The Canadian political scientist, Michael Millerman, has positioned himself as a Western academic engaging with the work of Alexander Dugin, a Russian ultranationalist whose ideas provide ideological justification for Russian imperialism, war, and authoritarianism. While Millerman presents his work as a philosophical exploration, his uncritical endorsement of Dugin’s worldview serves to normalize and whitewash fascist and imperialist ideology.
Dugin is not just a philosopher—he is a political ideologue whose theories have helped shape Russian expansionist policies, including its war against Ukraine. By amplifying Dugin’s work in Canadian and Western academic circles, Millerman provides legitimacy to ideas that call for the destruction of liberal democracy, the erasure of national sovereignties, and the violent expansion of Russia’s geopolitical power.
Michael Millerman is promoting the views of Russian imperialist and chauvinist Dugin, who supports Russia’s war against Ukraine, in the university environment in Canada and in the Western world in general and passing them off as philosophy. In fact, both figures use references to various philosophical movements to support their ideas of creating a Eurasian superpower, of course centered in the Kremlin.
In this analysis, we expose how Millerman’s framing of Dugin’s ideas as mere “political philosophy” effectively launders a dangerous ideology, making it more palatable to Western audiences.
The Central Role of Russian Imperialism in Dugin’s Thought—And Millerman’s Support for It
Who is Michael Millerman?
Michael Millerman is a political philosophy scholar and teacher in Canada. He earned his PhD in Political Science from the University of Toronto in 2018 for his work on Heidegger. And for some reason, he has fallen in love with Dugin’s ideas.
Millerman authored a book on Dugin: “Inside “Putin’s Brain”: The Political Philosophy of Alexander Dugin,” which he’s promoting on his personal website (source: www.michaelmillerman.com).
Millerman’s book’s cover features not only Dugin, who is called “Putin’s brain,” but also Russian leader Vladimir Putin himself, who is wanted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes in Ukraine and is responsible for the bloody full-scale war against Ukraine.
Michael Millerman played a significant role in transplanting Dugin’s ideas into Western soil, especially in the academic milieu and among the students.
Who is Alexander Dugin?
Alexander Dugin is not just a political philosopher—he is one of the most radical and dangerous ideologues of modern Russian imperialism. His influence extends beyond academia, shaping the ideological foundations of Russia’s aggressive actions abroad, including the invasion of Ukraine.
Dugin founded the International Eurasian Movement, which promotes the idea of a Russian-dominated Eurasian superstate, built through war, conquest, and the destruction of sovereign nations like Ukraine. Analysts widely recognize his ideology as neo-fascist, with clear roots in ultranationalism, imperialism, and mystical authoritarianism.
According to analysts, Dugin’s views have features characteristic of fascism, and he went down in history after he called in 2014 to “kill, kill, and kill” Ukrainians, who, in his words, “should not exist.” Read more on Dugin’s views in our dedicated article.
Dugin’s ideology
A key aspect of Dugin’s ideology is his belief that Russia’s destiny is to expand and dominate Eurasia, restoring itself as a civilizational powerafter the collapse of the Soviet Union. Millerman fully endorses this imperialist revisionism, presenting it as a legitimate geopolitical theory rather than a justification for war and territorial conquest. (source: Youtube 5:46).
“For a Russian person, faith is as important as reason. It was never something that they erased from the picture. If you look at Christian religious symbolism, you might think of the Devil, who rebelled against God by asserting his reason; he said, “I can know everything on my own,” self-assured of his will, and that’s a fallen angel. From Dugin’s perspective, this describes the West”, Millerman claimed on Canadian TV.
Millerman continues and states in the same video (8:17): “So, imagine the Soviet Union on the map of the world. And now imagine the borders of the Russian Federation, and you will see a very radical contraction. So it’s that geopolitical contraction that Dugin and Putin see as problematic. So if you look into that territorial space and you start from 1000 years ago and you roll forward in time, and you will see that the borders, they pulse, they move forward a little bit. So it is a living territorial space, geopolitically. But what happened with the collapse of the Soviet Union was that that heartbeat underwent a heart attack. It contracted so radically that the Eurasian identity, the territorial space, really suffered a catastrophic blow. And so Dugin and Putin both think as you get the Russian Federation back into its good shape, and you have the Eurasian union or regional integration increasing, you, geopolitically speaking, this is distinct from ideology, geopolitically speaking. You are putting that back on its proper footing – to its healthy order.”
Putin justifies the invasion of Ukraine by framing Russia’s loss of its empire as a “problem” that requires resolution. Millerman does not blame or contest this perspective; rather, he bolsters it by reiterating Dugin’s contention that the restoration of Russia’s territorial “heartbeat” is essential:
Millerman continues, “What happened with the collapse of the Soviet Union was that that heartbeat underwent a heart attack. It contracted so radically that the Eurasian identity, the territorial space, really suffered a catastrophic blow.”
By naturalizing Russia’s expansion as a “heartbeat,” Millerman removes the image of Russia as an imperialist aggressor. He suggests that expansion is necessary for Russia’s survival, which aligns directly with Dugin’s justification for Russia’s war against Ukraine as a means of “revitalizing” the Russian state.
He then fully endorses Dugin’s solution (8:55): “Dugin and Putin both think that as you get the Russian Federation back into its good shape, and you have the Eurasian union or regional integration increasing, geopolitically speaking, you are putting that back on its proper footing—to its healthy order,” claims Millerman.
This sanitizes Russian imperialism by portraying it as a natural, necessary process, rather than what it truly is: a violent campaign of war, annexation, and destruction.
Whitewashing Dugin’s Fascist Worldview
Dugin’s ideology is not just imperialist—it is openly anti-democratic, imperialist, and fascist. He calls for the destruction of liberal democracy, the elimination of individual rights, and the establishment of a totalitarian, mystical Russian empire. Millerman, instead of critiquing these ideas, admires them.
Millerman praises Dugin (16:32): “And something I really admire about Dugin, is that he really brings out the whole richness of human experience. It’s the rational side, it’s the mystical side, it’s the psychological side, and it’s the sociological and historical side.”
By portraying Dugin’s totalitarian ideas as merely “rich” and “multifaceted,” Millerman whitewashes their real-world consequences. This romanticization of fascist thought is a classic technique used to make extremist ideologies more acceptable in intellectual circles.
Furthermore, Millerman aligns himself with Dugin’s reactionary, anti-modern worldview, suggesting that the West is spiritually corrupt and destined for destruction.
Michael Millerman conducted an online interview with Alexandr Dugin, posted on Youtube, and expressed his admiration.
“When I was first acquainted with your text… it was just ideas that resonated and helped to make sense of the world I was in philosophically and politically. From the youngest age of childhood indoctrination up through the institutions of academia and after in the corporate and professional world as well, where you have a kind of “re-education camps” into post-liberal ideology,” said Millerman to Dugin (21:37).
“Thank you very much for everything you have done to promote interest in my ideas, for Fourth Political Theory, and other topics. Thank you,” Dugin responded to Millerman (1:38:40).
Here, Millerman uncritically repeats Dugin’s narrative that the West is morally degenerate, setting up a false East vs. West dichotomy that justifies Russia’s aggression.
Millerman’s Endorsement of Dugin’s Anti-Democratic Manifesto
Dugin openly advocates for the complete destruction of liberal democracy, human rights, and Western political systems. Millerman quotes these statements and fails to criticize them:
Millerman reads from Dugin’s writings (26:28): “So first of all, he writes, we need to fight liberalism. We need to bring this lasting decay to an end. We need to overcome liberalism. We need to finish with liberalism, with the open society, with human rights, with all the products of this Soros-style liberal system based on liberalism, materialism, and progressivism, on the total alienation of the people and the extinction of local links.”
He continues, accepting that supporters of Dugin’s ideas may find situational allies among the far right in Europe, in particular Marine Le Pen, since these political forces also oppose liberalism and support anti-Muslim views, a question asked by the host (41:56).
“I think that’s fair to say, and I’m sure Dugin recognizes it, but his main idea is that that antagonism can be exploited by global liberalism, and it also needs to be set aside if there is to be a prospect of a legitimate and effective response to global liberalism. So that is his argument. I mean, on one hand, the possibility of the exploitation and, on the other hand, the need to find models that allow these allies of the Great Awakening, so to speak, each in their own way, to not see each other as enemies.”
Rather than condemning this explicitly anti-democratic rhetoric, Millerman presents it as an intellectually legitimate position, again helping to sanitize fascist and authoritarian ideology.
Millerman Fails to Condemn Russia’s War Against Ukraine
Perhaps the most blatant example of Millerman’s role in mainstreaming Dugin’s imperialist ideology is that he fails to condemn Russia’s war against Ukraine:
Millerman states (01:35), “If Russia were to win in Ukraine, it would mean the prospect of a multipolar world is greater.”
“In my opinion, it is possible… to be “pro-Russia”… You are not “anti-American”‘ or “anti-Ukraine”… but it does mean that, in your view, globalism… is less desirable than a few poles and Russia and China, in principle, could form some balance of powers,” he argued.
By framing Russia’s aggression as a victory for “multipolarity,” Millerman adopts Dugin’s justification for war—that Russia’s invasion is a necessary step toward breaking Western dominance.
Millerman then argues that Russia’s defeat in Ukraine would be a catastrophe (video, 57:40):
“That would be like a, that would be a hard hit for Dugin and for Russia to take in his view. So he sometimes has talked about the current war, special military operation, like if, like it’s a matter of life and death for a Eurasian Russia. If Russia loses, it’s gonna be a big, big problem,” Millerman asserted.
This clearly aligns with Dugin’s worldview, which views the war in Ukraine as a civilizational struggle rather than an act of illegal aggression.
In this video (55:20-57:59), Millerman employs Putin’s terminology for Russia’s war against Ukraine and illegal full-scale invasion: “special military operation,” and mentions the favorite topic of the Russian propaganda about the “Ukrainian nationalism.” He claims that “if Russia loses, it’s going to be a big, big problem“.
“So Dugin has a book called “Putin vs. Putin,” where he said that Putin is Eurasian by half. He stopped Russia from collapsing; he made Russia strong again, okay? He did all kinds of things to restore the possibility of Russia’s civilizational sovereignty in the world. This is before the war, okay? If Russia, and Dugin seems to be pretty aware of this, if the current Russian war, or special military operation, is a failure, in other words, you know, if it’s a victory for a unipolar world, if it’s a victory for Western Europe, if it’s a victory for nationalism, Ukrainian nationalism, if it’s a defeat of Russia’s attempt at a multipolar world, that would be a big blow for Dugin to the vision that he thinks that war is currently supporting. So he sometimes has talked about the current war, a special military operation, like if it’s a matter of life and death for a Eurasian Russia. If Russia loses, it’s going to be a big, big problem.”
In this video (53:47-54:55), Millerman confirms the claim that Dugin influenced Putin and the Russian elites and prepared the ground for their policies, particularly in confronting the West.
“So now you ask the question, what’s his influence on Russia? And I would put it this way: whenever Putin decides to act as though Russia is a civilization and not just, uh, you know, a country in the global order, then somehow automatically the ideas that are going to be there for him to draw on, whether because he’s aware of them directly or indirectly, maybe because they’ve percolated over 30 years through a variety of authors, uh, think tanks, and institutions, or just because Dugin has prepared the conceptual field so that as soon as somebody starts thinking, “What would it mean for Russia to go against the West?”
Moreover, he portrays Russia’s expansionist imperialist ideas and actions in a positive light, omits Russian aggression, and supports its “right” to pursue its alleged “geopolitical interests,” which in fact are an attack on the territory of neighboring independent states and a violation of international law. Obviously, Millerman fails to condemn Russian aggression.
This confirms Millerman’s role as an active promoter of Dugin’s ideology, not just a neutral academic.
The Danger of Millerman’s Intellectual Whitewashing
The Canadian professor, Michael Millerman, does not just study Alexander Dugin—he actively promotes his ideas, launders his extremist rhetoric, and presents a neo-fascist ideology as a legitimate school of political thought.
By doing so, he provides Dugin and his supporters with intellectual legitimacy in the Western world, making it easier for Russian imperialist and authoritarian narratives to spread. This approach can ultimately serve to justify Russia’s war against Ukraine, reinforcing the very ideology that has led to war, occupation, and mass killings.
Millerman may claim to be an academic, but his work functions as a propaganda tool—one that helps normalize fascism, whitewash Russian aggression against Ukraine, and provide ideological cover for Russia’s imperial invasion.
