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VOLUME 2, ISSUE 1, JANUARY 2007 LITVINENKO AND AFTER INSIDE THIS ISSUE: The last couple of months Surrey stockbroker belt in (son of the president have been a busy time for Rus- 2001. Litvinenko had claimed who had himself been LITVINENKO AND sia-watchers. Not for reasons that the Kremlin itself was 1-2 blown up in 2004), had AFTER we would necessarily have behind the bombings of apart- made no secret of their chosen. It certainly meant a lot ment buildings in 1999 that wish to see her out of by Stephen White of media attention – I made led to the invasion of Chech- the way. They aren’t Channel 4 News and Irish ra- nya, and which allowed Putin normally very scrupu- dio, talked to Canadian televi- to ride to victory as a man of lous in how they achieve 2-3 CONFERENCE sion and New Zealand radio, action early the following year. their objectives – Kady- REPORT and did a short piece – the He had certainly done the rov keeps a tiger in his basis for what follows – for the Kremlin no favours. And who, by Anke Schmidt-Felzman home, and his irregulars Sunday Post. Not that I know outside a government scien- have taken to displaying more about Polonium 210 tific laboratory, could hope to the severed heads of than anyone else, but there get hold of Polonium 210? their opponents on were and still are questions But there are other theories. stakes around local vil- PUBLICATIONS 3 about the impact of the poi- Consider, for instance, the lages. If Litvinenko had soning on East-West relations, Chechen scenario. Litvinenko been making progress in A POSTCARD FROM and on the configuration of 4 was investigating the killing of his inquiries, perhaps a LONDON power in the Kremlin. Politkovskaya. The Chechen lot of progress, wouldn’t Russia attracts attention for all authorities, particularly prime they have wanted him CONFERENCE AND 4 sorts of reasons. Some good minister Ramzan Kadyrov out of the way as well? WORKSHOP PLANS ones, like vodka. But also for Continued page 2 other ones. What has been GRADUATE NEWS 4 happening over recent weeks is not a particularly happy ex- PERSONAL 4 ample. The poisoning of Alex- ander Litvinenko followed the ACADEMIC NET- 5 murder of journalist Anna WORKS Politkovskaya at the start of October, and several high- FIELDTRIPS 5 profile killings in the business and banking world. More than PROJECTS 6 a dozen journalists have now lost their lives since Putin GRADUATE PRO- 6 came to power six years ago; GRESS the killers, typically, are never found. PRESENTATIONS 6 Litvinenko can now be added to this grisly list. He was a WHO WE ARE AND 6 friend of Boris Berezovsky, the Above: Alexander Litvinenko (from bbc.co.uk). WHAT WE DO Kremlin’s leading opponent, who fled to political exile in the VOLUME 2, ISSUE 1 Page 2 LITVINENKO AND AFTER Continued from page 1 they find it hard to get hold need to be worried about Moldova, where the unrecog- been obliged to accept of a deadly poison through where Moscow is going. nised Dniester republic has the Kremlin’s direction or sympathisers, or just for The most obvious cause also voted in favour of a un- (in Khodorkovsky’s case) money, in a government for concern is Russia’s ion with Russia? Why, Rus- go to jail. laboratory? new assertiveness on the sians might argue, should Many Russians have international scene, and these small territories be Actually, a murky murder welcomed what we used its use of natural re- denied the right of national is the last thing the Kremlin to call the ‘smack of firm sources as a political self-determination that we wants at the moment. government’. Putin him- weapon. Already, more are so keen about in other They’re trying to clean up self is immensely popular. than a quarter of our oil cases? their international image in Living standards have and gas comes from Rus- all kinds of ways – through Perhaps the biggest worries been rising all round, on sia. How could the West a sort of Russian CNN, for are about the direction of the back of high oil maintain an independent instance, and by inviting travel of the political system prices. But central con- foreign policy if not just Western scholars and jour- itself. As communist rule trol, if it’s taken too far, the supply, but the com- nalists to a country house ended, it seemed Russia was can silence other voices. panies themselves, were near Moscow for an ex- joining the ‘other democra- A government that has no in the hands of a foreign tended opportunity to dis- cies’. But in all kinds of ways risk of exposure in the country – Russia or any- cuss anything they want Putin has strengthened cen- media has less reason to one else? with the Russian president tral control to an extent that be honest, or even com- (very much what Valentina There are other con- might almost seem Soviet. petent. And a court sys- is writing about in her dis- cerns about Russian ac- The regions have been tem that is manipulated sertation). And would they tions in its immediate brought into line. The media, by politicians gives no- have wanted anything of vicinity. They intervened, above all national television, one any guarantee of this kind on the eve of a clumsily and unsuccess- have been taken over directly their personal safety, let summit with the European fully, in Ukraine’s presi- or indirectly by the state. And alone their property. It’s a Union, and a NATO summit dential election. What if businessmen like Mikhail lesson we teach our first that was being held not far they intervened else- Khodorkovsky, who looked year politics students. away, in Riga? where, for instance in as if they might challenge the Perhaps we should be Georgia, where a rebel Kremlin and even seek telling the Russians as So I don’t think the Krem- province has just de- power at the presidential well? lin is behind it; but that clared its wish to leave election in 2008 at which doesn’t mean we don’t Stephen White and join them? Or in Putin must stand down, have CONFERENCE REPORT This autumn, Valentina, the EU and the Katsu, Anke and Stephen “Outsiders”’ – this was attended the UACES Annual Katsu’s first ever confer- Conference, ‘Exchanging ence presentation and he Ideas on Europe’, at the valiantly overcame his University of Limerick, 31 fears and did a brilliant job August – 2 September in presenting his paper 2006. Katsu and Stephen and answering a number both gave papers in the of quite provocative ques- panel on ‘Political Values in tions from the audience! the New Europe’ while Stephen was last in the Valentina and Anke sat at- panel to present his joint tentively in the audience. paper with Julia Koros- They listened to the presen- televa and Ian McAllister tation by Galina Bogutcaia entitled ‘Are Russians of the paper that Galina co- Europeans?’. A ‘special wrote with Anke and Giselle event’ at this panel was Boss. This was followed by the launch of a special Above: from left to right, Sirke Mäkinen, Karolina Pomorska (Loughborough Univer- Katsu’s presentation on issue of Contemporary sity/University of Maastricht), Giselle Bosse (University of Aberystywth), Derek Hutcheson (University College Dublin), Valentina and Anke. ‘Participation and Protest in Politics (Issue 12, June Continued on page 3 VOLUME 2, ISSUE 1, JANUARY 2007 Page 3 CONFERENCE REPORT Continued from page 2 2006, already advertised in the previous of an Enemy or Image of a Friend? November. He also attended a Newsletter) on The New Europe and the International Images as a Factor in conference in Kyiv in early October ‘Outsiders’: Is There a Values Gap? EU-Russia Relations’ that Valentina on ‘strategic elites and European (guest edited by Derek Hutcheson and co-presented with Sirke Mäkinen enlargement’; the paper is due to Elena Korosteleva). It contains articles from the University of Tampere (who appear in a local sociology journal, by Katsu on ‘Participation and protest in spent a few months as a visiting Sotsiologiya. He lectured in Dublin the European Union and the “outsider” researcher with us in and St Andrews, and (as noted states’, by Stephen and Julia on spring/summer 2005). above) at the UACES conference at ‘“Feeling European”: the view from Bela- the end of August. Anke Schmidt-Felzman rus, Russia and Ukraine’ and an article Bill Miller was another participant by Anke (co-written with Giselle Bosse OTHER CONFERENCE NEWS in the AAASS conference, present- and Galina Bogutcaia) entitled ‘Lost in ing a paper jointly with Clare Translation? Political Elites and the In- Stephen took part in a conference McManus-Czubinska of the De- terpretative Values Gap in European at Cambridge in early September partment of Central and East Euro- Neighbourhood Policies’. with a paper on ‘communist nostal- gia’, using survey data for Russia, pean Studies. Anke and Valentina organised another Ukraine and Belarus (it will appear Valentina gave another paper at panel at the conference on ‘The EU and in a volume edited by David Lane a seminar on ‘Images of Russia in its Eastern Neighbourhood: Visions and next year, and in Russian in Mir Europe - Voices from Germany, Interests in Conflict?’, chaired by Derek, Rossii). He contributed a paper on France and Poland’ that was or- which was well attended and received a Belarusian and Ukrainian interna- ganized by the Stiftung Genshagen good response from the audience – it tional orientations to a conference and held in the castle of Gensha- was even mentioned at the conference on Belarus in Warsaw in mid- gen near Berlin (Germany) on No- dinner by Sir John Kerr of Kinlochard, November (the papers will appear in vember 29 – December 1.

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