr Ishchenko — By understanding the Russian ruling class' material interests, we can move beyond flimsy explanations that take rulers’ claims at face value, toward a more coherent picture of how the war is rooted in the economic and political vacuum opened up by the Soviet collapse in 1991.
![Russian troops](/sites/default/files/styles/thumbnail_medium/public/2023-04/220428-russian-troops-mb-1418-9ddea4.jpg?itok=T3jKSoJO)
Russian imperialism and the invasion of Ukraine
Chris Slee responds to "Setting the record straight: Ukraine, Russia & imperialism", outlining the increasingly evident imperialist role Russia plays in the world today and argues that a defeat for Putin would create opportunities for the Russian left.
![Putin NATO](/sites/default/files/styles/thumbnail_medium/public/2023-04/Screenshot%202023-04-23%20164351.png?itok=ZcHVTCyx)
Carl Mirra — A careful evaluation of recent history illustrates that the claim that US and NATO expansion threatens Moscow’s existence is an exaggeration. That Russia would inflate fears of NATO to pursue its global aspirations is understandable. What is less comprehensible is the degree to which influential Western thinkers, particularly on the anti-imperial US left, have promoted this narrative.
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(Video) The crisis of hegemony, imperialism, and challenges to world security
Gilbert Achcar, Zofia Malisz and Ilya Matveev - What comparative-historical parallels can help to understand the dynamics of the Russian-Ukrainian war and its consequences? What should be the anti-imperialist position in such conditions? Does the left have anything to say about the security situation in the world in the medium term? A roundtable discussion.