... says Putin.
http://en.ria.ru/forgotten_war_news/20140801/191583991/Prior-to-WWI-Russia-Tried-to-Persuade-Europe-to-Find-Peaceful.html
QuotePrior to WWI Russia Tried to Persuade Europe to Find Peaceful Solution to Conflict – Putin
MOSCOW, August 1 (RIA Novosti) – On the eve of the First World War, Russia did everything possible to persuade Europe to resolve the conflict peacefully and to avoid bloodshed, which reflects the character of the state, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Friday.
According to Putin, Russia has been advocating strong, cordial relations between countries for ages.
"And this is how it was on the eve of the First World War, when Russia went to great lengths to persuade Europe to settle the conflict between Serbia and Austria-Hungary peacefully. But [Europe] turned a deaf ear to Russian pleas. And it had to confront the challenge and protect the Slavic population, shielding its citizens from external threats," Putin stressed.
The president added that Russia fulfilled its duty and succeeded in withstanding the onslaught.
"Russia was able to resist the onslaught and then take the offensive. And the whole world learnt about the legendary Brusilov Offensive. But Russia was robbed of this victory by those, who called for a defeat of their native land, of their army, by those who were fomenting strife and struggled for power, betraying national interests," Putin said.
Putin made the statement at the opening ceremony of the memorial to the WWI Heroes in Moscow. Soon after that the Russian president laid red roses at the monument.
The memorial to the heroes of the First World War was erected on Poklonnaya Hill in Moscow's Victory Park. The opening of the monument is one of the key events devoted to the 100th anniversary of the outbreak of World War I, which started on July 28, 1914 and lasted until November 11, 1918.
The war, which is considered one of the deadliest conflicts in history, took about 16 million lives.
Sounds like he's creating his own Dolchstoßlegende there. "We would have won if it hadn't been for the opposition at home!"
Nicholas II did propose a peace and general disarmament plan in 1898, which led to the 1899 The Hague Conference. Putin is not entirely wrong.
Plus France's whole plan for keeping general peace in Europe (read keeping Germany and Austria tied and leashed) reposed on the fact that the Russian steamroller would crush both of them through sheer attrition when its armies would eventually reach their frontiers.
Quote from: Drakken on August 02, 2014, 01:56:58 PM
Nicholas II did propose a peace and general disarmament plan in 1898, which led to the 1899 The Hague Conference. Putin is not entirely wrong.
He proposed that because he felt that Russia couldn't catch up to the development of the other European armies, and he hoped to level the playing field.
Even so, Putin was referring to 1914.
I think that the interesting part of Putin's speech is that he contrasts the actions of Russia to those of a monolithic "Europe." This is the Eurasian viewpoint in sharpest relief. Interestingly, Nicholas II saw Russia as a European power, not a separate Eurasian power (though not all his ministers shared his viewpoint - then, and now, Russia seesaws between Eurasian policies, until those were disappointed, then European policies, until those were disappointed, and so on)..
It fits this article:
http://www.themoscowtimes.com/arts_n_ideas/article/culture-ministry-affirms-russia-is-not-europe/497658.html
Quote from: Syt on August 02, 2014, 12:48:58 AM
Sounds like he's creating his own Dolchstoßlegende there. "We would have won if it hadn't been for the opposition at home!"
I think he sort of has a point. It is hard to see how Russia didn't lose because of the home front issues. Russia's alliance went on to win the war. All Russia needed to do was not collapse for a couple more years (less actually).
Quote from: alfred russel on August 02, 2014, 09:43:32 PM
Quote from: Syt on August 02, 2014, 12:48:58 AM
Sounds like he's creating his own Dolchstoßlegende there. "We would have won if it hadn't been for the opposition at home!"
I think he sort of has a point. It is hard to see how Russia didn't lose because of the home front issues. Russia's alliance went on to win the war. All Russia needed to do was not collapse for a couple more years (less actually).
With the way its army performed against the Germans I think home front issues were inevitable.
The (predictable) collapse of the Kerensky Offensive is what doomed the Russian effort in WW1. And agitators in the rear "calling for a defeat of their native land" were not the main cause of that. The problem was the same at it always was: the Russian Army was just good enough to beat up on the Austro-Hungarians but couldn't go head-to-head with the Germans, who were reinforced.
Quote from: The Minsky Moment on August 04, 2014, 01:42:28 PM
The (predictable) collapse of the Kerensky Offensive is what doomed the Russian effort in WW1. And agitators in the rear "calling for a defeat of their native land" were not the main cause of that. The problem was the same at it always was: the Russian Army was just good enough to beat up on the Austro-Hungarians but couldn't go head-to-head with the Germans, who were reinforced.
Plus the almost unbelievable corruption and inefficiency in the Russian war department. Russian soldiers were starving when food was available, because it was so ill-managed. One of the reasons the home front cracked was that no one wanted to see their husband/brother/son die just because some desk-bound idiot couldn't get him food, ammo, equipment, or medical care.