Colonialism in East - West relations : A study of Soviet policy towords India and Anglo - Soviet relations (1917 - 1947)

This book is about the contra diction between the socialist system and the imperialist system over the question of the liquidation of the colonial system. Since the inception of the Soviet state, a big and a potentially powerful country, like Soviet Russia, openly and unequivo ally proclaimed its total opposition to the imperialist hold over the colonies and semi-colonies, while the Imperialist Powers struggled to meet this new challenge to their supremacy. Indeed as the Soviet state embarked on the course of its consolidation. development and security, ups and downs, shifts and compromises, and checks balances in its efforts for the liquida and tion of the colonial system were noticeable. However, the funda mental contradiction between the Soviet Power and Imperialist Powers remained which not only exercised far-reaching influences in their rela tionship but also proved an asset to the upsurge of nationalism in the colonial and semi-colonial countries.

The author has examined in detail this contradiction by taking the most representative case study of Soviet policy towards India and its effects on Anglo-Soviet relations during the period 1917-47. His main emphasis is on three most important aspects of this case study: Firstly; Soviet policy towards India; secondly, its effects on Anglo-Soviet relations; and thirdly, its impact on the Government and politics of British India. All these are unfolded in a chronological order of three or more years in keeping with various phases of the development of Soviet state; while an introductory chapter provides the background of Marxist theory on colonialism and its appli cation by the Comintern. The study concludes with an assessment of communist doctrinal claim that the Soviet Union played a crucial role in the break-up of the colonial system,