The Role of Russia in Shaping World History (Part Fifteen)
Continuing the series of discussions on the role of Russia in shaping world history the weekly historical seminar was held on Wednesday December 11 2024 featuring a lecture by Dr. Mohammad Hassan Mahdian. The key points presented in this lecture are as follows:
Continuing the series of discussions on the role of Russia in shaping world history, the weekly historical seminar was held on Wednesday, December 11, 2024, featuring a lecture by Dr. Mohammad Hassan Mahdian. The key points presented in this lecture are as follows:
One of the coldest periods in the relations between Iran and Russia occurred during Dmitry Medvedev's presidency. A year and a half after Putin's sharp speech against the West at the Munich Security Conference and Georgia's unsuccessful attack on South Ossetia, Russia emerged victorious in the war. It was decided by Dmitry Medvedev to mend relations with the West, which led to a cooling of Russia's relations with Iran. Consequently, the S-300 contract and previous military agreements with Iran were annulled by Medvedev, marking his presidency—a period coinciding with Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's presidency—as a time of stagnation and inertia in bilateral relations.
Medvedev was not possessed of the charismatic personality of Putin. Both hailed from St. Petersburg. Medvedev had been Putin's chief of staff for many years, so his promotion was contingent upon his alignment with Putin. However, Medvedev's closeness to the West was significant enough for concerns to be raised that Putin might not regain the presidency of Russia.
One of the Russian figures who had a good national reputation was Yuri Luzhkov, the mayor of Moscow. Medvedev asked him to be supported by him in the upcoming elections, but Luzhkov refused. Once again, a member of parliament was sent by Medvedev to garner Luzhkov's support, but that was rejected as well. Consequently, their relationship soured, and it was stated by Medvedev that Luzhkov should resign from the mayoralty, which was not accepted by Luzhkov.
A book titled "Moscow and Life" was written by Luzhkov, in which he explains that the reason Medvedev insisted that he resign from the Moscow mayoralty and his preferred candidate, Sergei Sobyanin, be appointed in his place was that he was unwilling to be supported by him (Medvedev).
Ultimately, due to his measured positions over the years, the 4th class Order of Honor for services to Russia was received by Luzhkov from Putin in 2016, after Vladimir Putin's re-election.
On December 9, 2019, Luzhkov traveled to Munich for heart surgery with his wife, Elena Baturina, and passed away on December 10 of the same year at the age of 84. He was buried in the Moscow Cemetery of Celebrities. Luzhkov's relationship with Iran was always a good one. During a meeting with Mr. Karbaschi, the then-mayor of Tehran, in 1995, his strong interest in expanding trade relations with Iran was expressed by him, mentioning that for many years fruits and other vegetables had been being purchased by them from Iran.
Putin became president of Russia again in 2012, and due to his experiences during Medvedev's presidency and the prime ministership, where it was observed by him how Western governments had conspired to prevent him from returning to power, his relations with the West were reduced by him, and subsequently Crimea, which had been given to Ukraine by Khrushchev, was occupied.
Western countries, led by Germany, have attempted at various times—during the reigns of Catherine the Great, Alexander I, and Nicholas I—to seize Ukraine and parts of western Russia, as Ukraine is rich in chernozem (black soil) and fertile land for agriculture. However, they were prevented from doing so by Russia's military power, and we see that European leaders, from Napoleon to Hitler, were defeated in Russia one after another.
The last time Crimea was lost by Russia was when England and France allied with the Ottoman Empire during the Crimean War from 1853 to 1856, and through their coalition, Crimea was taken from Russia. Of course, control of Crimea was later regained by Russia. During those years, the Russian Empire was the undisputed ruler of continental Europe, and even during the reign of Alexander II, when Russia's power had diminished, territories in the Balkans were managed to be acquired by it. However, due to the Berlin Conference and the threats from European countries, some of those areas were forced to be relinquished. Nevertheless, during the same years, Khiva and Bukhara in Central Asia were seized by Russia, as well as parts of territories belonging to Iran during the reign of Naser al-Din Shah, which coincided with Alexander II's rule. This included regions like Turquoise and others, which have since caused disputes between Iran and Russia, as well as between Iran and the Soviet Union, ultimately leading to other territories being given to Iran in exchange.
After the collapse of the Soviet Union, various political and ideological factions emerged in Russia, among which two major factions can be identified. One faction, led by Yevgeny Spitsyn, believes that all actions taken during the Bolshevik era in the Soviet Union were justified, and that the mass killings of many Soviet citizens were merely a means to achieve the goals and ambitions of the Bolshevik leaders. Alongside them, some research institutes, such as the Institute of Russian History, headed by Zhukov, and certain military scholars like Leonid Ivashov, consider the collapse of the Soviet Union to be a catastrophe for the Soviet people.
The other faction is derived from some dissatisfied writers of the Soviet Union, such as Alexander Solzhenitsyn and others. The books of these writers were not allowed to be published during the Soviet era. Their works were either secretly duplicated or published outside the Soviet Union and smuggled back into Russia. The only person who dared to allow one of these books to be published in the magazine "Novy Mir" was Nikita Khrushchev, who permitted the publication of Alexander Solzhenitsyn's work titled "One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich." The inhumane conditions of prisoners in the forced labor camps during Stalin's time, which the Soviet people were unaware of before the publication of these books, are depicted by this book, and Stalin was regarded as sacred by them.
Another book by Alexander Solzhenitsyn titled "In the First Circle" concerns top Soviet scientists who were imprisoned. These individuals were not politically or ideologically acceptable to Stalin, yet their knowledge and inventions were needed by the Soviet Union. The themes of these works were never reflected in Russian historiography, so they were taken from prison to work every day and returned to prison at night. People like Karalyev, Sialkovsky, Ilyushin, Tupolev, and others were among these individuals. Unfortunately, much of the lawlessness during Stalin's time did not reach the public, and this situation continued until the collapse of the Soviet Union.
During Lenin's time, the knowledge of many Tsarist generals was utilized. Many Tsarist generals later served the Bolsheviks and were forced to pass their knowledge on to the younger generation. In the following years, some of these individuals were executed on unproven charges.
Another dissatisfied leader was Andrei Sakharov, the inventor of the Soviet hydrogen bomb, who later regretted his work and criticized the Soviet system. As a result, he was exiled by Yuri Andropov to the city of Gorky (Nizhny Novgorod), where he remained in exile until Gorbachev's time.
The golden age of Russia was between 2006 and 2014, which was the period when it was concluded by Russia that Western governments were trying to weaken it. After that, Russia's policy was changed; Crimea was first annexed by it, and a few years later Ukraine was invaded.
It is believed by me that Western economic sanctions led by the United States, with control over global economic and financial levers, are more effective than any military attack. Examples of this are remembered by us from the time of the Soviet Union, which broke the back of the Soviet economy.
Nasrin Hakimi, expert at the Center for Political and International Studies.