1. THE INTERNATIONAL SITUATION OF THE RSFSR
The international situation of the RSFSR is currently characterized by a certain equilibrium—which, though exceedingly unstable, has nonetheless given rise to a distinctive configuration in world politics.
This distinctiveness may be summarized as follows: on the one hand, the international bourgeoisie is consumed by furious hatred and hostility toward Soviet Russia and stands ready at any moment to pounce and strangle it. On the other hand, all attempts at military intervention, which cost this bourgeoisie hundreds of millions of francs, have ended in utter failure—despite the fact that Soviet power was then weaker than it is today, and despite the fact that Russian landowners and capitalists still commanded entire armies within the territory of the RSFSR. Opposition to war against Soviet Russia has grown immensely across all capitalist countries, fueling the revolutionary movement of the proletariat and winning over vast layers of petty-bourgeois democracy. The divergence of interests among the various imperialist powers has deepened—and continues to deepen—with each passing day. The revolutionary movement among the hundreds of millions of oppressed peoples of the East is surging forward with remarkable vigor. As a result of all these conditions, international imperialism has found itself unable to crush Soviet Russia, even though it is far stronger than Russia, and has been forced, for the time being, to either fully or partially recognize it, and to enter into trade agreements with it.