In August 1939, the USSR viewed the war between the United Kingdom, France, and Germany as a war between hegemonic capitalist countries. The war was thus described as “imperialist.”
Imperialism refers to domination exercised over multiple territories, in reference to the Roman Empire. In the Marxist sense used by the USSR, imperialism combines territorial expansion with the capitalist system of economic production.
Since 1934 and its admission to the League of Nations, the USSR, committed to the idea of collective security, has denounced the aggressive fascist powers. The Communist International considered the war, declared on September 3, 1939, against Germany—primarily by France and the United Kingdom—to be a conflict between capitalist countries. This war was thus characterized as “imperialist.”
The adjective “imperialist” was used to justify the Non-Aggression Pact between the USSR and Germany, signed on August 23, 1939, which was intended to preserve peace in Europe. This alliance with Hitler sparked widespread skepticism and dismay among communists, as the USSR was seen as the most resolute bulwark against Nazism.
The anti-fascist struggle, which had previously been a priority for the PCF, is now considered obsolete. It has been replaced by the anti-imperialist struggle, which treats both sides of the conflict as equally blameworthy and defends the USSR’s pacifist policy.
However, faced with the mounting threats and destruction wrought by Hitler, the USSR and the Communist International began to shift their stance. By April 1941, the conflict was no longer portrayed as an imperialist war.
Following the breakdown of the German-Soviet Pact and Germany’s invasion of the USSR, the communists and activists of the Jewish section of the M.O.I. would continue with even greater determination their head-on struggle against fascism—and, more specifically, against Vichy and Hitlerite fascism.
References:
– Martelli, Roger; Vigreux, Jean; Wolikow, Serge, 2020, *The Red Party: A History of the PCF, 1920–2020*. Armand Colin.
– Gronowski, Brunot Louis, 1980, *The Last Great Night* (A Jew from Poland), Éditions du Seuil.
