Russian Politics

'Peace to Caucasus': A Failing Peace Project

by Huseyn Aliyev

The past years have seen increased conflict-related violence in the North Caucasus, which in conjunction with economic... more The past years have seen increased conflict-related violence in the North Caucasus, which in conjunction with economic instability and social insecurity has endangered the Russian administration of the region. Amid official claims that the insurgents are close to elimination, the Russian government for the first time since the start of the second Chechnya war in 1999 initiated a peace-building project in the region. The project is officially named Peace to Caucasus and aims to bring peace and stability to the volatile region. However, it has so far shown a weak performance and is unlikely to develop into a platform for peace-building.

Organizational Isomorphism and Corruption: An Empirical Research in Russi

by Bertrand Venard

Reference: Venard, B. (2009). Organizational isomorphism and corruption: An empirical research in Russia. Journal of Business Ethics 89: 59-76.

Based on neo-institutional literature, this paper aims to show the influence of organizational isomorphism on... more Based on neo-institutional literature, this paper aims to show the influence of organizational isomorphism on corruption. The focus is institutional explanations of corruption. Our model is based on empirical research in Russia at the end of the 1990s. A face-to-face questionnaire was conducted with 552 top executives in private firms across various economic sectors. We used the structural equation model Partial Least Squares, PLS, technique to test our hypotheses. The developed model provides an integrated approach to the study of the relationship between corruption and organizational isomorphism. Our empirical data from firms in Russia allowed us to test various theoretical hypotheses concerning the influence of organizational isomorphism on corruption. Our emphasis is on the influence of competitive and institutional isomorphism on corruption.

Belarus 2012: The Paradox of Europe and its Relations with the EU and Russia

by Sotirios Karampampas

published in Research Program on Foreign Policy, Defence & Security, Center of Russia, Eurasia & Southern Europe (CERE), Institute of International Relations (IIR), vol. 6, pp. 10-15.

Continuities in the formation of Russian political elites

by Elena Semenova

in press (Historical Social Research)

The article investigates continuities in the formation and careers of political elites in post-Soviet Russia. Data on... more The article investigates continuities in the formation and careers of political elites in post-Soviet Russia. Data on the recruitment and careers of MPs (from 1993 until 2003), cabinet ministers (1991 until 2011) and governors (from 1991 until 2011) were used. We identified a partial reproduction of the political elite which may be defined as reproduction circulation. The first form is structural reproduction that is evident in continuities of the socio-demographic profile of political elites. The second-strongest form of path dependency is functional reproduction that was found in career paths of political elites. Finally, individual reproduction was prominent. This reproduction should decrease over time, while functional and structural reproduction are likely to remain.

Ministerial and Parliamentary Elites in an Executive-Dominated System: Post-Soviet Russia 1991-2009

by Elena Semenova

Comparative Sociology, Volume 10, Issue 6, pages 908 – 927

This article analyzes the recruitment and circulation of ministerial and parliamentary elites in Russia from the... more This article analyzes the recruitment and circulation of ministerial and parliamentary elites in Russia from the Soviet Union’s collapse in 1991 until 2009. The social backgrounds and careers of all ministers in 13 cabinets (1991–2009) and all members of the State Duma during its five terms after 1993 are studied. Especially during Vladimír Putin’s presidency (2000–2008), a shift toward super-presidentialism altered the circulation and composition of ministerial and parliamentary elites. Cabinets in Moscow consisted increasingly of ministers recruited from state bureaucracies, while the State Duma more and more contained businessmen, party politicians, and celebrities who appeared to treat MP service as simply an episode in their wider careers.

Misyurov D.A. Dialectical formulas based on the binary notation as the development formulas // Credo New. 2012. №2

by Dmitry Misyurov

The article suggests dialectical formulas based on the binary notation as the development formulas: formula with... more The article suggests dialectical formulas based on the binary notation as the development formulas: formula with dominant and the non-dominant elements; universal formula; formula with symbolic weight of elements; tautological formula. For example, it suggests an opportunity to use the dialectical formulas for modeling and artificial intelligence creation, etc.

Реставрационный versus революционный империализм в путинской Росcии

by Andreas Umland

Заседание Экспертного совета Черноморской миротворческой сети «Правый радикализм на постсоветском пространстве» в помещении киевского офиса ЕАЕК (НаУКМА). 2011. 5 ноября. 13 стр. Видеозапись: http://blogs.korrespondent.net/celebrities/blog/forum2004/a56596

Between Russian Assertiveness and Insecurity: Georgia’s Political Challenges and Prospect After the Conflict

by Uluslararası İlişkiler

Kornely K. Kakachia, "Between Russian Assertiveness and Insecurity: Georgia’s Political Challenges and Prospect After the Conflict", Uluslararası İlişkiler, Cilt 7, Sayı 26 (Yaz), 2010

Bağımsızlığından bugüne Gürcistan Sovyet sonrası ülkeler arasında en bağımsızlık düşünceli ülkelerden biridir.... more Bağımsızlığından bugüne Gürcistan Sovyet sonrası ülkeler arasında en bağımsızlık düşünceli ülkelerden biridir. Gürcistan’ın Avrupa ve transatlantik topluma yakın olma isteği arttıkça Rusya ile ilişkileri kötüleşmiştir. Rus saldırısı sonrasından ve global ekonomik kriz döneminde, Gürcistan Avro-Atlantik bölgesi ile entegrasyonunu belirsiz geleceğini şiddetlendiren güvenlik ikilemi ile karşı karşıya kalmaktadır. Bu makale Gürcistan’daki siyasal tehditleri ve Gürcistan’da ideolojik mücadeleyi kazanmayı amaçlayan Rusya diplomasisinin “yeni tonunu” incelemektedir. Aynı zamanda Gürcü-Rus savaşından sonra Gürcistan ulusal strateji meseleleri ve Gürcü-Rus ilişkilerinin geleceğini tartışmaktadır.

Renewing the Russian Federation

by Paul Pryce

Published by the Latvian Institute of International Affairs, May 2012

Mapping indigenous Siberia: Spatial changes and ethnic realities, 1900–2010

by Ivan Sablin

co-authored with Maria Savelyeva, published in Settler Colonial Studies, vol. 1, no. 1, 2011, pp. 77–110.

This article discusses spatial changes in the ethnic territories of Native Siberians from the late nineteenth century... more This article discusses spatial changes in the ethnic territories of Native Siberians from the late nineteenth century to the early twenty-first century. A Geographic Information System (GIS) was developed to model and observe these changes. The GIS also features resource-oriented economic activities, major waterways and railroads. Analysis of the model, textual sources and statistical data made it possible to determine what factors constituted Siberia’s ethnographical pattern of the early twentieth century and led to its changes in the ensuing decades and what impact on the indigenous peoples these changes had. Four special maps showing Siberia in the 1900s–10s, 1930s–40s, 1970s–80s and 2000s–10s were produced from the GIS and are included in the article. The current legal status of the indigenous peoples’ territories was also examined. This article presents an interdisciplinary macroscale case study.

Русский ультранационализм: актуальное состояние исследований

by Andreas Umland

Tartaria Magna. 2012. T. 1. № 1. С. 171-189.

The Role of Oil and Gas in Discourses on Russia's Development to 2020

by Jack Sharples

This paper was written in early 2012 and was presented at the Higher School of Economics (HSE) International Annual Conference in Moscow in April 2012.

Oil and gas currently play a crucial role in Russia’s political and economic development. The energy sector currently... more Oil and gas currently play a crucial role in Russia’s political and economic development. The energy sector currently accounts for approximately two-thirds of Russia’s exports, around 30 percent of Russia’s GDP, and almost half of the Federal Budget revenues (Gromov, 2011). However, in order to understand what kind of role oil and gas play in Russia’s development, it is necessary to look beyond the headline statistics and consider the discourses and broader political and economic context within which Russia’s development is taking place. This is especially important given that the most powerful Russian energy actors are state-controlled and answer to a Government that must balance the interests of various political, economic, and social actors, as well as be an actor in its own right.

The doctoral research on which this paper is based examines the role of natural gas in discourses on Russia’s political and economic development, and considers Russian conceptions of gas as a strategic resource in discourses on Russia’s modernisation and energy security. This paper specifically examines changes in Russian discourses on oil and gas during the Putin and Medvedev Presidencies, before considering possible developments in the post-2012 period.

Произойдёт ли националистическая эпидемия в путинской России? Риски и шансы недавней эскалации конфронтации про- и антидемкратических сил в Москве

by Andreas Umland

Geopolitika [Центр геополитических исследований, Вильнюс, Литва]. 2012. 3 мая.

The Push for Regional Enlargement in Putin's Russia

by Paul Goode

Post-Soviet Affairs 20, no. 3 (2004): 219-57.

A political scientist investigates the trajectory of Russian center-regional relations from the early 1990s to the... more A political scientist investigates the trajectory of Russian center-regional relations from the early 1990s to the present. A wide range of sources including interviews and the national and the regional press are used to delineate and compare processes of regional enlargement in Perm and Tyumen oblasts. This comparison is employed to examine the direction of new Russian federalism and related issues: variance in forms of regional integration, the center's ability to shape politics in the regions, and the relationships of regional elites with the center. Examination of how enlargement processes have unfolded in the Russian Federation is used to consider broader issues of borders as indicators of the state's capacity, identity, and legitimacy.

The Puzzle of Putin's Gubernatorial Appointments

by Paul Goode

Europe-Asia Studies 59, no. 3 (2007): 365-99.

This article confronts the puzzles at the heart of Vladimir Putin’s decision to eliminate Russia’s gubernatorial... more This article confronts the puzzles at the heart of Vladimir Putin’s decision to eliminate Russia’s gubernatorial elections: specifically, the lack of resistance among the regions to Putin’s proposal, and the relative ease and speed with which electoral institutions were dismantled. It considers explanations at the central and regional levels, revealing that the Kremlin engaged regional interests and incentives to make the system of appointments seem appealing. After considering competing accounts of Putin’s objectives, analysis then focuses on the Kremlin’s revival of Soviet-era institutional practices as serving
to make the elimination of gubernatorial elections seemingly inevitable while rendering compliance as obligatory.

The Fall and Rise of Regionalism?

by Paul Goode

Journal of Communist Studies and Transition Politics 26, no. 2 (2010): 233 - 56.

The centralization of power and the decline of regionalism were two of Vladimir Putin's principal achievements during... more The centralization of power and the decline of regionalism were two of Vladimir Putin's principal achievements during his presidency. These achievements are now threatened by the global financial crisis, which weakens the Russian central state and widens existing divisions between the centre and the regions. While the crisis does not portend a revival of a 1990s-style regionalism, it exposes the Kremlin's over-centralization of power in the form of stress within the ruling party, United Russia, and rising internal defections among regional elites. As a result, the regime is increasingly vulnerable to social protest and its potential transformation into anti-regime nationalism.

Redefining Russia: Hybrid Regimes, Fieldwork, and Russian Politics

by Paul Goode

Perspectives on Politics 8, no. 4 (2010): 1055-75.

All qualitative research faces fundamental hurdles in overcoming issues of access and ensuring the credibility of... more All qualitative research faces fundamental hurdles in overcoming issues of access and ensuring the credibility of one's observations. These issues are particularly acute when conducting research in hybrid regimes when the area of investigation is explicitly political and local authorities are sensitive to scrutiny. In the study of Russian politics, growing authoritarianism has meant a shrinking of the field and a corresponding adjustment in fieldwork practices. The disciplinary silence concerning the impact of regime type on fieldwork further threatens the quality and usefulness of comparative research on non-democratic regimes beyond Eurasia. The danger is that interesting and necessary questions about hybrid regimes are sacrificed as scholars opt to conduct fieldwork in more congenial locales where high status methods may be utilized. One can already see this effect as Russianists leave Russia rather than risk isolation within the discipline.

Russia’s Spreading Nationalist Infection

by Andreas Umland

German Marshall Fund of the United States: Foreign Policy and Civil Society Program "On Wider Europe" Series, 16 April 2012, 4 pp.

The Evolution of Totalitarianism: From Stalin to Putin

by Tornike Metreveli

The Soviet Union is commonly cited as “totalitarian.” But just how totalitarian was the Soviet Union? The modern... more The Soviet Union is commonly cited as “totalitarian.” But just how totalitarian was the Soviet Union? The modern Russian Federation?

Les instructions du Président de la Russie. Analyse d'un instrument d'action discrétionnaire

by Yaroslav Startsev

Revue d’études comparatives Est-Ouest    Année  2000    Volume  31    Numéro  31-2    pp. 137-155