By Russian Federation Communist Party
March 17, 2026
On Tuesday, March 17, a round table on the topic: “35 years of the National Referendum on the Preservation of the USSR: Lessons, Conclusions and Prospects” was held in the House of Unions. The event was attended by: members of the CPRF Central Committee, deputies of the State Duma, representatives of state authorities, scientific and expert community, mass media.
The round table was opened and led by the Deputy Chairman of the CPRF Central Committee V.I. Kashin.
The Chairman of the CPRF Central Committee G.A. addressed the audience with a report. Zyuganov:
Today we are holding a large gathering, a large council of people’s patriotic forces, which have recently developed in the vastnes of a single common Fatherland – the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, within the framework of the SCO and BRICS. I greet you all and congratulate you.
Today marks the 35th anniversary of the referendum, when the peoples of the Soviet country came and voted amicably. 76% said: we want to live together within the framework of a single country, which was generated by the Great October, which carried out Lenin-Stalin modernization. A country that showed the highest rates of development in the world – almost 14% in 30 years. The country, which has built 9 thousand of the best factories at that time in 10 years, has created the most perfect social system of protection of citizens and workers, where an 8-hour working day, free education, medical care were guaranteed. The country that gave rise to the invincible Red Army, which defeated the fascists, liberated all of Europe and the planet from the brown plague, the country that was the first to break into space and create unique orbital stations that allow to produce new materials, new plants and new medicines, which gives humanity confidence in the future.
Unfortunately, this referendum, which has no statute of limitations, was thrown into the landfill by the executive power represented by Gorbachev and Yakovlev, Yeltsin and Shevardnadze. They pursued a Jesuit policy during the so-called perestroika and democratization, which led the country to the destruction and maintenance of American oligarchic capital. No one will ever wash away this kind of betrayal. I was amazed that today even the leading information channels managed not to say that a unique date of one of the most important events in the history of our country and humanity was fulfilled.
Nevertheless, our today’s forum will break through this information blockade, because our comrades and friends will spread this information all over the planet. I think it would be appropriate to recall the origins of this betrayal. They’re trying to portray that it happened at the same time. In fact, it’s absolutely not like that. Today we see how American terrorism unleashed a terrible war against the Persian civilization of Iran, how they shell our cities and villages every day with the hands of their henchmen – Bandera Nazis. In the last 10 days alone, almost a dozen doctors were killed in the hospital and 30 sisters and those who were lying there were injured. In Bryansk, eight missiles shot almost the entire shift at the enterprise, killing 9 people, almost fifty wounded. And they also just planted the scoundrels who burned a year ago, destroyed Crocus City, killed 150 people and wounded almost 500 people. All these terrorist attacks are organized by the Anglo-Saxons, accompanied by their companions. They just pretend that they don’t do it and some other people press the buttons. That’s not true.
This policy was laid down after the Caribbean crisis, when John Kennedy realized that it was impossible to fight us, that the Soviet country had the will, showed courage by placing two missile divisions in Cuba and forcing the Americans to remove their missiles from Turkey and Italy, thereby ensuring security and confident development. This was already done when the Americans prepared entire echelons of their bombers, surrounded the Soviet country with bases, hoping that the first three hundred bombs would hit fifty cities. Five nuclear strikes were aimed at Moscow alone. We coped with you then, but the last three five-year plans of the last century are a historically lost time. Under the cover of all demagogy about renewed socialism, the program that was approved by the CIA and prepared within the framework of the so-called Harvard project was passed through. Listen again. Its first chapter was called “Perestroika”, the second – “Democratization” and the third – “Liquidation”. They began to eliminate our statehood, all social achievements, starting a war against the Russian world 4 years ago. We need to understand perfectly well that we need to draw far-reaching conclusions from this.
President Putin with his arrival changed his strategy, began to strengthen statehood, outlined national projects and state programs, honestly and courageously spoke in Munich at a conference, where he directly stated that the Russian world has its own traditions and that we are able to solve many problems. After that, our country became a target and the main challenge for them. And today, if you honor Trump’s strategy, in the first place is communist, socialist China and its party, in the second place is Russia with its national state policy and its nuclear arsenal, and in the third place is Iran. Iran is being dealt with now. What scenario will be offered to us in the near future? Venezuelan – with the theft of the head and wife, the murder of people? Or Iranian – with carpet bombing and destruction of all potential? History will show. But within the framework of the system that the traitors imposed on us then, it is impossible to consolidate the victory.
I spoke about this both in the State Duma, and in the president, and in the government’s report. I showed all the materials completely. This week, a special issue of Pravda with a circulation of 7 million copies will be released. Our comrades will carry it to all cities and villages. There is a section “To win, Russia needs socialism”. And here is a full analysis of last year’s failure, the essence of our program and the essence of the priority measures we must take. Here are the positions of all the heads of our committees. There is a program that Vladimir Kashin spoke at our last Plenum, and a program that we are preparing for the next congress to approve it. I thank “Moscow Region Truth”, it released a wonderful material today. And our orgalogists and ideologists, who have collected more than 10 million signatures under the people’s referendum, and it requires price regulation, normalization of the housing and communal services system, support for women, the elderly and children. I believe that today’s forum will give another very important and powerful impetus to understanding what has been experienced and promoting our main program requirements.
But once again I pay attention: we were betrayed by the fifth column. We personally know its composition. But I never thought that the scum of the Yeltsin era, all this flud within the framework of the war would continue this dirty, abhorring, in my opinion, inherently criminal policy. Why do I say that? Because it is absolutely unacceptable to lower them to zero in the framework of the world rates of 4.9% in the war. If we take the military-industrial complex, there will be no unit. Out of 26 industries, 21 went into minus. We are obliged to do everything to correct the situation. The automotive industry alone lost 30% in a year, tractor construction and production of combines – 21%. We can’t allow it. The country is losing about a million people. We have less than 150 million left. It is impossible to ensure security with such a composition of the population. The idiotic rate of 15-20% paralyzed all industries. Benefits for small and medium-sized businesses have been removed – a third of it has already gone broke. If this continues, we will lose it almost completely. Our budget assumed plus 10 trillion, and we already have a hole of 6 trillion, which is absolutely unacceptable. The oligarch grabbed 19 billion dollars in January alone. And they don’t want to pay a normal tax. In the conditions of war, everyone must work for victory! We sent the 151st convoy yesterday. Already the 151st. Three hundred tons. Everything was collected by citizens: pioneers, Komsomol members, veterans, military.
We need maximum cohesion now. And Governor Artamonov, who sits in Lipetsk, disrupted our elections last year, paralyzed our party committee with a search. The investigation figured it out – there are no culprits. And no apologies, no consideration of our collective appeal. This completely destroys the laws of the civil service. The situation in the Altai Territory is even worse: women are persecuted only for the fact that we have the largest faction there – 24 deputies, 15 in single-member constituencies. They blame the fact that the deputy paid his assistant’s salary for her work, allegedly serving the party. Although according to the Constitution, the State Duma is built on the party principle. The story has been going on for more than two months. We appealed to United Russia, Medvedev, and the heads of law enforcement agencies. We haven’t heard a single answer yet. Today, the Rosgvardia exhibition, which turned 10 years old, will be opened in the Duma. On your behalf, I will once again express my wishes and demands. All of us are required to fulfill the main side of the president’s message: the most cohesive society, the highest possible rates of development, maximum mastering of the latest technologies, the best science and education, victory at the front.
It is fully adopted by us, and we will fight for it.
Also, during the round table, speeches were made by the Deputy Chairman of the CPRF Central Committee V.I. Kashina and D.G. Novikov, member of the Presidium of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation V.A. Tsarikhin, State Duma deputy O.A. Alimova, representatives of foreign countries.