Grigory Pasko: Russia’s War Conscience

The strategy of the national security of Russia to the year 2020 will be confirmed at a session of the Security Council of Russia on 20 February of the year 2009. Certain details of this document were published, as if by chance, in the local media a week before the new year.

The press reported that the probable adversaries of Russia are not directly indicated in the document. However, NATO’s plans with respect to advancing to the Russian borders are called “unacceptable”.

Russia, according to the supposedly secret document, is going to conduct a “pragmatic foreign policy, ruling out costly confrontation, including a new arms race”. But at the same time, the authors of the document admit that it is necessary to adopt all measures “with respect to maintaining parity with the USA in the realm of strategic offensive weapons in the conditions of the deployment by the USA of a global ballistic missile defense system and the realization of the conception of a global strike”.

It is likewise indicated that in the struggle for a multi-polarworld, Russia is counting on the support of its allies on thepost-Soviet space and partners in the far abroad.

Activization is planned in such political formats as the “group ofeight”, the “group of twenty”, RIC (Russia, India, China) and BRIC(Brazil, Russia, India, China).

The authors of the strategy, besides this, assert that competition forcontrol over energy resources will intensify in the world. Theyforetell that this competition may turn into military confrontationwith the use of nuclear arms. (Complete and total drivel, of course,because after a nuclear war it’s not likely that anybody will have anyneed for these energy resources).

The elaborators of the document are counting on the formation of a”highly professional community of special services” in Russia. (What,are they trying to say that what we have now – is far from highlyprofessional? Self-criticism, no less). This community will become thefoundation of a system for counteracting “international terrorism,extremism, nationalism, ethnic separatism”. The strategy states thatfor the realization of this goal, social guarantees will have to beincreased for employees of the special services.

One has no need to doubt that subsequent to this, the FSB – and it isprecisely this organ, most likely, that is standing behind thepublication of such «strategic documents» – will demand a whole bunchof money from the budget. All the more so, in conditions of crisis,when all organizations and companies close to the state areasking-demanding money for the support of their businesses. The FSB toocould not remain at the side: this is after all the favorite afterGazprom child of Putin’s.

Five days before the arrival of the New year, minister of finance Kudrin reported to the mass information media: «Budgeteers [everyone on the state’s payroll, from street sweepers to nurses to FSB operatives–Trans.] have nothing to worry about. Neither military service personnel, nor doctors and teachers of the federal budget…»

About doctors and teachers I have my very strong doubts. But as for themilitary, and especially from the number of the FSB, MVD, MChS andother militarized structures, they’re not going to be stingy with themoney.

At that same time, at the end of last year, the Putinite cabinet of ministers discussed the state military order [procurements–Trans.] for the years 2009-2011. The state military order [for which there is even a single capitalized abbreviated compound word in Russian: Gosoboronzakaz–Trans.]in 2009 will increase by 28% (and they’re saying that there’s a crisisin Russia!) and will comprise 1. 3 trillion rubles. Over three yearsthe state intends to get from industry 300 tanks, 90 strategicmissiles,48 airplanes, 14 ships…

According to unofficial data, today in Russia around 6 million peoplewear a military uniform. This, besides the army and fleet [navy], isnone other than the FSB, MVD, MChS, security guards, procurators,bailiffs… 6 million strong and healthy do-nothings, while crisis ismarching across the socially impoverished country. And not a single oneof these agencies – I assure you! – will take a single step in thedirection of reducing its numbers. With the exception, perhaps, of thearmy and navy. That is, those structures which it ought to be necessaryto reduce at the very last and after a thorough and well-thought-outpreparation.

Why are there so many militarized people in Russia and why is somuch budget money always spent on the military? Because we – are apeople that has yet to come back from war. Because we choose forourselves such un-smart cowardly and always aggressive rulers.

The poet Yuri Levitansky once wrote such lines: “I don’t take partin war, war takes part in me…” Many Russians don’t take part in thecountry always remaining militarized. But then the allocation of moneyfrom the budget takes place without the participation of the people. Bythe way, if you don’t vote for such rulers are we have now – then thebudget is going to be distributed differently as well.

We are literally trained to believe that the military – are thefavorite «children» of the fatherland and the leadership. Thepresidents themselves not infrequently appear before the cameras inmilitary uniform (Putin has probably outdone them all in this respect).

And in the economy about the Russians there has already for a longtime been a saying: no matter what the Russians attempt – they alwaysend up with a Kalashnikov machine gun.

By the way, even before Putin, everything military was fashionablein the USSR. Even on the country’s money in the 30s of the previouscentury there were military people. In so doing, they told us that theUSSR is not preparing for war with Hitlerite Germany. I don’t believethis: back then only a lazy person wasn’t preparing for war.

War has always been in our consciousness. The main children’s gamewas «playing war». The main toys for Russian children to this day -pistols and machine guns. The main books and movies – about war. Themain ideology in upbringing – to perish in the name of the motherland.The main children’s heroes – pioneers [that is, red-kerchiefed members of the Soviet-era children’s movement by that name–Trans.] who did not give out a «state secret» to the enemy. Also to the heroes they have added mythical intelligence agents like Stirlitz. (Putin has said that this was his favorite hero in childhood) [Stirlitz,a fictional Russian spy operating under deep cover as an SS colonel inBerlin during the Great Patriotic War (1941-1945), is the hero of«Seventeen Moments of Spring» – a 1968 novel and wildly popular 1973television mini-series, in which he manages to foil the nefarious plansof both the Germano-fascists and the American imperialist aggressors.The book came out around the time young Volodya Putin was finishinghigh school, and no doubt inspired him to want to become a Soviet spyin Germany himself.–Ed.].

With what kind of brains do children grow up when they’re given suchexamples? Right – with militarized and aggressive ones. The main sloganfor such a zombie – «we’ll show them!». And show them they do: not thebest automobile-computer-television, but missiles-cannons-tanks-machineguns.

Official Russia, even now, is always on the side of those who stirup wars and armed conflicts: be it «Hamas» or Hugo Chavez, Ahmadinejador the North Korean leaders.
Lord, when will people start to live peacefully and elect peaceful leaders for themselves in my country already?