Урок №337 Европа, ты не права популистов и русофобов — вон! «Захар Прилепин

Summary

Zakhar Prilepin delivers a polemical argument that Russia should stop seeking accommodation with Europe’s current political establishment and should instead work to reshape European politics. He portrays European support for Ukraine as evidence that past agreements with the West cannot be trusted, and argues that Russia’s nuclear weapons are what deter Europe from acting more aggressively. He says Russia will eventually have to negotiate with European countries, but warns against repeating what he sees as the failed, overly conciliatory approach taken after 1991.

A central theme is his rejection of Russia’s perceived reliance on European right-wing populists. He argues that figures and parties such as Marine Le Pen’s National Rally, Italy’s Giorgia Meloni, and Germany’s Alternative for Germany may use nationalist or occasionally Russia-friendly rhetoric while campaigning, but ultimately serve corporate interests and align with NATO once in power. He describes this strategy as a mistake and criticizes Russian nationalists for assuming that opposition to mainstream European leaders makes these parties allies.

Instead, Prilepin urges Russia to cultivate European left-wing and anti-war movements, including Germany’s Die Linke, which he says opposes arms supplies to Ukraine and NATO. He also points to gains by left-wing parties in Berlin and Sweden as openings worth noticing, while acknowledging that no political force should be trusted automatically. He suggests Russia could have invested more in leftists and separatist movements in Europe rather than concentrating on right-wing figures, and argues that such ties might have produced more genuine partners.

The speech also connects this proposal to a broader ideological claim: Prilepin presents opposition to nationalism and xenophobia as a potential basis for solidarity across borders, and challenges the idea that Europe’s capitalist model represents humanity’s inevitable path. He contrasts Europe’s military and financial backing for Ukraine with the economic and diplomatic support Russia receives from countries such as China, North Korea, and Vietnam.

Finally, he criticizes Russian cultural policy. Citing the reported expulsion of Russian House staff from Berlin and Russia’s closure of a Goethe cultural-center branch in response, he argues that Russia should preserve German cultural ties and promote German anti-fascist writers and figures. He says Russian institutions should oppose neo-Nazism in Europe rather than abandon cultural exchange or seek understanding from the same forces he accuses of supporting Ukraine.

Presenter

• Zakhar Prilepin