Military Review English Edition January-February 2015 | Page 112

Another strident voice is that of Alexander
Dugin, an academic at Moscow State University
and former KGB archivist, who is recognized as the
chief ideologist of a new Russian empire. Dubbed
“Eurasianism,” his worldview is an odd blend of
ultranationalism, Russian imperialism, cultural traditionalism, and neopagan mysticism.59 In his paradigm outlining the new empire envisioned, Dugin
describes America in Satanic terms, asserting that it
is destined for confrontation with Russia.
Dugin’s views have influenced Gennady
Zyuganov, the leader of the Communist Party of
the Federation of Russia, Vladimir Zhirinovsky, the
flamboyant leader of the Liberal Democratic Party,
and most importantly, Vladimir Putin.60 According
to some observers, Dugin’s geopolitical vision has
become the lodestar for Putin’s foreign policy.61 For
example, seemingly echoing Dugin, Putin decries unipolarity and pushes for a multipolar world system
that would decentralize power.
In the face of the existential crisis Russia now
faces, many such Russian opinion leaders now confidently predict the inevitable reintegration of the
former Soviet republics.62 The Kremlin has sought

to harness this nationalist activism by taking steps
to counter the current demographic decline among
ethnic Russians in part by seeking justification for
reincorporating Russian enclaves found in former
territories into Russia. As a result, an increasingly chauvinistic Russi [