22

Apr

11:21pm
Sumedha Chatterjee
In Conversation with Roman Kononenko: On the Controversy Surrounding the Soviet Flag

In Conversation with Roman Kononenko: On the Controversy Surrounding the Soviet Flag

Sumedha Chatterjee//11:21pm, Apr 22nd '22

(Roman Kononenko is a member of the Presidium of the Central Committee of Communist Party of the Russian Federation (KPRF) and First Secretary of the Saint Petersburg City Committee of the KPRF. He is also an associate editor of The International magazine)

Image

Sumedha Chatterjee: What is the recent controversy surrounding the soviet flag? Could you shed some light on it?

Roman Kononenko: The Communist Party of the Russian Federation introduced a bill in the State Duma suggesting that the Soviet Union's flag be adopted as Russia's flag. Deputies from the Communist Party of the Russian Federation, led by the party's leader G.A. Zyuganov, presented a bill to the State Duma suggesting that the Russian flag be changed to the USSR flag. The initiative suggests amending Article 1 of the Russian Federation's Constitutional Law "On the State Flag of the Russian Federation". The faction proposes to establish that the flag is "a red rectangular panel with an image in its upper corner of a golden hammer and sickle and above them a red five-pointed star framed by a golden border".

SC. Why was this bill submitted?

RK: The lawmakers mention the findings of a study done in early 2021 as one of the arguments for the necessity to alter the flag, according to which "67 percent of Russians regret the fall of the USSR, and just a quarter of those questioned held the opposite position." According to the project's creators, 73 percent of respondents said they would vote to keep the USSR as a revived union of equal sovereign republics if a referendum on its preservation were held today.

If you read our blogs then why not our magazine!!!
Image
Click here to subscribe our monthly magazine

In the explanatory materials, the authors of the initiative point out that the red flag of the USSR was "a symbol of peace, kindness and great victories". "The Banner of Victory, hoisted in May 1945 over the defeated fascist Reichstag, was red. The achievements of the USSR in science, space exploration, medicine, culture, sports, technological progress… also took place under red banner," the authors of the bill point out.

SC: Speaking of fascism, it is being said that Ukraine is a fascist state. Is this why the Communist Party of the Russian Federation supporting the ‘special operation’?

RK: We are certain that the existing Ukrainian state is neither self-governing nor independent. The so-called "collective West" has entire authority over it. I'm referring to the European Union, the United States, and NATO. As a result, we feel that the Ukrainian government is a puppet administration that does not truly promote national interests in its actions. Another factor is, of course, the incredible rise of Nazism and fascism. We can debate whether fascism or Nazism is the correct term, but there are clearly Ukrainian Nazis. And the West has made several efforts to assist it during the previous eight years. They were putting money into it through Western NGOs, ostensibly under the guise of fostering national identity. This, however, was Nazism. Even now, the Russian military has discovered books and pamphlets issued and paid for by EU officials, as well as other NGOs from European nations, in Melitopol and Berdyansk, for example. If we look at everything closely, it's clear that they were attempting to portray Russia as an adversary.

SC: Can the situation really be termed as an ‘imperial war’?

RK: You may argue that this is an imperialist war if you study Lenin's Imperialism: The Highest Stage of Capitalism and read and interpret everything literally. However, Lenin constantly urged us to assess each issue, taking into account the current circumstances, the current historical context, and other factors. So, if we consider all of the other factors: Of course, Russia may have certain imperialist goals of its own. However, Russia cannot be fully described as imperial since it did not export a large amount of wealth, and I believe that practically all of that capital was sold to Ukraine, and most of it was lost in 2014.

SC: Well then, it could be said that the Soviet Flag will be reduced to an aesthetic. What are your thoughts on that?

RK: I have no doubt that this bill will be rejected by an obedient loyalist majority of deputies of the Russian parliament. Immediately after the introduction of this bill, deputies from the ruling party allowed themselves a number of openly anti-communist comments on the bill.

Of course, the party is aware that this initiative does not lead to a change in the socio-economic formation in Russia, does not transform Russia from a capitalist country into a socialist country. The main goal of this bill is to launch, using the parliamentary platform, a new round of discussion in Russian society about the ways of developing the state and society, especially in the context of unprecedented predatory sanctions imposed on Russia.

 Capitalism’s Failed Paradigm
Megan Sherman UK//7:48pm, Feb 2nd '22

Capitalism’s Failed Paradigm

The solution to global development has seemed to lie in the application of free markets. If seriousness social disorder arises, the reasoning goes, it must be centred on an absence of economic liberalism — and,....

Read More
Global events and Racism in the West
Saud Ahmed India//10:08pm, Dec 27th '22

Global events and Racism in the West

FIFA 2022 concluded this Sunday with Argentina lifting the World Cup trophy for the third time since 1986 when Diego Maradona captained the team. The long deadlock was finally overcome in 2022 under the....

Read More
The Crisis in Sri Lanka
Special Correspondent The International//4:43pm, Mar 29th '22

The Crisis in Sri Lanka

A lot of bizarre things have been happening around the world lately. One such bizarre headline made its way from Sri Lanka. The crisis in Sri Lanka has not been talked about. As the economic crisis worsens,....

Read More
REMEMBER THE SPILT BLOOD IN GAZA
Luis Lazaro Tijerina USA//1:14am, Nov 19th '24

REMEMBER THE SPILT BLOOD IN GAZA

Remember and never forget the spilt blood of women, children and men in the streets, cities, refugee camps and villages of proud, ancient Gaza, How they lay in twilight between morning and night as....

Read More
On Dialectical and Historical Materialism: Part 3
Turner Roth USA//12:22am, Apr 25th '23

On Dialectical and Historical Materialism: Part 3

Lessons learnt from practical applicationRead the part 1 and part 2 of this article.StalinLet us turn now briefly to consider a text written almost a hundred years after the Communist Manifesto first appeared:....

Read More
Fascism: The Boot of Capital
Jack Peachey UK //6:37am, May 20th '22

Fascism: The Boot of Capital

Part: 2 II. Liberalism, Neoliberalism and the Liberal-Fascist BargainUpon a proper analysis, we see that liberalism-far from what Griffin alleges-is instrumental to fascism. Indeed, it is not wholly liberal-but....

Read More