Unsuccessful Orthodoxy in Russian Heartlands
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Load more
Recommended publications
-
The Meltdown of the Russian Federation in the Early 1990S Nationalist Myth-Building and the Urals Republic Project Alexander Kuznetsov
The Meltdown of the Russian Federation in the Early 1990s Nationalist Myth-Building and the Urals Republic Project Alexander Kuznetsov Abstract: In the early 1990s after the collapse of the USSR, the new Russian state faced strong nationalist claims for sovereignty and increased autonomy from the side of regional elites. These nationalist challenges at the sub-national level were seriously considered by many experts to be a potential cause for the further breakup of Russia into a number of new independent states. The nationalist movements in ethnic republics like Chechnya, Tatarstan and Sakha-Yakutia, and their contribution to possible scenario of the disintegration of the Russian Federation, have been researched frequently in post- Soviet-studies literature. However, the examination of the impact of nationalistic ideas in ethnically Russian regions (oblasts) at the beginning of the 1990s has not received the same level of attention from political scientists. The Sverdlovsk oblast is a case study for this research. In the early 1990s, the creation of the Urals republic began in this region. This paper argues that the Sverdlovsk oblast’s claims for increased autonomy included elements of myth-construction within a sub-state nationalist ideology. The first section of this paper briefly contextualizes the events that occurred during the end of the 1980s and the beginning of the 1990s that led to the growth of strong sub-nationalist movements in post-Communist Russia. The second section gives details of the Urals republic project, launched in the Sverdlovsk oblast in 1993, and defines the presence of nationalist myth- making elements in this regional movement. -
The Political Clubs of United Russia: Incubators of Ideology Or Internal Dissent?
The Political Clubs of United Russia: Incubators of Ideology or Internal Dissent? Thesis Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts in the Graduate School of The Ohio State University By Eileen Marie Kunkler, B.A. Graduate Program in Slavic and East European Studies The Ohio State University 2010 Thesis Committee: Goldie Shabad, Adviser Trevor Brown Copyright by Eileen Marie Kunkler 2010 Abstract In 2008, three political clubs were officially formed within the United Russia party structure: the Social-Conservative Club, the Liberal-Conservative Club, and the State-Patriotic Club. Membership of these clubs includes many powerful Duma representatives. Officially, their function is to help develop strategies for implementing the government‟s Strategy 2020. However, a closer examination of these clubs suggests that they also may function as an ideology incubator for the larger party and as a safety valve for internal party dissent. To answer the question of what the true function of these clubs is an attempt will be made to give: a brief overview of Unity‟s and Fatherland-All Russia‟s formation; a description of how United Russia formed; a summary of the ideological currents within United Russia from 2001-2009; a discussion of the three clubs; and a comparative analysis of these clubs to the Christian Democratic party of Italy and the Liberal Democratic Party of Japan. Based on this evidence, it will be argued that primary purpose of these clubs is to contain intra-party conflict. ii Dedication Dedicated to my family and friends iii Acknowledgements I wish to thank my adviser, Goldie Shabad, for all of her help, advice, and patience in working on this project with me. -
Conference Paper (Aburamoto)
Paper presented at the 5th East Asian Conference on Slavic Eurasian Studies on August 10, 2013 The Role of Regional Elites in Establishing the “United Russia”: Saratov, Samara, and Ul’yanovsk from the Mid-2000s to 2011 Mari Aburamoto JSPS Research Fellow 1. Introduction Russia’s ruling party, “The United Russia” (abbreviated as UR) has provoked the interest of a number of scholars and observers. Some have even described UR as a dominant party (Gel’man 2008, Reuter and Remington 2009). In the 2011 Duma election, however, the situation changed slightly: UR’s mobilization capacity appeared to reach its limits and votes for UR radically decreased compared to the election of 2007. How can this change be explained? UR’s deterioration trend has long been observed in Russia’s regional and local elections. The decline in UR’s popularity should therefore be observed by focusing on the regional and local levels (Panov and Ross 2013). In order to understand the real changes afoot in regional politics, this paper focuses mainly on the configuration of the regional elite groups. Such an approach is also appropriate for understanding the nature of UR. For, as Reuter and Remington (2009) point out, UR’s rise to power was facilitated by organizing the support of regional elites. This paper reveals that the role of regional elites and the elite alignment in each region—that is, the (non-)existence of conflicts between the governor and the mayors and the relative strength of communists as a leading opposition group—both affect UR’s relative strength in each region. -
Executive Intelligence Review, Volume 25, Number 42, October 23
EIR Founder and Contributing Editor: Lyndon H. LaRouche, Jr. Editorial Board: Lyndon H. LaRouche, Jr., Muriel Mirak-Weissbach, Antony Papert, Gerald From the Managing Editor Rose, Dennis Small, Edward Spannaus, Nancy Spannaus, Jeffrey Steinberg, William Wertz Associate Editor: Susan Welsh Managing Editors: John Sigerson, he world cannot afford a loss of nerve, a failure of command on Ronald Kokinda T Science Editor: Marjorie Mazel Hecht the part of the United States, as, at any given moment, the world may Special Projects: Mark Burdman be just seconds away from the disintegration of the global financial Book Editor: Katherine Notley Advertising Director: Marsha Freeman system. That, of course, means leadership from the Office of the Pres- Circulation Manager: Stanley Ezrol ident. INTELLIGENCE DIRECTORS: The LaRouche movement is defending that Office and President Asia and Africa: Linda de Hoyos Counterintelligence: Jeffrey Steinberg, Clinton from British-inspired attacks whose purpose is to emasculate Paul Goldstein the power of the United States to lead the world into a New Bretton Economics: Marcia Merry Baker, William Engdahl Woods system. As we go to press, a major rally is scheduled at History: Anton Chaitkin the White House on Oct. 17, at which signatures on the petition Ibero-America: Robyn Quijano, Dennis Small Law: Edward Spannaus “Americans to Save the Presidency” will be delivered to the White Russia and Eastern Europe: House. Rachel Douglas, Konstantin George United States: Debra Freeman, Suzanne Rose But, it is also necessary for President Clinton to take on the finan- INTERNATIONAL BUREAUS: cial establishment. In this week’s Feature, Lyndon LaRouche picks Bogota´: Jose´ Restrepo up where he left off with “Time to Tell the Truth” (last week’s issue), Bonn: George Gregory, Rainer Apel Buenos Aires: Gerardo Tera´n in addressing Clinton’s weaknesses. -
Regional Elections and Political Stability in Russia : E Pluribus Unum
TITLE : REGIONAL ELECTIONS AND POLITICAL STABILITY IN RUSSIA : E PLURIBUS UNUM AUTHOR : JEFFREY W . HAHN, Villanova University THE NATIONAL COUNCIL FO R EURASIAN AND EAST EUROPEAN RESEARC H TITLE VIII PROGRA M 1755 Massachusetts Avenue, N .W . Washington, D .C . 20036 LEGAL NOTICE The Government of the District of Columbia has certified an amendment of th e Articles of Incorporation of the National Council for Soviet and East Europea n Research changing the name of the Corporation to THE NATIONAL COUNCIL FO R EURASIANANDEAST EUROPEAN RESEARCH, effective on June 9, 1997. Grants , contracts and all other legal engagements of and with the Corporation made unde r its former name are unaffected and remain in force unless/until modified in writin g by the parties thereto . PROJECT INFORMATION : ' CONTRACTOR : Villanova Universit y PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR : Jeffrey W. Hah n COUNCIL CONTRACT NUMBER : 812-06 g DATE : September 25, 1997 COPYRIGHT INFORMATION Individual researchers retain the copyright on their work products derived from researc h funded by contract or grant from the National Council for Eurasian and East Europea n Research. However, the Council and the United States Government have the right t o duplicate and disseminate, in written and electronic form, this Report submitted to th e Council under this Contract or Grant, as follows : Such dissemination may be made by th e Council solely (a) for its own internal use, and (b) to the United States Government (1) fo r its own internal use ; (2) for further dissemination to domestic, international and foreign governments, entities and individuals to serve official United States Government purposes ; and (3) for dissemination in accordance with the Freedom of Information Act or other law or policy of the United States Government granting the public rights of access to document s held by the United States Government . -
Medvedev and the Governors
RUSSIAN ANALYTICAL DIGEST No. 86, 16 November 2010 2 ANALYSIS Medvedev and the Governors By Darrell Slider, Tampa Abstract Medvedev’s removal of important governors, culminating with Moscow’s Yuri Luzhkov, marks a departure from the more incumbent-friendly policies of Putin. This new cadre policy suggests a confidence that Mos- cow can pick regional leaders that will be just as effective as their predecessors. However, the new leaders are managers rather than politicians and it remains unclear that they will have the necessary skills to deal with the challenges they face. A Turning Point in Center–Periphery of allies in key administrative and economic positions. Relations Questions were rarely raised about corruption or vio- The replacement of Moscow mayor Yuri Luzhkov with lations of federal laws in these regions, which made a Sergei Sobianin marks a watershed in Russian politics. mockery of justifications sometimes given for the impo- While it was unlikely that Luzhkov would have been sition of Putin’s “vertical.” reappointed when his term expired in July 2011, his early departure changes much in the political dynam- Medvedev’s New Direction ics of the country. It sent a message that even the most What is new about the Medvedev presidency is that he powerful regional leader could be removed from power has been willing to abrogate Putin’s deals with regional in short order, and Dmitry Medvedev made this point “heavyweights”. The new approach debuted in Febru- explicitly in Shanghai when answering questions about ary 2009 with the forced resignation of Orel province’s his decision. Yegor Stroev, the oldest and one of the most honored of The legal framework allowing the president to dis- Russia’s regional leaders. -
Russian Regional Report (Vol. 9, No. 1, 3 February 2004)
Russian Regional Report (Vol. 9, No. 1, 3 February 2004) A bi-weekly publication jointly produced by the Center for Security Studies at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) Zurich (http://www.isn.ethz.ch) and the Transnational Crime and Corruption Center (TraCCC) at American University, Washington, DC (http://www.American.edu/traccc) TABLE OF CONTENTS TraCCC Yaroslavl Conference Crime Groups Increasing Ties to Authorities Gubernatorial Elections Sakhalin Elects New Governor Center-Periphery Relations Tyumen Oblast, Okrugs Resume Conflict Electoral Violations Khabarovsk Court Jails Election Worker Procurator Files Criminal Cases in Kalmykiya Elections Advertisements Russia: All 89 Regions Trade and Investment Guide Dynamics of Russian Politics: Putin's Reform of Federal-Regional Relations ***RRR on-line (with archives) - http://www.isn.ethz.ch/researchpub/publihouse/rrr/ TRACCC YAROSLAVL CONFERENCE CRIME GROUPS INCREASING TIES TO AUTHORITIES. Crime groups are increasingly working with public officials in Russia at the regional, and local levels, making it difficult for those seeking to enact and enforce laws combating organized crime, according to many of the criminologists who participated in a conference addressing organized crime hosted by Yaroslavl State University and sponsored by TraCCC, with support from the US Department of Justice on 20-21 January. The current laws on organized crime are largely a result of Russia's inability to deal with this problem, according to Natalia Lopashenko, head of the TraCCC program in Saratov. Almost the only area of agreement among the scholars, law enforcement agents, and judges was that the level of organized crime is rising. Figures from the Interior Ministry suggest that the number of economic crimes, in particular, is shooting upward. -
The Kremlin's Proxy War on Independent Journalism
Reuters Institute Fellowship Paper University of Oxford WEEDING OUT THE UPSTARTS: THE KREMLIN’S PROXY WAR ON INDEPENDENT JOURNALISM by Alexey Eremenko Trinity Term 2015 Sponsor: The Wincott Foundation 1 Table of Contents: ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 3 INTRODUCTION 4 1. INTERNET & FREEDOM 7 1.1 STATISTICAL OVERVIEW 7 1.2 MEDIA REGULATIONS 8 1.3 SITES USED 9 2. ‘LINKS OF THE GODDAMN CHAIN’ 12 2.1 EDITORIAL TAKEOVER 12 2.2 DIRECT HIT 17 2.3 FINDINGS 22 3. THE MISSING LINKS 24 3.1 THE UNAFFECTED 24 3.2 WHAT’S NOT DONE 26 4. MORE PUTIN! A CASE STUDY IN COVERAGE CHANGE 30 4.1 CATEGORIES 30 4.2 KEYWORDS 31 4.3 STORY SUBJECTS 32 4.4 SENTIMENT ANALYSIS 32 5. CONCLUSIONS 36 BIBLIOGRAPHY 38 2 Acknowledgments I am immensely grateful, first and foremost, to the fellows at the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism, whose expertise and good spirits made for a Platonic ideal of a research environment. James Painter and John Lloyd provided invaluable academic insight, and my past and present employers at the Moscow Times and NBC News, respectively, have my undying gratitude for agreeing to spare me for three whole eventful months, an eternity in the news gathering business. Finally, my sponsor, the Wincott Foundation, and the Reuters Institute itself, believed in me and my topic enough to make this paper possible and deserve the ultimate credit for whatever meager contribution it makes to the academia and, hopefully, upholding the freedom of speech in the world. 3 Introduction “Freedom of speech was and remains a sacrosanct value of the Russian democracy,” Russian leader Vladimir Putin said in his first state of the nation in 2000. -
Russia Calls for Enabling Laws to Fully Tap India-Russia Cooperation Potential Chairmen of Rajya Sabha and Russia's 'State D
Russia calls for enabling laws to fully tap India-Russia cooperation potential Chairmen of Rajya Sabha and Russia’s ‘State Duma’ call for effective parliamentary exchanges for strengthening convergence Shri Venkaiah Naidu flags global terror concerns; Russia offers help Shri Naidu recalls goodwill for Russia since his student days 5th Meeting of India-Russian Federation Inter-Parliamentary Commission in New Delhi today Chairman of ‘State Duma’ of the Russian Parliament today called for an enabling legislative framework to fully tap the immense potential of bilateral cooperation between India and Russia. A 30 member high level Russian Parliamentary delegation led by Chairman of the State Duma (counterpart of the Lok Sabha) of the Russian Parliament, Mr. Vyacheslav Volodin today held wide ranging of discussions on bilateral ties with Rajya Sabha Chairman, Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu in New Delhi. 2. During the 40 minutes long meeting, both the sides fondly recalled the traditional bonds of friendship between the two counties and underscored the need to further intensify cooperation in the present world order. Chairman of the State Duma Mr. Volodin stressed on the need for enhancing parliamentary exchanges between the two countries to enable necessary legislative framework to fully harness the potential of India-Russia ties in various sectors. He urged the Committees of the Parliaments of both the countries to be more proactive in this regard. He said; “There is a need to further build upon the traditional friendship between the two countries for mutual advantage in the fields of economy, human development and cultural cooperation”. Referring to the immense opportunities in the fields of tourism and medical education, Mr. -
The First 100 Days of Putin's Presidency See a Tightening of The
August 2012 7/2012 Sean Roberts Researcher The Finnish Institute of International Affairs The first 100 days of Putin’s presidency see a tightening of the screws If Dmitry Medvedev was conciliatory in his final months as president, then Vladimir Putin seems intent on a more combative approach. But the Putin administration’s confident moves to re-establish order hide a deeper fear of more protests and a possible colour revolution scenario ahead of the autumn regional elections. In fact, the fallout from the most mass-actions. These latter amend- be about to add another significant recent wave of protests, when up ments, which came into effect on point of control over society by to 20 000 took to the streets of June 9, 2012, include fines of up to discrediting sources of alternative Moscow on May 6 and 7 during 7 000 euros for individual partici- information. Putin’s inauguration, is still being pants and 25 000 euros for protest However, the ‘foreign agent’ law felt. Police continue to question organisers. is just one of several developments and hold participants, while the If protesters feel that the Kremlin affecting civil society that have ‘Memorial’ international civil rights is unfairly targeting their pockets, accompanied Putin’s May arrival group took the unusual step in July then some NGOs may share that in office. Putin’s new presidential of declaring 13 detainees ‘politi- feeling. On July 13, 2012, the State overseer of domestic politics, cal prisoners’, owing to the ‘clear Duma passed a law designed to Vyacheslav Volodin, has been em- political character’ of their arrests. -
Russia Missile Chronology
Russia Missile Chronology 2007-2000 NPO MASHINOSTROYENIYA | KBM | MAKEYEV DESIGN BUREAU | MITT | ZLATOUST MACHINE-BUILDING PLANT KHRUNICHEV | STRELA PRODUCTION ASSOCIATION | AAK PROGRESS | DMZ | NOVATOR | TsSKB-PROGRESS MKB RADUGA | ENERGOMASH | ISAYEV KB KHIMMASH | PLESETSK TEST SITE | SVOBODNYY COSMODROME 1999-1996 KRASNOYARSK MACHINE-BUILDING PLANT | MAKEYEV DESIGN BUREAU | MITT | AAK PROGRESS NOVATOR | SVOBODNYY COSMODROME Last update: March 2009 This annotated chronology is based on the data sources that follow each entry. Public sources often provide conflicting information on classified military programs. In some cases we are unable to resolve these discrepancies, in others we have deliberately refrained from doing so to highlight the potential influence of false or misleading information as it appeared over time. In many cases, we are unable to independently verify claims. Hence in reviewing this chronology, readers should take into account the credibility of the sources employed here. Inclusion in this chronology does not necessarily indicate that a particular development is of direct or indirect proliferation significance. Some entries provide international or domestic context for technological development and national policymaking. Moreover, some entries may refer to developments with positive consequences for nonproliferation 2007-2000: NPO MASHINOSTROYENIYA 28 August 2007 NPO MASHINOSTROYENIYA TO FORM CORPORATION NPO Mashinostroyeniya is set to form a vertically-integrated corporation, combining producers and designers of various supply and support elements. The new holding will absorb OAO Strela Production Association (PO Strela), OAO Permsky Zavod Mashinostroitel, OAO NPO Elektromekhaniki, OAO NII Elektromekhaniki, OAO Avangard, OAO Uralskiy NII Kompositsionnykh Materialov, and OAO Kontsern Granit-Elektron. While these entities have acted in coordination for some time, formation of the new corporation has yet to be finalized. -
Center-Periphery Bargaining in Russia : Assessing Prospects for Federal Stabilit Y
TITLE: CENTER-PERIPHERY BARGAINING IN RUSSIA : ASSESSING PROSPECTS FOR FEDERAL STABILIT Y AUTHOR: STEVEN L . SOLNICK, Columbia University THE NATIONAL COUNCI L FOR SOVIET AND EAST EUROPEAN RESEARC H TITLE V/// PROGRA M 1755 Massachusetts Avenue, N .W . Washington, D .C. 20036 PROJECT INFORMATION : 1 CONTRACTOR : Columbia University PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR : Steven L . Solnick COUNCIL CONTRACT NUMBER : 810-08 DATE : May 30, 199 6 COPYRIGHT INFORMATIO N Individual researchers retain the copyright on work products derived from research funded b y Council Contract. The Council and the U.S. Government have the right to duplicate written reports and other materials submitted under Council Contract and to distribute such copies within th e Council and U.S. Government for their own use, and to draw upon such reports and materials fo r their own studies; but the Council and U.S. Government do not have the right to distribute, o r make such reports and materials available, outside the Council or U.S. Government without th e written consent of the authors, except as may be required under the provisions of the Freedom o f Information Act 5 U.S.C. 552, or other applicable law . The work leading to this report was supported in part by contract funds provided by the Nationa l Councilfor Soviet and East European Research, made available by the U . S. Department of State under Title VIII (the Soviet-Eastern European Research and Training Act of 1983, as amended). The analysis and interpretations contained in the report are those of the author(s) . CENTER-PERIPHERY BARGAINING IN RUSSIA : ASSESSING PROSPECTS FOR FEDERAL STABILIT Y Steven L.