"The imperial formula is officially adopted: Russia does not end anywhere" A few days before the invasion, sociologist Grigory Yudin described exactly what the war would be like. Medusa talked to him about how it will end

Meduza ^ | 10: 00, February 24, 2023 | Margarita Lyutova

[Zhang Fei]

— You have repeatedly said that, in your opinion, Putin will not stop in Ukraine. What exactly do you have in mind? Moldova, the Baltic States, or a self-destructive war with the United States?

— In principle, such a worldview has no boundaries. This formula has been adopted almost officially: Russia doesn't end anywhere. This is the standard definition of an empire, because an empire doesn't recognize any borders.

Borders in Europe appear in 1648, when the Westphalian system was formed, which later gradually ends with empires. There is an idea that there are borders between countries: "Here we are, and here you are." The Empire does not recognize this idea: "We are where we managed to reach. And you — where we just didn't have time to go. When we get there, you won't be there, we'll be there."

This logic, in principle, does not accept any borders, and it is no coincidence that we do not hear from Russian officials any recognition of the legitimacy of at least someone else's borders. The maximum that we can hear [about where the borders are] is a situational feeling that there is a certain West, and this is probably something alien to us. Not that it's not ours at all, but there is already a zone that will be very difficult to get there. The West is understood, of course, in the [ideological] sense that existed in the Soviet Union.

I remind everyone about [Putin's ultimatum to the United States and NATO] in December 2021 — it is extremely serious, it says in plain text that all of Eastern Europe is Vladimir Putin's sphere of influence. How it will be formalized, with the loss of formal sovereignty or not-what difference does it make? In addition, this zone undoubtedly includes East Germany-simply

[Zhang Fei]

Ukraine ping

Interview with Russian sociologist Grigory Yudin, who predicted before the war began that the invasion would in fact occur. Yandex translation:

https://translated.turbopages.org/proxy_u/ru-en.en.3e75cfc2-63f9c65a-5f3d439d-74722d776562/https/meduza.io/feature/2023/02/24/imperskaya-formula-prinyata-ofitsialno-rossiya-nigde-ne-zakanchivaetsya

His take appears similar to mine - that Putin is basically the 21st century face of Sargon all the way through Russia’s the Greats - a conqueror out for immortality through territorial gain. He’ll stop, but only to recharge, when his armies are exhausted, materially or spiritually, and can advance no further.

[Right_Wing_Madman]

Borders in Europe appear in 1648, when the Westphalian system was formed, which later gradually ends with empires.

This BS is repeated often. Borders and nation states existed in Europe well before the Treaty of Westphalia. Augustus Ceasar declared the Rhine River as the border between the Roman Empire and Germania around the time of Christ.

[NorseViking]

Given that Poland and Baltic states are discussing the split of Russia and having its population, why should Russian borders end somewhere?
This approach was tried between 1991-2022 and proved to be a failure.

[Nateman]

Ukraine was the kickback capital of the world before Putin invaded, Didn’t he realize he was giving the West an excuse for corrupt politicians to launder enormous sums of loot?

[canuck_conservative]

why should Russian borders end somewhere?

that mentality shows why Russia continues to be a hostile menace to every country in Europe

this is why NATO is still needed ... NATO is the only thing that kept (and continues to keep) Europe from being overrun by warmongering Russian invaders!!

[NorseViking]

Is Russia a menace due to refusal to die due to genocidal Western invasion taking place every century?

[canuck_conservative]

wtf are you babbling about now

Russia is no victim here, Russia is a warmongering menace that continues to threaten us all ... your comments just confirmed it

every day that Russia is bogged down in eastern Ukraine is another day that Russia can’t attack the rest of the World

fortunately, that bogging-down will last a lot longer ...

[familyop]

"His take appears similar to mine - that Putin is basically the 21st century face of Sargon all the way through Russia’s the Greats - a conqueror out for immortality through territorial gain. He’ll stop, but only to recharge, when his armies are exhausted, materially or spiritually, and can advance no further."

I'm guessing the same. There's also the large faction of Russian people with the same desire. The government there stokes it up each year.

Putin's Russia Has To Deal With the Legacy of World War II
Time Magazine
BY CATHY YOUNG (Reason Magazine contributing editor)
MAY 9, 2015
https://time.com/3852689/ussr-russia-victory-day-wwii-putin-ukraine/
"Having spent my first 16 years in the Soviet Union, I grew up hearing very little about World War II and a great deal about the 'Great Patriotic War'..."

[NorseViking]

The Germans used to repeat the same until May 1945.
As a side note, do you remember Russia discussing destroying Poland and halving its population?
I don’t.
The problem is that Russia is fully capable to turn Poland into reservation. Poland can’t do squat.

[tlozo]

His take appears similar to mine - that Putin is basically the 21st century face of Sargon all the way through Russia’s the Greats - a conqueror out for immortality through territorial gain.

Unfortunately, Putin and Russians have not lost their imperial ambitions, unlike Germany and Japan.

[Widget Jr]

Yudin is a Russian sociologist, BA, MA, PhD, discussing Putin and Russia from a Russian point of view, in Russian.
Is it presumptuous to think, that he actually knows and understand more about his country than most non-Russians?

[canuck_conservative]

Poland can’t do squat

given what we've seen over the last year,

I'm thinking Poland could kick Russia's ass to the curb, easily

and take great pleasure while doing it

bring it on, menacing a-hole

[NorseViking]

LOL, Okay:) Are you supporting a genocide when it is against wrong people?

[Chad C. Mulligan]

Just after the WW2 Tehran Conference, Stalin said to a journalist, (roughly translated):

"It's high time the Slavic race was in charge of Europe."

Putin is channeling Stalin, and desperately wants to succeed where Stalin failed

Never forget that modern-day Russian culture is based on the Mongol hordes who over-ran the region in the 13th century. They never really left.

https://ricochet.com/1214468/finnish-intelligence-officer-explains-the-russian-mindset/

[Boardwalk]

Disband NATO and take the United Nations with it.

[popdonnelly]

The Russia fans here can’t accept the truth of what the article states.

[Alberta's Child]

Go back over the last 30 years and review the sequence of NATO expansion. NATO expansion began in earnest immediate after the collapse of the Soviet Union — when Russia wasn’t a threat to anyone.

Heck — Putin himself was an invited guest at the 2008 NATO summit in Bucharest.

NATO is not intended to protect Europe from anyone. It’s designed to establish a permanent U.S. military occupation of Europe.

[lump in the melting pot]

NATO expansion began in earnest in 1991 precisely because all of russia’s former colonies instinctively knew there was a brief respite before russia once again became a threat, and joining NATO was their best hope to remain free. Unlike the Warsaw Pact or the Soviet Union, no nation is forced to join or stay in NATO at gunpoint.

[muir_redwoods]

Is it presumptuous to believe he harbors pro-Russian biases that we in the west do not?