DISINFO: The Bolshevik "red expansionism" was a response to the Polish expansionism
SUMMARY
For many people, the Polish-Soviet War is made up only of the Red Army campaign on the Vistula River. In fact, it began long before that – in February 1919. Numerous documents confirm that the initiative to start this war lies on the Polish side. For sure, the idea of the World Revolution was one of the key principles of the Leninist foreign policy, but the documents show that it was a short episode, which disappeared after the defeat of the Red Army near Warsaw. Regardless of what we think about the World Revolution slogan, in this particular case, the "red expansionism" became a response to the "white expansionism", the Polish expansionism.
RESPONSE
This message is part of the Kremlin’s policy of historical revisionism – it presents Bolshevik Russia as a peaceful state, rejecting evidence about bloody conflicts between the Bolsheviks and the newly-born states in Eastern Europe.
The Polish-Soviet War of 1919-1920 started in February 1919, soon after the end of WWI. As a result of the Soviet westward offensive of 1918–1919, the Bolshevik troops tried to advance as deep as possible into the territory of the former Western regions of the collapsed Russian Empire. In February 1919, the advancing Bolshevik forces entered into clashes with the units of the Polish Army. The Polish-Soviet War lasted until October 1920 – it resulted in the signing of the Peace of Riga (March 1921), in which Soviet Russia recognized the independence of the Polish state. The statement that the Polish authorities started the war with Bolshevik Russia in 1919 is a historical manipulation.
Read more about the Bolshevik concept of the World Revolution here.
There is enormous historical evidence for unprecedented crimes of the Bolsheviks committed against the people living in Russia and its neighbouring countries – the Bolshevik expansionism and Red Terror caused millions of innocent victims.
Read similar examples of the Russian historical revisionism concerning Poland - It is thanks to Russia that Poland today exists as a country, Nazi Germany considered Poland its best ally, USSR was forced and reluctant to sign the Molotov-Ribbentrop pact and the Polish legions of Pilsudski organized the Volyn tragedy.