The Political Science of War in the System of Scientific Knowledge

The article substantiates the possibility and necessity of the development of the political science of war in Russia as a relatively independent branch of political science. To solve this problem, a retrospective review of the emergence and development of a political component in the system of scientific knowledge about war is provided. This process was controversial in Russia. Some credible thinkers, including military scientists, denied the science of war as such. The study of war as a political phenomenon was usually disregarded. Eventually, in the pre-revolutionary period, there prevailed the free-from-politics paradigm of understanding war (the ways and means of its conduct, its causes and consequences for an individual, society, and government agencies). Such an approach had negative consequences for political elite, training of military personnel, and public consciousness, which was especially evident in the period of social disasters. During the Soviet period of history, as a result of the indoctrination of social sciences, the politicized study of war had prevailed, which also did not ensure its holistic perception and had negative consequences in the preparation and handling of military force. A comparison of the approaches of military science and social sciences shows that they study the phenomenon of war in fragments, within the framework of their method. At the same time, many valuable scientific works on philosophy, sociology, and psychology of war have been prepared. In conditions when it is generally recognized that war is a continuation of politics, the undeveloped political science of war is illogical, its absence does not provide a holistic perception of this complex phenomenon. The article concludes that nowadays Russia has the necessary prerequisites and conditions for the development of the political science of war.

1. Akhromeev S.F. (Ed.) (1986) Military Encyclopedic Dictionary. Moscow: Voyenizdat (in Russian).

2. Belkov O.A. (2019) Philosophy of War: Words and Meanings. Vlast’. No. 1, pp. 119−127 (in Russian).

3. Berdyaev N.A. (1990) The Fate of Russia. Essays on the Psychology of War and Ethnicity. Moscow: USSR Philosophical Society (in Russian).

4. Clausewitz C. (1936) On War (Vol. 2). Moscow: Gosvoyenizdat (Russian translation).

5. Dragomirov M.I. (Comp.) (1888) Clausewitz’s Doctrine of War. Fundamental Principles. Saint Petersburg: M.S. Balashev Press (in Russian).

6. Dragomirov M.I. (2012) Analysis of the Novel War and Peace from a Military Point of View. Moscow: Librokom (in Russian).

7. Gerasimov V.V (2013) The Main Trends in the Development of Forms and Methods of Use of the Armed Forces, Current Tasks of Military Science to Improve Them. Vestnik Akademii voennykh nauk. No. 1, pp. 24−29 (in Russian).

8. Golovin N.N. (2006) The Science of War. On the Sociological Study of War. In: Sheremetsky D.P. (Ed.) Science and War (pp. 32–168). Moscow: Narodny pushkinskiy fond (in Russian).

9. Gorbachev M.S. (1988) Perestroika and New Thinking for Our Country and for the Whole World. Moscow: Politizdat (in Russian).

10. Kokoshin A.A. (2005) Political Science and Sociology of Military Strategy. Moscow: KomKniga (in Russian).

11. Reznik N.I. (Ed.) (2006) Military Political Science. Moscow: Krasnaya zvezda (in Russian).

12. Senyavskaya E.S. (1999) Psychology of War in the 20th Century: Historical Experience of Russia. Moscow: ROSSPEN (in Russian).

13. Serdyukov A.E. (Ed.) (2007) Military Encyclopedic Dictionary. Moscow: Voyenizdat (in Russian).

14. Serebryannikov V.V. (1998) Sociology of War. Moscow: Os’-89 (in Russian).

15. Shaposhnikov B.M. (1982) Memories. Military Scientific Works. Moscow: Gosvoyenizdat (in Russian).

16. Snesarev Е.А. (2003) The Philosophy of War. Moscow: Finansovy kontrol’ (in Russian).

17. Soloviev А.V. (2010) How the Philosophy of War Is Possible? In: Moshchelkova E.N. & O.Y. Boytsova (Eds.). Philosophy of Politics and War (pp. 162–177). Moscow: O.V. Vorob’yev Publisher (in Russian).

18. Svechin А.А. (1935) Clausewitz. Moscow: Zhurnal’no-gazetnoye ob’yedineniye (in Russian).

19. Svechin A.А. (2003) Strategy. Moscow: Kuchkovo pole (in Russian).

20. Tolstoy L.N. (1983) War and Peace (Vols. 3–4). Moscow: Khudozhestvennaya. lit (in Russian).

21. Tsygankova P.A. & Ryazantseva I.P. (Eds.) (2004) The Sociology of Modern Wars. In:Moscow: Al’fa – M (in Russian).

22. von Caemmerer R. (1905) Clausewitz. Berlin: B. Behrs Verlag (in German).