The French writer Astolphe de Custine likened the Russian Empire to a gigantic prison in his 1843 published book "Russia in 1839." The impact produced by the book "Russia in 1839" began to create the idea that Russia was a prison of peoples. Aware of these ideas in Europe, the leader of the Bolshevik revolution Vladimir Lenin called Tsarist Russia a "prison of peoples" to gain the favor of the captive peoples and the progressive circles of Europe.
Although Lenin called Tsarist Russia a "prison of peoples," he established one of the bloodiest despotic regimes in human history on the remnants of the collapsing empire. The first act of this despotic regime was to re-enslave the Russian captive peoples who had declared independence. The second prison of peoples established by the Bolsheviks collapsed in 1991.
The first president of the Russian Federation, Boris Yeltsin, declared with pomp in a speech to the US Congress on June 17, 1992, that "the communist idea, which scattered social discord, hostility, and unprecedented cruelty over the globe and frightened human society, has collapsed, and that Russia would never again threaten the world."
The lifespan of this assurance was as short as Lenin's promise of freedom to the peoples. Even in Russia's 1993 military doctrine, the commitment found in the Soviet era not to use nuclear weapons first was removed. This marked the beginning of the restoration of the empire. Unfortunately, the heads of Western states, political dignitaries, and businessmen, attracted by Russia's inexhaustible resources, did not see this danger. The Western countries that worked to hand over the nuclear weapons from the former Soviet republics to Moscow are responsible before history and humanity for Russia's occupation of Georgia and Ukraine.
Putin's expression "historical Russia," which refers to the Russian Empire, and his evaluation of all post-Soviet republics as "fake" states created by Lenin confirm that regardless of the identity of the Kremlin owner, Moscow will conduct colonialist policies. It is clear that Russia's imperial policy is the result of the synthesis of its vast geography and the lack of democratic values among the Russian people. As long as Russia retains its vast geography, the Russian people will remain a colonialist people. The way for the Russian people to escape being a colonialist society is through the disintegration of Russia. Until Russia is divided, it will remain a threat to the whole world. The next Yeltsin (Kirill Dmitriev) may promise that Russia will never again threaten the world. He might even propose building a tunnel between Alaska and Chukotka, which would have no serious significance. However, just as the empire that collapsed in 1917 and 1991 soon returned and made hell for its neighbors, it can be said with full confidence that it will do so a third time.
After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, without the support of the West, the prison of peoples called the Russian Federation could not have maintained its integrity. If again the West does not help, as a result of the deadly wounds inflicted by the heroic Armed Forces of Ukraine, the Russian Empire will inevitably break apart. The disintegration of the prison of peoples named Russia is vitally important to ensure humanity's security compared to today.
Khagani Jafarli,
political scientist
