by Tatiana Desyatova
The decision to start the special operation of the Russian troops, taken by President Putin came like a thunderstorm out of clear skies for Russian society. The very first days of the war showed that the scale of what is happening goes far beyond not only Russia-Ukraine relations, but also beyond the European continent.
It happens on the background of the most desperate struggle in the information sphere and severe economic sanctions. A considerable number of Russian citizens are experiencing mixed feelings: from patriotism and to radical pacifism with demands for peace here and now.
Our task is to analyse what is happening from Marxist-Leninist positions. We are sincerely convinced that in difficult situations one should first of all look for answers in the ideological legacy of V I Lenin, since its power is so great that it still relevant and up to date.
According to Lenin wars can be of different types. The first is when wars are waged in the interests of the ruling classes. They are aggressive, aimed at the redistribution of spheres of influence, sales markets, access to resources and so on.
Such wars do not bring anything good for the common people. They, just like any war, bring sorrow, suffering and death, but at the same time in no way encroach on the very system of exploitation and enslavement, do not affect the foundations of society based on private ownership of the means of production, do not threaten the class domination of exploiters.
At the same time, there are wars that can be progressive. Wars of liberation: against national oppression, against the colonial enslavement of some peoples by others, as well as against the ruling classes – civil or revolutionary wars. Such wars can ultimately lead to an improvement in the situation of the working majority, and in this sense can be just and justified, despite the fact that it is also associated with violence and with great hardships.
It is from these positions that we should approach the understanding of the events taking place in Ukraine: there are signs of wars of both types. That is, the war in Ukraine has signs of both liberation and imperialist war.
All these years starting from 2014 the Communist party of the Russian Federation has consistently advocated for the recognition of the Donbas DPR and the LPR people’s republics and has been delivering humanitarian aid to Donbas : tons of food, building materials and medicines.
Moreover, we should not forget that the events in the Donbas in 2014-2015 began precisely in the form of a people's revolution and had a clear socialist connotation of the struggle for social justice against capitalism.
Unfortunately, later the Kremlin used its influence to stop these aspirations. Moreover all through these eight years the Russian government has been trying to negotiate with Bandera regime in Kiev, and to find support among the Ukrainian oligarchy.
At the same time, there should be no illusions: Russia is by no means a socialist state that brings liberation from exploiters and the idea of social justice to other peoples. Russia itself is a capitalist state with oligarchic rule, corruption, the collapse of industry, agriculture, science, education etc
The fight for Ukraine is between capitalist powers: capitalist Russia is trying to wrest Ukraine from the external control of the largest imperialist power - the United States of America.
On the other hand the task of liberation from this Nazi-Bandera gang and denazification of the country by the Ukrainian people themselves cannot be solved today.
This dual nature of the war dictates an ambivalent and even contradictory attitude towards it in Russian society.
The collective West has invested considerable efforts to prepare events for today's tragic turning point.
The past decades must be recognised as a complete failure of Russian foreign policy in the Ukrainian direction. The century–old dream of the West has come true - to pit the Slavic peoples, to pit Russians and Ukrainians.
Under capitalism, and especially in its imperialist stage, wars are inevitable. Like over 100 years ago, the hardships of the war and its consequences, will fall on the shoulders of the people. Probably this will force many to understand that capitalism in Russia is a complete and final bankrupt. Without socialism and without the unity of the peoples of Russia, Belarus and Ukraine, our chances of historical survival are small.
The political battle for Russia and Ukraine is just beginning. Peoples need a stable and just peace: that is possible only if capitalism with its endless conflicts and contradictions is abandoned with the elimination of parasitic classes and the creation of a society of equal opportunities in the interests of working people. The struggle for socialism is the struggle for peace!
The author is a leading member of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation
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