Did The Soviet Union's Communist Leaders Promote Nationalism?

Although nationalism and Marxism/Communism are often seen to be diametrically opposed ideologies (with Communists preferring class-based solidarity and internationalism), many historians now believe that V.I. Lenin and Josef Stalin both promoted, at least for a few years, nationalism.

Both Lenin and Stalin had a nation-building mission. They had to strengthen the USSR's nationalities and promote a nationhood that would remain loyal to the Soviet Union and be receptive to the Marxist-Leninist message. Interestingly enough, the
"oppressed nations" of Central Asia and the Baltics had to be allowed to explore (and sometimes create) their heritage
while the idea of the nation was much less acceptable in the context of "Great Russian
chauvinism," which was seen as a throwback to the Tsarist times.

The nation was seen as both a reality and
a necessary evil by both Lenin and Stalin. Therefore, the best that they could do was
to appropriate this concept in order to ensure that it would not get out of their control.
The primary means of accomplishing this was through a commitment to national
languages and the creation of loyal national elites, especially among the Uzbeks and the Georgians, as well as other Central Asian peoples.

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