There have been some very interesting developments in Russia over the past few days. My friend, and fellow StAR blogger, Pavel Chichikov, forwarded me a news article from Moscow in which it was revealed that Vladimir Putin has urged Moscow politicians to sanction and finance the building of two hundred new churches throughout the Russian capital. I believe that Pavel is going to write something on this topic so I shan’t comment any further on this encouraging development. This follows the recent establishment of a new public holiday in Russia to celebrate the country’s conversion to Christianity in the tenth century.

Now I’ve received news from Alexis Klimoff, a longtime friend of Solzhenitsyn, that Solzhenitsyn’s masterwork, The Gulag Archipelago, a book I devoured as a young man, is now required reading in every Russian high school. At long last, Russia’s greatest dissident has been brought in from the cold and is being seen as the giant figure and true hero that his life, sacrifice and work merit.

With Solzhenitsyn on the high school curriculum, there is indeed hope that the former communist state might truly become once again worthy of the title, Holy Mother Russia.

Here’s the full text of Alexis Klimoff’s e-mail:

1. Putin: Solzhenitsyn’s Gulag Archipelago essential (AP) 

October 26, 2010

MOSCOW (AP) – “The Gulag Archipelago” is essential reading for Russian students, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said Tuesday unusual words of praise from a former KGB agent for Alexander Solzhenitsyn’s explosive book on the crimes of the Soviet regime.

Putin spoke at a meeting with Solzhenitsyn’s widow, Natalya, to discuss a new edition of “The Gulag Archipelago” that was made part of required reading for Russian high schools. The inclusion of the book in the school curriculum, and the words of praise from Putin, contrasts with his previous efforts to inculcate pride in the country’s Soviet past.

The move could be an attempt by Putin to deflect claims by critics who have accused him of whitewashing history and encouraging a more positive view of Soviet dictator Josef Stalin during his eight-year presidency.

“Without the knowledge of that book, we would lack a full understanding of our country and it would be difficult for us to think about the future,” Putin told Natalya Solzhenitsyn, who prepared an abridged edition of the massive three-volume work.

Putin hailed the school edition’s publication as a “landmark event,” adding that it comes shortly before Russia marks a day commemorating victims of Soviet political repression this weekend.

Putin, a former officer in the secret service, has avoided open praise or criticism of Stalin. Three years ago, however, he joined public commemorations for victims of Stalin’s purges, warning against political ideas that are “placed above basic values.”

Putin’s opponents dismissed that as a public relations stunt and accused the government of burnishing Stalin’s image by sponsoring textbooks painting the murderous ruler in a largely positive light. To the outrage of critics of the Communist past, old Soviet national anthem lyrics praising Stalin were restored to a Moscow subway station in 2009.

Historians estimate that more than 700,000 people were executed during the purges that peaked during the Great Terror in the late 1930s, and tens of millions of people were sent to prison camps where millions of them died of harsh labor and cruel treatment.

Solzhenitsyn, who had won the 1970 Nobel Prize for Literature, drew on his own experiences as a prisoner and on the testimony of hundreds of other Gulag inmates to chronicle the horrors of the sprawling Soviet prison camps system, known under its Russian acronym, Gulag.

First published in the West in 1973, “The Gulag Archipelago” prompted furious Soviet leaders to expel Solzhenitsyn from the Soviet Union in 1974.

Following his expulsion, Solzhenitsyn and his wife led a secluded life in Vermont and the author surprised many by becoming harshly critical of the West’s permissive ways.

After returning from exile in 1994, he expressed disappointment that most Russians hadn’t read his books. Solzhenitsyn’s met with Putin and praised him despite Putin’s KGB background. Solzhenitsyn died in August 2008 of a chronic heart condition at the age of 89.

2. http://premier.gov.ru

October 26, 2010

Vladimir Putin discusses the publication of a version of Alexander Solzhenitsyn’s The Gulag Archipelago for schoolchildren with Natalya Solzhenitsyna

Transcript of the beginning of the meeting:

Vladimir Putin: Hello, Mrs Solzhenitsyna. We met a year and a half ago, and at the time you suggested that Alexander Solzhenitsyn’s most famous work, The Gulag Archipelago, be included in the curriculum of our schools.

Natalya Solzhenitsyna: I thought you suggested it. Well, we suggested it together…

Vladimir Putin: Still, the idea was yours. As I recall, you told me about it over the phone, and, as you know, I ordered the Ministry of Education and Science to make it happen. I know you have done a lot on behalf of this idea to have a version of the book for schoolchildren. And here it is – five thousand copies published by the Prosveshcheniye publishing house.

Natalya Solzhenitsyna: Ten thousand copies.

Vladimir Putin: Already ten thousand? I was told it was five.

Natalya Solzhenitsyna: The first run is ten thousand, so that regional education ministries could buy them for their libraries. It will be done very fast.

Vladimir Putin: Great. This is a meaningful event, as it comes on the eve of the Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Political Repressions. I would like to thank you for this idea (and it was your idea originally) and for your work to prepare this adaptation.

Natalya Solzhenitsyna: As you know, I think all of us, not just schoolchildren, have to complete this assignment in order to pass the big tests – to modernise, yes, but also to survive, to save ourselves. We simply have to know this history to avoid repeating our mistakes.

I hope I’ve made a successful adaptation of the book… I had to make it four times shorter, but I think I managed to preserve the power and light of this book, along with its gravity. I think our schoolchildren and adults who have no time to read the entire three volumes will gain wisdom and strength when they read it. I am convinced that this is a book that should be studied. The teacher can decide how much of it to assign.

Vladimir Putin: Thank you very much. I completely agree with you. This book is necessary. Without knowing what’s in these pages, it’s impossible to have a complete understanding of our country and difficult to reflect on where it’s headed.

Natalya Solzhenitsyna: Yes, because politicians try to use history as a political tool, and this is wrong. I don’t think history is a map: all it can do is point out where on the map are the danger spots that we already passed, so that we can avoid them in the future.

Vladimir Putin: Exactly. Thank you.