Chechnya: More Blood for Oil

by Karen Talbot

Media analysts and U.S. officials have been nervously trying to assess the "bewildering" policies of Russia

remember, Putin is the ex head of the KGB, so what you have ruling Russia at the moment is Stalin without socialism.

In fact, it was LEON TROTSKY[1] who warned as early as 1936 that if Stalin were not toppled, the USSR would revert to capitalism, and this is clearly the case. Nonetheless, this restoration has certain peculiar features.

Although condemning Stalin, Trotsky then confused his supporters by calling for a defense of the USSR itself and the social system that the Bolsheviks had established. Reasoning that Stalin bore a resemblance to the rule of Louis Napoleon in the 1860s, and basing his analysis on Marx's [2] he refuted the charge that Stalin had overthrown socialism itself, despite having executed almost all the politburo of 1917. He opposed the fashionable theory that Stalin had instituted a "State Capitalism", pointing out that this would be indicated by a removal of the "Socialist" appelation, which did not happen until 1989- 91 !, as we know. Furthermore, to destroy the entire soviet system, whatever the horrors of Stalin, would be even worse, he warned. Again, correct, as we now see...

Now it certainly has happened. But the neo-capitalism that Putin the neo-stalin manages is highly unstable. Moreover, western multinationals want (indeed need, according to their own profit logic) to expand into this relatively unexploitedarea of the world, and grab the raw materials there (also underused). The ideological opposition has gone from Russia, but that does not make it at all compatible with western capital.

At the moment, we see a lot of 19century style Great Power carve ups between the USA, Britain and Russia, but sooner or later they will be scrapped: instead Russia will be invaded, as part of a fake NATO peace keeping exercise. The obscure and not quite understood link between Russia and Serbia has often been remarked upon, but it does seem to be that for some not quite clear factor, European powers cannot undertake an invasion of Russia without first tackling the Balkans, and this has now been done. Note that at the end of the Kosovo war Blair cut a deal with Russia, enabling them to reach Pristina ahead of the USA. Odd for such firm transatlantic allies ?

1; Trotsky: " Revolution Betrayed"

2: Marx: "Class Struggles in France" / "18th Brumaire of Loius Bonaparte" / "Civil War in France"