Russian imperialism

Gavin Gatenby — In the months before his assassination by a Stalinist agent, Leon Trotsky wrote three important articles on the issue of Ukraine. So resolutely did Trotsky support Ukraine’s right to independence that these articles probably gave an added impetus to Josef Stalin’s determination to murder his old rival.

Vadim Rogovin — The internationalist doctrine of Marxism suffered the most ruthless annihilation in Stalin's ideology. To fill the resulting ideological vacuum, Stalin orientated his propaganda machine to appeal to the national-state stereotypes rooted in mass consciousness.

Solidarity — Socialists support oppressed peoples’ and nations’ struggles for liberation and self-determination. Our support is not dependent on which imperialist power or “camp” is the specific oppressor.

Michael Pröbsting discusses the important changes that have occurred within the global imperialist system in recent decades and its implications for revolutionary strategy today.

Michael Pröbsting — Some on the left still claim Russia is not an imperialist power (and hence a lesser evil than Western rivals). This is a discussion not just of theoretical interest but also of political importance.

Rafael Bernabe — There are four reductions that we must avoid when analyzing and reacting to the armed conflict unleashed by the invasion of Ukraine by the Russian Federation.

John Smith, author of "Imperialism in the Twenty-First Century: Globalization, Super-Exploitation, and Capitalism’s Final Crisis", discusses the realities of imperialism today and what it means for those fighting for a socialist future.

Renfrey Clarke — If Russia is to be described as practising “sub-imperialism” with relation to Central Asia and Ukraine, this will have to emerge from a more detailed study of Russian dealings over the years with the parts of the world concerned.

Murray Smith — The war in Ukraine has cast a harsh light on the radical left in Europe, revealing the best and the worst.

Michael Pröbsting — Resistance Books, an Australian based non-profit, progressive book publisher, has published a new book dealing with the Ukraine War: the single most important event in the current conjuncture of world politics.

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.

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.