DOCSLIB.ORG

Domestic and External Factors in the Development of Russia's Economic Think Tanks Sector

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Domestic and External Factors in the Development of Russia's Economic Think Tanks Sector BOFIT Policy Brief 2016 No. 3 Andrei Yakovlev, Lev Freinkman and Anton Zolotov Domestic and external factors in the development of Russia’s economic think tanks sector Bank of Finland, BOFIT Institute for Economies in Transition BOFIT Policy Brief Editor-in-Chief Iikka Korhonen BOFIT Policy Brief 3/2016 Andrei Yakovlev, Lev Freinkman and Anton Zolotov: Domestic and external factors in the development of Russia’s economic think tanks sector 27.4.2016 ISSN 2342-205X (online) Bank of Finland BOFIT – Institute for Economies in Transition PO Box 160 FIN-00101 Helsinki Phone: +358 10 831 2268 Fax: +358 10 831 2294 Email: [email protected] Website: www.bof.fi/bofit_en The opinions expressed in this paper are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Bank of Finland. Andrei Yakovlev, Lev Freinkman and Anton Zolotov Domestic and external factors in the development of Russia’s economic think tanks sector Contents 1 Abstract ................................................................................................................................................ 3 1 Introduction ................................................................................................................................... 4 2 Analytical framework ................................................................................................................... 4 3 Role of think tanks in the course of market transformation in post-socialist economies ............. 6 4 Development of Russia’s economic policy analysis sector .......................................................... 8 5 Challenges to Russia’s think tank sector since 2009 .................................................................. 12 6 ARETT: An emerging tool for collective action ........................................................................ 17 7 SЕТТ: successful international support for national-level economic policy analysis ................ 19 8 Conclusions ................................................................................................................................. 22 References .......................................................................................................................................... 24 Bank of Finland BOFIT Policy Brief 3/2016 Institute for Economies in Transition 2 www.bof.fi/bofit_en Andrei Yakovlev, Lev Freinkman and Anton Zolotov Domestic and external factors in the development of Russia’s economic think tanks sector Andrei Yakovlev, Lev Freinkman and Anton Zolotov Domestic and external factors in the development of Russia’s economic think tanks sector Abstract This paper considers the development and current state of Russia’s think tank sector. As in Eastern Europe, international technical assistance played an important in development of Russian think tanks in 1990s. However unlike Eastern Europe, especially new EU members, demand for economic policy input in Russia at the national level has remained strong. As a result, members of Russian expert community today commonly serve in government posts and act as first movers in the consensus- building process for government policy. Russia’s leading economic think tanks have organized professionally to secure a high standard of independent economic analytics and ethical behavior. In this sense, the sector seems more mature than local think tanks in Eastern Europe. While the sector today faces serious challenges from legislative changes that have largely limited the client base to government entities, the economic analysis provided by think tanks remains critical to policy-setting. The findings are based on two surveys of Russia’s leading think tanks. The surveys, conducted in 2012–2013 and 2015, are augmented with in-depth interviews with representatives of Russia’s top think tanks. Keywords: think tanks, business associations, collective actions, Russian economy, economic policy analysis, demand for independent expertise. JEL: H41, L84. Andrei Yakovlev, National Research University – Higher School of Economics (Moscow, Russia) and Association of Russian Economic Think Tanks (Moscow, Russia). Email: [email protected] Lev Freinkman, National Research University – Higher School of Economics (Moscow, Russia). Anton Zolotov, Association of Russian Economic Think Tanks (Moscow, Russia) and Institute for National Projects (Moscow, Russia). The study has been funded within the framework of the Basic Research Program for 2012–2016 at the National Research University Higher School of Economics (HSE) and by the Russian Academic Excellence Project '5-100'. We thank Victoria Golikova and Irina Mersiyanova for their contributions to the survey design and participation in field work in 2012–2013, Alexei Zudin for his participation in the analysis of in-depth interviews, Marek Dabrowski for his sharing of materials on the activity of think tanks in Eastern Europe and Denis Ivanov for estimating the spending of Russian federal authorities on economic policy research. We are also grateful for the insightful comments of Lev Jakobson, Leonid Polishchuk, Alexander Auzan, Vladimir Benevolensky, Leonid Grigoriev, and Nadezhda Kosareva to earlier drafts of this paper. We thank Ekaterina Nikolaeva for her provision of the archival reports on activities of the SETT program. Finally, we owe a special debt of gratitude to all respondents to the surveys. Bank of Finland BOFIT Policy Brief 3/2016 Institute for Economies in Transition 3 www.bof.fi/bofit_en Andrei Yakovlev, Lev Freinkman and Anton Zolotov Domestic and external factors in the development of Russia’s economic think tanks sector 1 Introduction External observers are often surprised by the vibrancy and competitive structure of Russian organizations involved with economic policy analysis. Russian think tank researchers are independent and routinely criticize the government’s economic policies. They also engage extensively in constructive cooperation with public entities to address specific economic issues. The government’s reliance on think tanks reflects informal networks that bind experts and key decision-makers within the government. It is not unusual for a senior civil servant to have also worked at some point in his or her career as a researcher or analyst at an economic think tank. Such networks – and the experience they provide – have been a powerful stabilizing factor in the economic policies of the Putin administration. In particular, think tanks mitigate the risk of catastrophic economic errors by a government otherwise prone to overlook or manipulate public opinion. This article attempts to identify the reasons for the robustness and viability of Russia’s economic think tanks. Our analysis focuses on factors, internal and external, that have enhanced sustainability of the sector for independent analytics in Russia relative to countries in Eastern Europe, including recent EU members. We give special attention to the role of the USAID program “Strengthening Economic Think Tanks” (SЕТТ), which ran from 1999 to 2009. SETT promoted institution building in the sector following the 1998 crisis, and, in our view at least, has been a major determinant of the sector’s current structure. We also offer an overview of the trends affecting Russia’s independent economic policy think tanks. We limit the analysis largely to independent think tanks specializing in policy studies that employ internationally accepted methods of economic analysis.1 To flourish, think tanks need clear segmentation of the analytics market and a pool of clients willing to pay fair value for the professional expertise they provide. To assure high quality standards are maintained, most think tanks in Russia have accepted self-regulation through collective action. We thus pay special attention to the role of the Association of Russian Economic Think Tanks (ARETT), the sector’s main professional organization. Our empirical discussion derives from two surveys of think tank leaders conducted jointly by the National Research University Higher School of Economy (NRU HSE) and ARETT. The first survey, conducted in late 2012 and early 2013, covers 46 think tanks (38 ARETT members and eight non-ARETT think tanks). The second survey, conducted in early 2015, involves 26 ARETT members. In-depth interviews with key economic experts at leading think tanks provide additional input. The article has the following structure. Section 2 lays out the analytical framework on which our analysis is based. Section 3 contains a brief overview of think tank development in Eastern Europe as a reference to trends in Russia’s think tank sector. Section 4 discusses the development of economic policy analysis in Russia since the launch of market reforms, including the key drivers of development. Section 5 identifies current challenges facing think tanks in Russia and inter-group differences within the sector. Section 6 presents ARETT and its experiences with collective projects. In Section 7, we discuss the contribution of the SETT program to the development of ARETT and the think tank sector. Section 8 concludes. 2 Analytical framework Motivation for this study was generated by our interest in clarifying the institutional conditions that support sustainable development of a think tank industry in a weak institutional setting. We consider independent analytical organizations (think tanks) as an industry with the potential to produce 1 “Policy studies” here applies to the fundamental, long-term issues of socioeconomic development of both the national economy and
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Russi-Monitor-Monthl
    MONTHLY May 2020 CONTENTS 3 17 28 POLAND AND DENMARK BEGIN BELARUS RAMPS UP RUSSIAN ECONOMY COMES CONSTRUCTION OF BALTIC DIVERSIFICATION EFFORTS BADLY BECAUSE OF PANDEMIC PIPE PROJECT TO CHALLENGE WITH U.S. AND GULF CRUDE RUSSIAN GAS DOMINANCE PURCHASES POLAND AND DENMARK BEGIN CONSTRUCTION OF BALTIC PIPE PROJECT CORONAVIRUS IN RUSSIA: BAD NEWS FOR 3 TO CHALLENGE RUSSIAN GAS DOMINANCE 20 THE COUNTRY MOSCOW: THE CAPITAL RUSSIA UNVEILS RESCUE PLAN FOR OIL 5 OF RUSSIAN CORONAVIRUS OUTBREAK 22 SECTOR VLADIMIR PUTIN SUFFERS PRESTIGIOUS 6 FAILURE IN VICTORY DAY CELEBRATIONS 23 TENSIONS RISE IN THE BLACK SEA RUSSIA EASES LOCKDOWN YET OFFERS ROSNEFT, TRANSNEFT IN NEW FEUD OVER 8 LITTLE SUPPORT TO CITIZENS 25 TRANSPORTATION TARIFFS ROSNEFT’S SECHIN ASKS OFFICIALS FOR NEW TAX RELIEFS DESPITE RECENT GAZPROM IS TURNING TOWARDS CHINA, 10 MISHAPS 27 BUT THERE ARE PROBLEMS FRADKOV REMAINS AT THE HELM OF THE RUSSIAN ECONOMY COMES BADLY 12 KREMLIN’S “INTELLIGENCE SERVICE” 28 BECAUSE OF PANDEMIC RUSSIA STEPS UP DIPLOMATIC EFFORTS AS RUSSIA AIMS TO BOOST MILITARY FACILITIES 14 KREMLIN AIDE KOZAK VISITS BERLIN 30 IN SYRIA GAZPROM’S NATURAL GAS EXPORT RUSSIA–NATO TENSIONS CONTINUE ON 16 REVENUE DECLINED DRAMATICALLY IN Q1 32 BOTH FLANKS BELARUS RAMPS UP DIVERSIFICATION RUSSIA, BELARUS SQUABBLE OVER GAS EFFORTS WITH U.S. AND GULF CRUDE DELIVERIES IN NEW CHAPTER OF ENERGY 17 PURCHASES 34 WAR RUSSIA’S ROSNEFT HAS NEW OWNERSHIP RUSSIA FACES BIGGEST MILITARY THREAT 19 STRUCTURE BUT SAME CEO 36 FROM WEST, SHOIGU SAYS 2 www.warsawinstitute.org 4 May 2020 POLAND AND DENMARK BEGIN CONSTRUCTION OF BALTIC PIPE PROJECT TO CHALLENGE RUSSIAN GAS DOMINANCE Construction of a major gas pipeline from Norway is to begin in the coming days, Polish President Andrzej Duda said in the morning of May 4.
    [Show full text]
  • The North Caucasus: the Challenges of Integration (III), Governance, Elections, Rule of Law
    The North Caucasus: The Challenges of Integration (III), Governance, Elections, Rule of Law Europe Report N°226 | 6 September 2013 International Crisis Group Headquarters Avenue Louise 149 1050 Brussels, Belgium Tel: +32 2 502 90 38 Fax: +32 2 502 50 38 [email protected] Table of Contents Executive Summary ................................................................................................................... i Recommendations..................................................................................................................... iii I. Introduction ..................................................................................................................... 1 II. Russia between Decentralisation and the “Vertical of Power” ....................................... 3 A. Federative Relations Today ....................................................................................... 4 B. Local Government ...................................................................................................... 6 C. Funding and budgets ................................................................................................. 6 III. Elections ........................................................................................................................... 9 A. State Duma Elections 2011 ........................................................................................ 9 B. Presidential Elections 2012 ......................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • The Russian Vertikal: the Tandem, Power and the Elections
    Russia and Eurasia Programme Paper REP 2011/01 The Russian Vertikal: the Tandem, Power and the Elections Andrew Monaghan Nato Defence College June 2011 The views expressed in this document are the sole responsibility of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the view of Chatham House, its staff, associates or Council. Chatham House is independent and owes no allegiance to any government or to any political body. It does not take institutional positions on policy issues. This document is issued on the understanding that if any extract is used, the author(s)/ speaker(s) and Chatham House should be credited, preferably with the date of the publication. REP Programme Paper. The Russian Vertikal: the Tandem, Power and the Elections Introduction From among many important potential questions about developments in Russian politics and in Russia more broadly, one has emerged to dominate public policy and media discussion: who will be Russian president in 2012? This is the central point from which a series of other questions and debates cascade – the extent of differences between President Dmitry Medvedev and Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and how long their ‘Tandem’ can last, whether the presidential election campaign has already begun and whether they will run against each other being only the most prominent. Such questions are typically debated against a wider conceptual canvas – the prospects for change in Russia. Some believe that 2012 offers a potential turning point for Russia and its relations with the international community: leading to either the return of a more ‘reactionary’ Putin to the Kremlin, and the maintenance of ‘stability’, or another term for the more ‘modernizing’ and ‘liberal’ Medvedev.
    [Show full text]
  • Defining and Identifying Russia's Elite Groups
    Defining and identifying Russia’s elite groups Siloviki representation during Putin’s third term Master’s Thesis Russian and Eurasian Studies Leiden University, The Netherlands 23 January 2017 Sam Broekman Student Number: 1605062 Word Count: 18,005 Supervisor: Dr. M. Frear Table of contents Introduction ............................................................................................................................................. 2 Introducing the siloviki ......................................................................................................................... 2 General research gaps ......................................................................................................................... 2 Research question ............................................................................................................................... 3 Methodology ....................................................................................................................................... 4 Chapter overview ................................................................................................................................. 4 Section 1: Rise of the siloviki..................................................................................................................... 6 1.1 The Politburo 2.0 ........................................................................................................................... 6 1.2 Putin’s return to the presidency .................................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • Presidential Power in Putin's Third Term: Was Crimea A
    www.ssoar.info Presidential Power in Putin’s Third Term: Was Crimea a Critical Juncture in Domestic Politics? Burkhardt, Fabian Veröffentlichungsversion / Published Version Sammelwerksbeitrag / collection article Empfohlene Zitierung / Suggested Citation: Burkhardt, F. (2017). Presidential Power in Putin’s Third Term: Was Crimea a Critical Juncture in Domestic Politics? In F. Burkhardt, A. Barbashin, O. Irisova, & E. Wyciszkiewicz (Eds.), A Successful Failure: Russia after Crime(a) (pp. 119-141). Warschau: Centre for Polish-Russian Dialogue and Understanding. https://nbn-resolving.org/ urn:nbn:de:0168-ssoar-54439-5 Nutzungsbedingungen: Terms of use: Dieser Text wird unter einer Deposit-Lizenz (Keine This document is made available under Deposit Licence (No Weiterverbreitung - keine Bearbeitung) zur Verfügung gestellt. Redistribution - no modifications). We grant a non-exclusive, non- Gewährt wird ein nicht exklusives, nicht übertragbares, transferable, individual and limited right to using this document. persönliches und beschränktes Recht auf Nutzung dieses This document is solely intended for your personal, non- Dokuments. Dieses Dokument ist ausschließlich für commercial use. All of the copies of this documents must retain den persönlichen, nicht-kommerziellen Gebrauch bestimmt. all copyright information and other information regarding legal Auf sämtlichen Kopien dieses Dokuments müssen alle protection. You are not allowed to alter this document in any Urheberrechtshinweise und sonstigen Hinweise auf gesetzlichen way, to copy it for public or commercial purposes, to exhibit the Schutz beibehalten werden. Sie dürfen dieses Dokument document in public, to perform, distribute or otherwise use the nicht in irgendeiner Weise abändern, noch dürfen Sie document in public. dieses Dokument für öffentliche oder kommerzielle Zwecke By using this particular document, you accept the above-stated vervielfältigen, öffentlich ausstellen, aufführen, vertreiben oder conditions of use.
    [Show full text]
  • TOWARD the GREAT OCEAN, OR the NEW GLOBALIZATION of RUSSIA Valdai Discussion Club Analytical Report
    Moscow, JuLY, 2012 valdaiclub.com TOWARD THE GREAT OCEAN, OR THE NEW GLOBALIZATION OF RUSSIA Valdai Discussion Club Analytical Report Toward the Great Ocean, or the New Globalization of Russia Valdai Discussion Club analytical report Moscow, July, 2012 valdaiclub.com Head of the research group and executive editor: Sergei Karaganov, Chairman of the Presidium of the Council for Foreign and Defense Policy and Chairman of the Valdai Discussion Club Authors: Oleg Barabanov, Professor at the Moscow State Institute of International Relations under the Russian Foreign Ministry Timofei Bordachev, Director of Research Programs at the Council for Foreign and Defense Policy Contents 5 Introduction: A New Global Agenda 8 Chapter 1. Asia as a Challenge and an Opportunity 20 Chapter 2. From a European Power to a Globalized Power Research background and acknowledgments This paper is based on the analytical report Asian Vector prepared by the National Research University – Higher School of Economics in 2010; abstracts from Through Harmonious Development to Regional Stability: Russia and China in a New Global Architecture prepared by the Asian Section of the Valdai Discussion Club in 2010; abstracts from To the Great Ocean: Russia and Asia, or Russia in Asia? prepared by the Asian Section of the Valdai Discussion Club in 2011; the reports Russia as a Euro-Pacific Power: New Trends in Asian Regional Architecture and the Role of Russia and Korean Peninsula: Challenges and Opportunities for Russia prepared by the Russian World Foundation; and a number of
    [Show full text]
  • Russian Analytical Digest No 43: Federalism
    No. 43 17 June 2008 rrussianussian aanalyticalnalytical ddigestigest www.res.ethz.ch www.laender-analysen.de/russland FEDERALISM ■ ANALYSIS Russian Federalism: Can It Be Rebuilt from the Ruins? 2 By Darrell Slider, Moscow ■ TABLE List of Regional Leaders (Governors) as of June 2008 5 ■ ANALYSIS Russian Territorial Reform: A Centralist Project that Could End Up Fostering Decentralization? 8 By Julia Kusznir, Bremen Research Centre for East Center for Security Otto Wolff -Stiftung DGO European Studies, Bremen Studies, ETH Zurich rrussianussian aanalyticalnalytical russian analytical digest 43/08 ddigestigest Analysis Russian Federalism: Can It Be Rebuilt from the Ruins? By Darrell Slider, Moscow Abstract As president, Vladimir Putin sharply reduced the power of Russia’s governors, removing them from the upper chamber of parliament and taking the power to appoint them, rather than letting their constituents elect them. However, these moves did not increase the governability of the regions. Minister of Regional Development Dmitry Kozak is now promoting a plan that would return considerable powers to the region. However, this plan has yet to win Kremlin endorsement and therefore has not been implemented. Reducing Regional Autonomy governors were reappointed, either when their term ex- During his presidency, Vladimir Putin repeatedly em- pired or in advance, but the message that they could be phasized that he was the heir to a Russia that was near removed at any time was clearly communicated. Th at the point of disintegration. From the beginning, he set said, the governor remains the most powerful fi gure in restoring central control over Russia’s regions as his goal.
    [Show full text]
  • Programme Eng.Pdf
    September 18, 2019 08:30–10:00 OPENING OF THE FORUM. EXHIBITION TOUR 10:00–11:30 MEETING OF THE WORKING GROUP OF THE STATE Conference hall No. 1 COUNCIL UNDER THE PRESIDENT OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION “SCIENCE AND EDUCATION” Government of the Novosibirsk Region Ensuring that the Russian Federation is one the five leading countries in the world engaged in research and development in fields defined by the priorities of scientific and technological development. Ensuring that working in the Russian Federation is attractive to Russian and foreign leading scientists and young promising researchers. Outstripping increase in domestic expenditures for research and development from all sources compared to the growth of the country’s gross domestic product. Moderator: Andrey Travnikov, Governor of the Novosibirsk Region, leader of the Working Group of the State Council of the Russian Federation for Science and Education Panelists: Experts of the Working Group of the State Council of the Russian Federation for Science and Education 10:00–11:30 Strategical session Conference hall No. 2 BIOINFORMATICS, GENETIC TECHNOLOGY CENTERS AND GENOME RESEARCH CENTERS FRC ICG SB RAS Discussion topics: NSU Genetics and mathematics: large-scale genetic data and Ministry of Science of the their analysis – current trends and prospects. Novosibirsk Region Genetics and agricultural technologies. Genetics and industrial biotechnologies. Moderators: Aleksey Kochetov, Director of FRC ICG SB RAS Pyotr Kutsenogiy, Deputy Director for Innovations of FRC ICG SB RAS Speakers: Denis Astafyev, Director of RTCloud Novosibirsk Sergey Goncharov, RAS Academician, Director of IM SB RAS Yelena Hlyostkina, Acting Director of Federal Research Center N. I.
    [Show full text]
  • MRO Russia and CIS 14Th International Conference & Exhibition March 5-6, 2019, Moscow, World Trade Center
    MRO Russia and CIS 14th international conference & exhibition March 5-6, 2019, Moscow, World Trade Center List of participants Company Name Position 1st Choice Aerospace Gokhan Sen Regional Sales Manager 218 ARZ Maksim Ishchenko Deputy Managing Director for Sales and Service 218 ARZ Vlad Krendelev Project Manager AAR Corporation Andre op`t Hof Director of Commercial Operations MRO Services AAR Corporation Anna Marian Regional Director, Eastern Europe, Russia & CIS AAR Corporation Paul Richardson Vice President of Sales EMEA ACS Logistics Company Pavel Fedorov Logistics Manager ACS Logistics Company Yurii Turovets Director AEM Ametek MRO Linares Ricardo tbc AEM Ametek MRO Sandy Basu Technical Sales Manager AerCap Niels van Antwerpen Vice President Leasing Aereos - Atlas Aerospace Alexey Dmitriev Sales Engineer Aereos - Atlas Aerospace David Baker Partner Aereos - Atlas Aerospace Haim Gettler VP of Sales AerFin Loreta Durell Senior Account Manager AerFin Scott Kelsey Regional Sales Director Aero Future Alexey Fisenko CEO Aero Norway AS Glenford Marston General Manager Aero Norway AS Sena Iyipilavci Sales Manager Aero Shop Elena Belova Bose Aviation Product Manager Head of Spare Parts Supply Quality Assurance Aeroflot Alexander Avramenko Division Aeroflot Amirdin Shamiev Aircraft Mechanic Chief of the MIS Department (MRO IT) Aeroflot Andrey Denisov Department of Information Systems Chief Specialist of the Corporate Insurance Aeroflot Andrey Sokolov Division, Corporate Finance Department Head of Projects, Continuing Airworthiness Aeroflot
    [Show full text]
  • Kesarev Memo | New Russian Government | January 2020
    Kesarev phone: +32 (2) 899 4699 e-mail: [email protected] www.kesarev.com NEW RUSSIAN CABINET: STAFF “REVOLUTION” INSTEAD OF STRUCTURAL REFORMS? Summary On January 21, 2020, President Putin approved the structure of the new Russian Government and appointed Deputy Prime Ministers and federal Ministers. New Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin was appointed on January 16. What are the key specifics of the new Cabinet? The key specific feature of the new Russian Cabinet is that while the structural changes are minimal, the staff reshuffles proved to be radical, both in terms of the number of new people appointed to top offices and change of political status of key Cabinet members (how close they are to the President). This is an extremely atypical decision for Putin, compared to previous Cabinets over the entire period of his stay in power. Earlier, as a rule, the Cabinets included influential figures close to the President and personally associated with him, and a system of checks and balances between different elite groups existed. But at the same time, the decision to change the approach to the Cabinet appointments is logical in the context of a broader presidential “staff policy” over recent years - the so-called “technocratisation” of power (the appointment of young “technocratic” governors, the penetration of such figures into Medvedev’s second Cabinet, the appointment of the head of the Presidential Administration, a “technocrat” Anton Vayno during the Parliamentary election campaign in 2016 and the launch of “Leaders of Russia” contest in order to select and train a “succession pool” for the top positions in the federal and regional civil bureaucracy).
    [Show full text]
  • Central Asia-Caucasus
    Central Asia-Caucasus Analyst BI-WEEKLY BRIEFING VOL. 15 NO. 08 17 APRIL 2013 Searchable Archives with over 1,500 articles at http://www.cacianalyst.org ANALYTICAL ARTICLES: FIELD REPORTS: MOPPING UP GIMRY: “ZACHISTKAS” REACH DAGESTAN CRIMINAL BOSS RELEASED FROM Emil Souleimanov PRISON IN KYRGYZSTAN Joldosh Osmonov WHAT IMPACT WOULD TURKISH MEMBERSHIP HAVE ON THE SCO? NAZARBAYEV VISITS CHINA TO MEET Stephen Blank ITS NEW LEADERSHIP Georgiy Voloshin CHECHNYA AND RUSSIAN FEDERAL GEORGIAN GOVERNMENT TO CENTER CLASH OVER SUBSIDIES PROBE AUGUST 2008 WAR Tomáš Šmíd Eka Janashia KYRGYZSTAN BETWEEN AZERBAIJANI AUTHORITIES CLOSE CHINA AND RUSSIA OPPOSITION UNIVERSITY Dmitry Shlapentokh Mina Muradova Central Asia-Caucasus Analyst BI-WEEKLY BRIEFING VOL. 15 NO. 08 17 APRIL 2013 Contents Analytical Articles MOPPING UP GIMRY: “ZACHISTKAS” REACH DAGESTAN 3 Emil Souleimanov WHAT IMPACT WOULD TURKISH MEMBERSHIP HAVE ON THE SCO? 7 Stephen Blank CHECHNYA AND RUSSIAN FEDERAL CENTER CLASH OVER SUBSIDIES 11 Tomáš Šmíd KYRGYZSTAN BETWEEN CHINA AND RUSSIA 15 Dmitry Shlapentokh Field Reports CRIMINAL BOSS RELEASED FROM PRISON IN KYRGYZSTAN 18 Joldosh Osmonov NAZARBAYEV VISITS CHINA TO MEET ITS NEW LEADERSHIP 20 Georgiy Voloshin GEORGIAN GOVERNMENT TO PROBE AUGUST 2008 WAR 21 Eka Janashia AZERBAIJANI AUTHORITIES CLOSE OPPOSITION UNIVERSITY 23 Mina Muradova THE CENTRAL ASIA-CAUCASUS ANALYST Editor: Svante E. Cornell Associate Editor: Niklas Nilsson Assistant Editor, News Digest: Alima Bissenova Chairman, Editorial Board: S. Frederick Starr The Central Asia-Caucasus Analyst is an English-language journal devoted to analysis of the current issues facing Central Asia and the Caucasus. It serves to link the business, governmental, journalistic and scholarly communities and is the global voice of the Central Asia-Caucasus Institute & Silk Road Studies Program Joint Center.
    [Show full text]
  • Federalism and Regional Policy in Contemporary Russia
    Federalism and Regional Policy in Contemporary Russia How do Russian leaders balance the need to decentralize governance in a socially and politically complex country with the need to guarantee political control of the state? Since the early 2000s Russian federal authorities have arranged a system of political control on regional elites and their leaders, providing a “police control” of special bodies subordinated by the federal center on policy implementation in the regions. Different mechanisms of fiscal federalism and investment policy have been used to ensure regional elites’ loyalty and a politically centralized but administratively decentralized system has been created. Asking clear, direct, and theoretically informed questions about the relation- ship between federalism, decentralization, and authoritarianism, this book explores the political survival of authoritarian leaders, the determinants of policy formulation, and theories of federalism and decentralization, to reach a new understanding of territorial governance in contemporary Russia. As such, it is an important work for students and researchers in Russian studies and regional and federal studies. Andrey Starodubtsev is a postdoctoral researcher at the Aleksanteri Institute, University of Helsinki, Finland. He collaborates with the Center for Moderniza- tion Studies, European University at St Petersburg and the Department of Polit- ical Science, National Research University Higher School of Economics – St Petersburg, Russia. His expertise covers the issues of federalism and
    [Show full text]