WHAT's PUTIN'S INTEREST IN RUSSIA? "Real News Network" asks "Indy Dem" Russian Professor!

Last edited Sun Sep 15, 2013, 09:08 PM - Edit history (2)

From a Professor of Political Economy..and and Indy Democrat.


Aleksandr Buzgalin is a Professor of Political Economy at Moscow State University. He is also editor of the independent democratic left magazine Alternatives, and is a coordinator of the Russian social movement Alternatives, author of more then 20 books and hundreds of articles, translated into English, German and many other languages.

Transcript

What's Putin's Interest In Syria?

AISAL NOOR, TRNN PRODUCER:

Welcome to The Real News Network. I'm Jaisal Noor in Baltimore. Both Syria and the United States have indicated they will accept a Russian-backed plan to put serious chemical weapons stockpile under international control. Now joining us to discuss the Russian perspective on this is Aleksandr Buzgalin. He's a professor of political economics at Moscow State University, editor of the independent democratic left magazine Alternative, and he's a coordinator of the Russian social movement by the same name, also called Alternatives. Thank you so much for joining us.

<iframe width="640" height="360" src="

?feature=player_embedded" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

ALEKSANDR BUZGALIN, PROF. POLITICAL ECONOMICS, MOSCOW STATE UNIV.: Thank you for coming to talk with you, and I'm really very glad to be in contact with you again.

NOOR: Can you explain why Russian President Vladimir Putin, he arranged this deal? President Obama had obviously backed himself into a corner. He didn't have the support of the UN Security Council. He was losing support of the American people. He likely would have not had the votes in Congress to authorize a strike on Syria. Why did Russia give him this lifeline? And what is Russia's interests in both Syria and Iran?

BUZGALIN: So, first of all, I want to say that I want to talk about interests of Russian people and not about interests of Putin and his colleagues about Russian authorities, because really we have very often big contradictions between these two actors of our social and political life. But now I think Putin made something positive. It's not typical for his internal policy, but for foreign policy this time it's more or less a progressive step. Why he did it, of course, it's better to ask Mr. Putin, not me. I am not president of Russia still. But my command will be following. I think Russia is trying to show that our country is one of the important geopolitical actors, players, and we really want to have our presentation in central, this key region of world conflicts and to play our own role. This is, I think, real geopolitical interests of our authorities. Also, there are some important reasons, much more important reasons. This is first of all peace and absence of war, absence of killings and killings of thousands and thousands of people, which already started and which can become terrible catastrophe if United States will use modern weapons and Russia will participate in this conflict from another side.

It's really terrible threat which can be compared with Vietnam War, or even more dangerous because Israel is nearby. And this is also very important agent, actor of these conflicts. So from my point of view, Russian now is realizing its geopolitical interests..But these interests are more or less adequate, or better to say more adequate for peace in the region than geopolitical interests of the elite of the United States and President Obama. And I completely agree with United States citizens, majority of citizens, as I understood, who don't want to have a war in this region. And this is interest of our people. Why Obama did not express interests of majority of Americans and Putin this time expressed interests of not only Russians but I think majority of other people in the world? This is an interesting question. But Russia sometimes can play a positive role in world politics, in spite of the fact that I want to stress again in internal policy our president and our prime minister are realizing not the best variant, definitely not the best variant of economic and social policy

.NOOR: So, many would argue that Russia is motivated by their own narrow national interests, both economically and as politically, like you said, geopolitically as well. How would you respond to that?

BUZGALIN: I agree. Mainly, interests of our state, our elite, is geopolitical interests, little bit economic interests, and generally respect to Russian state and the international affairs. But, again, sometimes such interests can play positive role. And it was when it was interconnected with anticolonial struggle, for example. It can be during war for liberation of small countries which took place in 20th century many, many times. This time I think it's the same situation. To say that if President Putin is not the best leader for Russian democracy, for Russian socially oriented policy, and so on, that's why he all times will make negative steps in foreign policy, it's not good logic. It's not logical it all, from my point of view. And it's necessary to understand why we have such balance of interests. I think that interest of Obama, in spite of his some positive steps, in past especially, in social-political sphere, geopolitical interests of United States, of United States' state, if I can say so, yeah, authorities is now continuation of domination. It's interest of empire. And not to fight against imperialistic interests of the United States authorities, but to find any alternatives to these intentions, this is positive, even if these intentions are going not from the best state in the world. I like my country most of all, but I do not like most of all our president. I think we can find something better. But, again, interests of struggle against absolute domination of U.S., especially by military force, by military means, this is, in any case, positive struggle.



http://therealnews.com/t2/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=31&Itemid=74&jumival=10708