The Forging of the Soviet Islamic Weapon

Abstract

This study examines the origins and evolution of the Soviet view of the Islamic World as a unique set of geo-strategic problems requiring special tactics; and Soviet efforts to design and put into operation these tactics in hopes of realising their short-and long-term political objectives. The study examines the origins, evolution and current operations of one—and probably the most effective—Soviet tactic for enhancing its prestige and authority in the Islamic states it seeks to influence: the Soviet use of its own substantial Islamic resources—its history as a major Muslim country, its important Islamic geography (cities and significant Islamic monuments), its own Muslim population, and, especially, its home-grown official Islamic establish­ment—in conjunction with other diplomatic initiatives and propa­ganda exercises in the Muslim world abroad. The study examines the evolution of the strategy, from Lenin’s early caution to Stalin’s wartime experiments to the unfolding of a systematic operational plan under Khrushchev and Brezhnev.