THE IMPACT OF CRISIS-MILITARIST STAGES OF CYCLICAL SOCIETAL DEVELOPMENT ON ECONOMIC INTERESTS

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to examine economic interests in the context of the influence of crisis-militaristic phases of global cycles on the conditions for their realisation. Economic interests play an important role in cyclical societal development, being one of the main drivers of societal progress and at the same time giving rise to deep interclass and geopolitical contradictions. The intensification of these contradictions leads to crises at the level at which they arise. The periodic intensification of geopolitical contradictions, largely due to the conflict of economic interests of geopolitical actors, leads to the unfolding of crisis-militaristic phases of global cycles. After the completion of these phases of global cycles, a new geopolitical hierarchy is established in the capitalist world system, which means that new conditions are formed for the realisation of the economic interests of states and, as a consequence, for the realisation of the economic interests of their national businesses and populations. The leader of the global geopolitical system receives the main advantages for the realisation of economic interests. During crisis-militaristic phases, states involved in geopolitical struggles shift to some extent towards the militarisation of the economy and a mobilisation-based form of societal life. The militarisation of the economy involves an increase in state military spending, which improves conditions for the economic interests of businesses necessary for the military economy and worsens conditions for non-militaristic businesses and the population. If military spending is increased by redistributing state financial resources in their favour at the expense of social spending, the social quality of life for broad sections of the population deteriorates, which means that conditions for human development deteriorate. Already today, in the process of transition to the crisis-militaristic phase of the current long cycle of world politics, there is a significant slowdown in progress in the field of human development.