Preparing for War: Industrialization and the Fascist Threat — Lessons of Soviet History, Part 3

The Soviet Union survived its tumultuous first post-revolutionary years of civil war and imperialist invasion, but found itself isolated in a hostile, capitalist-dominated world. The Soviet government embarked on an all-out campaign of industrialization and collectivization that achieved a pace of economic development unparalleled in human history. But at the same time, the menace of fascism was rising, and the leadership of the Communist Party struggled through a string of shifts and policy reversals in international politics. In the end, 27 million Soviet citizens gave their lives in World War Two to defeat the Nazi war machine.

To discuss this period from the 1920s to the onset of World War II, Brian is joined by Carlos Martinez, author of “The End of the Beginning: Lessons of the Soviet Collapse,” co-founder of the No Cold War Campaign, and editor of the political analysis site Invent-The-Future.org.

This is part 3 of the series “The Rise and Fall of the Soviet Union -- Lessons for Socialists.”

Part 1 with Carlos Martinez

Part 2 with Vijay Prashad

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