A.I. Golovlev Scalene triangle?: Kemalist Turkey, fascist Italy, and the USSR in the Stalin period under comparative analysis

Abstract: The article explores the monographic study of Professor. Pc. Plaggenborg which is dedicated to the comparative analysis of fascist Italy, Kemalist Turkey and Bolshevik Russia (USSR) during the period between the World Wars. The reviewer examines the methodology and structure of this work, while pointing out the scientific novelty of a comparative approach within the suggested “triangle” of countries, and provides detailed critique of some of the author’s positions. The critic positively regards the author’s research of how each country viewed the others, as well as the study of the works of analysts and little-known Soviet turkologists. The critic outlines the precision and appropriateness of a comparative analysis of the preconditions for the emergence of the three regimes - the backgrounds of the ruling elites, representation of authority, the growth of the oppression mechanisms and the relations between authority and religion. Other theses seem less persuasive – the essay on the post-war history of Italy, Turkey and USSR appears incomplete, and the research of the economy of the three countries is not deep enough. Moreover, the place of the studied countries in the greater global political picture is not given enough attention, which further reduces the complicity of the analysis. Overall, the monography is regarded as broad research that unveils new horizons and provides perspective for further comparative research in a refreshed interdisciplinary format, its scientific relevance and significant importance, as well as its conclusions are highly regarded by the scientific community.

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