: Small Italian contingents participated in the Allied intervention against the Bolsheviks.

A key part of Barbero's narrative—often shared on social media—is that while the West frequently views Russia as an aggressor, history shows a long list of Western powers attempting to invade Russia. He points out that in the last 200 years:

: The "General Winter" and the sheer scale of the Russian Eurasian colossus create a "cemetery of armies" for those who enter.

The story of (Never Invade Russia) is a recurring theme in the lectures of historian Alessandro Barbero , most notably captured in his full 2022 talk and his 2017 appearance at the Salone del Libro in Torino . Barbero presents this as one of the few "laws" of history, humorously suggesting that while history doesn't always repeat itself, it does offer a collection of cautionary examples—with the ruinous attempt to conquer the Russian heartland being the most prominent. The Clash of Two "Romes"

: He uses these examples not to justify current politics, but to encourage a study of history that avoids prejudice and seeks to understand the motivations of all sides. Mai INVADERE la RUSSIA - Alessandro Barbero [Completo]

In Barbero’s telling, these two ideological forces were destined to collide, regardless of the individual will of their leaders. Drawing on Tolstoy’s War and Peace , Barbero suggests that even a figure as powerful as Napoleon was often "dragged by forces greater than himself". The Italian Perspective