Introduction

Adam Ulam was intrigued by the paradox that while Marxism was "addressed to the masses," the revolutionaries quickly learned to distrust the people. This suspicious attitude was, of course, enshrined in Leninist philosophy and became the heart of the Soviet system and its totalitarian nature. Indeed, many of his works document and analyze the centralized nature of the Soviet system. At the same time, a persistent and fundamental theme in so many of his books is the paradoxical character and thus the weakness of that totalitarian system. Adam argues, in fact, that many initiatives in Soviet foreign policy--even those toward the West--stemmed from Moscow looking over its shoulder at Beijing. Carrying the totalitarianism theme forward, R. Sanford Lieberman and Norman Naimark explore the methods used by Soviet authorities to impose Soviet rule on conquered territory. The chapter also presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in this book.