Russian imperialism
Russian imperialism refers to the economic, political, and military expansion of Russia as an imperialist power, a process shaped by historic shifts in global capitalism and class structures.
Historical Background
After the 1917 Russian Revolution and the establishment of the Soviet Union, Lenin argued that imperialism was the “highest stage of capitalism,” marked by monopoly capital, finance capital, and the export of capital as a dominant feature. However, starting in 1956, during the 20th Party Congress, the Soviet Union underwent fundamental changes. Under the leadership of the revisionist Nikita Khrushchev, the bureaucracy of party, state, and economy transformed into a new monopoly bourgeoisie, turning the Soviet Union into a social-imperialist power (socialist in speech, imperialist in action).
By 1990, the Soviet Union had lost much of its global economic strength, leading to its dissolution in 1991. This period saw economic collapse and loss of imperial character for Russia, opening the way for drastic privatization in the 1990s where former bureaucrats (oligarchs) gained control of key sectors, especially in raw materials and banking.
Emergence of New-Imperialist Russia
The collapse of the Soviet Union created the preconditions for the reorganization of international production and the global capitalist system. In the late 1990s, under Vladimir Putin’s leadership (beginning in 1999), Russia regenerated its monopoly bourgeoisie on a private capitalist basis and established state-monopoly capitalism anew. Putin’s government centralized major enterprises and banks, creating “national champion companies” like Rusal (aluminum), Alrosa (diamonds), Sberbank (banking), and Gazprom (energy). By 2013, Gazprom had become the world’s second-largest energy monopoly, Russia was the leading exporter of natural gas, a top oil producer, and a major exporter of nuclear power plants.
Between 1999 and 2007, Russia increased its share of global capital export twentyfold and reversed the earlier decline in industrial value added. The state’s strategic control over natural resources ensured that foreign access to these assets was limited, while Russia used their export as leverage over other imperialist economies.
Military and Geopolitical Expansion
Contemporary Russian imperialism is marked particularly by military power. After the economic stabilization of the 2000s, Russia embarked on a massive modernization of its armed forces, aiming to increase its international intervention capabilities (e.g., from 710,000 to 915,000 soldiers). The Russian military has been actively involved beyond its borders, such as the annexation of Crimea in 2014 and military intervention in Syria to support the Assad regime.
Putin’s regime uses both military might and political alliances to project influence, supporting reactionary, ultra-nationalist, and fascist forces in parts of Europe and the Middle East. Russia maintains close relations with other regimes opposing Western influence (such as Turkey and Iran) and supports revisionist and nationalist parties globally.
Economic and Political Features
Russian imperialism represents a form of state-monopoly capitalism. The state apparatus is subordinated to the interests of leading monopolies, which control key sectors of the economy and exercise influence over both domestic and foreign policy. Russia's integration into global capitalism is characterized by capital export, large-scale corporate mergers and acquisitions, and participation in international monopolies. By 2015, 19 Russian monopolies ranked among the world's 100 largest arms producers.
Ideological and Social Dimensions
Internally, Russian imperialism is marked by reactionary, chauvinistic, and anti-communist policies directed at the working class and opposition movements. The regime has engaged in widespread repression of mass protests, labor strikes, and national minorities seeking autonomy. The close connection between state power and large corporations enables the Russian ruling class to maintain domestic control while pursuing expansionist policies abroad.
Russia in the World System
According to Marxist-Leninist analysis, Russian imperialism is part of a broader trend: the emergence of “new-imperialist countries," which include BRICS and other rapidly developing states with state-monopoly capitalist structures. Russia’s re-emergence as an imperialist power since the 2000s intensified rivalries within the multipolar global system, particularly with Western imperialist centers such as the United States and the European Union.
Critique and Debates
There is ongoing debate within left and Marxist movements about the imperialist nature of contemporary Russia. Some tendencies deny Russia’s imperialist character, viewing it as a counterbalance to US imperialism. However, Marxist-Leninist analysis, as presented by Anti-Revisionist Marxist-Leninists and Maoists, underlines that all imperialist countries act in the interest of monopoly capital; siding with one against another only aids oppression and exploitation globally. Many of the revisionist parties around the world, like ACP, support Russia for opposing NATO and western imperialism.
Lenin warns that not all struggles against imperialism are progressive or should be supported, stating:
“Imperialism is as much our ‘mortal’ enemy as is capitalism. That is so. No Marxist will forget, however, that capitalism is progressive compared with feudalism, and that imperialism is progressive compared with pre-monopoly capitalism. Hence, it is not every struggle against imperialism that we should support. We will not support a struggle of the reactionary classes against imperialism; we will not support an uprising of the reactionary classes against imperialism and capitalism.”