On the article “The Truth about the Great War” and on whom this “Truth” serves

Abstract

Last year, our journal (No. 12 (2012)) presented material devoted to the publication of the first two volumes of the multivolume edition The Great Patriotic War of 1941–1945. In particular, it mentioned that the authoring team sought to overcome a number of myths, rooted in human consciousness, and politicized judgments concerning the history of the Soviet period. As an example, it gave the debate around the role of Stalin as the supreme commander during the war. In this issue, we publish the response of Academician A.I. Vorob’ev, who presents his point of view on the role of Stalin in the war and in the life of our people. The author is categorically against yet another revision of history. We afforded the opportunity for a member of the authoring team of this multivolume work Academician A.A. Sarkisov—a war participant, a significant part of whose biography fell on the Stalin era—to answer this paper. The assessments of the two authors reflect polar views. Can they become closer? This question remains open.