Staunton, Sept. 27 – The disintegration of the Russian Federation into a plethora of countries is a necessary but not sufficient condition for disappearance of imperialistic thinking in the remaining remnant which is likely to be called some variant of Russia, according to Estonian political scientist Karmo Tüür.
Moreover, he argues in Tallinn’s Postimees newspaper, if the disintegration happens quickly as some now expect, the process of de-imperializing thinking in the remaining remnant of Russia will take decades and will involve more than de-nuclearization although that too is necessary (rus.postimees.ee/7863142/politolog-karmo-tyuyr-chtoby-stat-svobodnoy-rossii-nuzhno-perestat-sushchestvovat).
Tüür’s observation is a welcome corrective to the unwarranted optimism of many that disintegration alone will solve the Russian problem, itself an echo of the euphoria in 1991 that the end of the Soviet Union and the communist bloc ushered in “the end of history” and a new period of universal peace and democracy.
In fact, as the Estonian political analyst makes clear, the imperial nature of Russian thinking rests not just on that country’s possession of numerous colonies but also on its nuclear weapons and standing in the world as enshrined in its status as a permanent member of the UN Security Council.
All those things will have to change, something that can happen only with a very interventionist policy on the part of the international community – and even then, such changes will not be instantaneous but take decades or perhaps even generations to change the thinking of Russian rulers.
Consequently, those who think that the disintegration of the Russian Federation will solve the world’s problems with Moscow are dangerously wrong. Disintegration is not the panacea they and their supporters think, although it is a requirement despite what others in Russia and the West are inclined to believe.
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