The Curse of Empires

In his speeches, Putin draws on confusing historical narratives and arguments. Martin Schulze Wessel argues that if we want to know what Putin’s motives are, we must also look at Russia’s unresolved identity problem, which stems from its imperial past: the curse of empire. This book explores the closely intertwined histories of Russia, Poland and Ukraine since the era of Peter the Great, in the context of international politics. It shows how Russia’s expansionism into Ukraine since the 18^th century and the partitioning of Poland have produced path dependencies, a cultural legacy whose impact is still felt today. This is not only about imperial claims to power, but also about an ideologically charged East-West conflict which has been developing ever since the 19^th century, and in which Germany was, for a long time, on Russia’s side. After 1945, Germany freed itself from the curse of empire and embraced the West. Russia has yet to walk this path.

*Historical explanations of Russia’s war of aggression

*The imperial past continues to have an impact

*Moscow’s westward expansion since the 18^th century, and its consequences

*Putin’s anti-Western attitude and its roots in Russian history

*What Germany managed after 1945, Russia has failed to do: the turn away from empire

*By a leading expert on the history of Eastern Europe