State Capitalism – An Afterthought

Gareth Edwards, who presented the forum on "Were the Communist Countries Really Communist?", has written a short follow-up article.

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During the talk I suggested that there were a number of reasons why State Capitalism was important as a theory: firstly as a way to orientate oneself during the Cold War; secondly to help explain the ease of transition between “communism” and “capitalism” in the Eastern Bloc. Current events have thrown up another example.

The recent war between Russia and Georgia has been spun in many ways. It has been suggested this is merely an example of Vladimir Putin’s megalomania. Alternatively others have alluded to a flaw in the Russian character, predisposing them to expansion and aggression.

It strikes me that the conflict between Russia and Georgia can only be explained in terms of competing imperialisms. On the one side is Russia, keen to take control once more of its “near abroad” and on the other hand we have the US, looking to encircle Russia and reduce its economic and strategic influence to zero.

For a liberal media convinced that the relationship between the USSR and the USA during the best part of the twentieth century was a battle of ideologies, the advent of a “new Cold War” seems inexplicable. Yet if your understanding, informed by the theory of state capitalism, leads you to see the two countries as always having been competing capitalisms (and by extension rival imperialisms) then you are better placed to analyse recent developments and one will certainly not be surprised to see tensions rise once more.

None of this is meant to suggest that State Capitalism the theory can explain everything that happens between Georgia and Russia. Nothing substitutes for the analysis of a given situation. To understand the situation today one must consider the question of the right to self determination, the wider context of the “War on Terror”, the aggressive, expansionist policies of NATO, the growth of Russian nationalism, the increasing geo-political importance in the control of resources (particularly oil), and many other questions besides.

But we are far better placed to search for the answers to these questions armed with the theory of State Capitalism.

GE