Is history still relevant today? Sometimes not, but in the case of the current leaders of Russia and China, I would argue it most definitely is. Both Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping glorify the past of their great countries, emphasising the strength and following many beliefs of two controversial leaders: Joseph Stalin and Mao Zedong. While it would be a mistake to view the contemporary leaders as exact copies of their historical counterparts, it is important to acknowledge their similarities in order to understand the modern agendas of both Russia and China.
Putin became President of Russia over a decade ago and has since implemented many Stalinist policies. Like Stalin, Putin believes Russia and Ukraine are bound by a shared history; his ongoing war, seeking to reunify the former Soviet Union, mirrors Stalin’s incursions into Eastern Europe, creating satellite states accountable to Moscow. This is inherently Stalinist, exhibiting similar nationalism and, in Putin’s view, redoing the work of the visionary leader. Like Stalin, Putin also opposes the West, condemning its influence, and dissident politicians have faced jail terms of up to 20 years. This figure could be compared to Stalin’s purges.
However, there are also stark differences between them. Stalin aimed to politicise the population and subjected them to a personality cult - a common tool used by dictators to gain popular support - but Putin is less bothered with the public's adoration of him. He has built his autocracy around the political demobilisation of the public. Putin still actively rehabilitated Stalin: school textbooks now describe him as a triumphant figure, leaving out the gruesome details of the Great Terror in which an estimated one million people died. That is not to say that Putin blindly supports Stalin. Russia’s current leader has addressed the excess of the purges as “unacceptable” methods of achieving state goals. Putin admires Stalin as a source of national pride but has not copied all his methods for ruling.
Xi Jinping is another matter. His ideology is consistent with Mao Zedong Thought, which Chinese citizens were expected to recite on command to demonstrate loyalty during Mao’s rule. Although admittedly not to Mao’s extreme, Xi’s China has the Chinese Communist party at the centre of society and a climate of fear controlling its population into acceptance of his principles. A highly centralised hierarchy inflicts discipline over its citizens. Dissidents are silenced and the personality cult has resurfaced, with religious images being replaced by the President of China’s portrait. Xi has proclaimed that China must strengthen the Party by “waging great struggles, building great projects, promoting great enterprises and realising great dreams". This speech resembled Mao’s mass mobilisation – “The people, and the people alone, are the motive force in the making of world history". Xi also has the goal of reunifying Taiwan with the People’s Republic of China, not unlike Putin and Ukraine.
Despite this Xi does not follow Mao’s agenda in all areas. In contrast to Mao’s blindly planned agricultural campaigns that caused many a natural disaster, Xi listens to economic advisors. He aims to part with this blind pursuit of economic growth. Xi’s interest lies in making Chinese society fairer with a real commitment to socialism. Some may claim that this was Mao’s intention too. However, he had a backwards way of reaching equality if so.
To understand the current threats of Russia and China, we must not entirely view them as reflections of their previous leaders. This misunderstands their territorial ambitions. We must see them as modern, authoritarian powers whose regimes are shaped by the 21st century, if informed by the past in certain areas.