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Eastern Europe took post-Soviet victories for granted – interview
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Protests in Poland / E. Blaževič/LRT
The victory of democracy in Eastern and Central Europe is by no means secure, argues Vladimir Tismăneanu, author and professor at the University of Maryland where he teaches courses on utopian radicalisms, ideologies, revolutions, totalitarianism, and democratic transition.
This interview conducted by Simona Merkinaitė is part of the project titled #Rethink1989 implemented by the Open Lithuania Fund (OLF) in partnership with Res Publica Foundation and Jan Nowak-Jezioranski College of Eastern Europe with the financial support through the European Union’s Europe for Citizens Programme. The publication originally appeared on the New Eastern Europe, partners of LRT English.
World War II History: How the Soviets Failed at Operation Gallop
The combination of Soviet ambition and von Manstein’s brilliant handling of the battle culminated in a bloody defeat for the Red Army. The stage was now set for one of von Manstein’s greatest accomplishments the recapture of Kharkov which would take place in mid-March.
As Adolf Hitler’s vaunted Sixth Army lay in its death throes in the ruins of Stalingrad, German forces to the west of the city faced their own kind of hell. The inner ring of the Russians’ iron grip at Stalingrad was tasked with the total destruction of German and other Axis troops within the city, but Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin wanted more. In conjunction with the Soviet High Command (STAVKA), Stalin set forth an ambitious plan designed to liberate the Don Basin from Kursk in the north to the Sea of Azov in the south, bringing the vital agricultural and mineral-rich area once more under Russian control.
The man who enjoyed Stalin’s absolute trust Archive photo; Russia Beyond Earning the trust of the incredibly cautious and suspicious Soviet leader was no mean task. Alexander Shcherbakov was one of the few people who managed to do it.
Today, few people in Russia remember the name of this man. Whereas in Stalin’s time, the head of Soviet propaganda, Alexander Sergeyevich Shcherbakov, was one of the most influential people in the USSR. Furthermore, he had every chance of some day becoming the head of state. But it was not to be.
Meteoric rise
After the victory in the Russian Civil War, the Soviet leadership faced an acute personnel problem. There were many brilliant military commanders, but a dire shortage of civilian specialists. In those circumstances, Alexander Sergeyevich, a born leader and a good organizer, who had several university degrees, was worth his weight in gold.