THE Russian Revolution marked a historic break from the dominant social democratic reformist current in Europe. Lenin had hoped that the Russian Revolution would be succeeded by the German Revolution. However, those expectations were dashed after the crushing of the revolutionary uprising in Germany in 1919.
Before the Second World War, there was a keen tussle between the social democratic reformist parties and the Communist parties affiliated to the Third International for winning over the allegiance of the working class in their respective countries.