Enough with the struggle of superpowers.

Voices from Central and Eastern Europe.In a recent article in Berliner Zeitung, Michael von der Schulenburg argues that Russia’s deployment of more than 100,000 troops to its border with Ukraine was a direct response to NATO’s announcement that Ukraine could one day become its member. This opinion reflects numerous voices on the Western left – some of them also from German government circles.Russia’s fear for its security is used as the main argument to justify Russian military action. A critical gaze shifts from Putin to NATO,  accused of disturbing the balance of power in Europe with its „expansion” or even „aggression” and of interfering in Russia’s „sphere of influence”.Despite our sceptical attitude towards NATO and American foreign policy, we see a trap in this way of thinking. Following it makes it easy to overlook the real reasons for Moscow’s actions: an illegitimate sense of sovereignty over Ukraine and neo-imperialist aspirations. We argue that foreign policy should be guided by anti-imperialism and concern for the self-determination of citizens. Acknowledging Russian imperialism does not contradict a critique of the USA but rather allows us to move beyond Cold War, or even colonial, ways of looking at geopolitics.A matter of perspectiveRazem is a Polish party founded in 2015 that aims to strengthen the Central and Eastern European perspective among the European left. We have noticed such perspective is very rarely taken  by Western European leftist politicians, also in the context of Europe’s defence on its eastern flank. Bringing in our perspective – out of the centre of a region in  a difficult neighbourhood with Russia – we want to bring more nuances to the Western perspective on, for example, the Ukrainian-Russian crisis. Engaging our partners and friends in the West with this view could help avoid fatal simplifications that may lead to naïve support for the Russian side.We cannot afford such simplifications. Not at a time when Russia is relentlessly trying to undermine Ukraine’s statehood and sovereignty and the Ukrainians’ right to self-determination. The annexation of Crimea in 2014, the fuelling of the separatist conflict in the Donbas, and the deployment of more than 100,000 troops to Ukraine’s borders – all this is a continuation of Russia’s strategy of political and military subjugation of the former Soviet republics. We are against an order in which the stronger tries to impose its will on the weaker by force – because that is how Moscow’s latest steps need to be understood.Aggressive denial of Ukraine’s emancipationThe Kremlin has been trying to reverse this actual power relationship for decades. To justify its actions, it uses the rhetoric of Russia being „surrounded” by hostile forces that pose a threat to its security. However, this is contradicted by the facts. Unlike Russia, NATO has never considered plans to invade any member country of the Commonwealth of Independent States, and Russia’s military capabilities exceed those of the Allies, in Europe. The enclave of Kaliningrad – a heavily armed Russian „island” in the centre of the Baltic – is often forgotten in Western debates on the degree of Russian threat. And given a huge arsenal of nuclear warheads, Russia’s self-portrayal as a potential victim of an attack is, frankly, incomprehensible.The Russian side’s open military aggression is accompanied by verbal attacks. Official demands and statements disregarding the sovereignty of Ukraine and Eastern Europe lend context to the military force – the Russian desire to colonise the region and restore the Cold War order. One of many examples comes from the Deputy Foreign Minister Ryabkov: „We demand written confirmation that Ukraine and Georgia will never, ever join Nato.” Add to this the historical revisionism embedded in Putin’s Great Russian fantasy in which Belarusians, Ukrainians and Russians form one nation. Such statements resonate strongly in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe and are perceived as an aggressive denial of the region’s completed or ongoing emancipation by a neighbouring power.A blatant expression of Russian colonisation efforts in Central and Eastern Europe is Putin’s demand to reset NATO presence to the status quo of 1997. Let’s recall: Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic – acting out of their own free will – joined the Alliance in 1999, the Baltic states – in 2004.Beyond the imperialistic clichéUnfortunately, these facts seem to be overlooked by some of our German partners on the left. Gregor Gysi and Sevim Dagdelen of Die Linke repeatedly use phrases like NATO’s „expansion” or „aggression”. During this tense week, Rolf Mützenich of SPD, in turn, expressed unde