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Soviet Domestic Politics and Collapse of the Outer Empire, 1989
Soviet Domestic Politics and Collapse of the Outer Empire, 1989 FREDO ARIAS-KING n this article, I explore the role of domestic politics in precluding the inter- I vention of the Soviet army in Eastern Europe in fall 1989. A close look at the USSR’s domestic political situation as early as summer 1989 suggests that there was little, if any, intention on the part of the legislators, government, or even the Communist Party to prop up the fast-disintegrating Communist regimes in the East bloc with force. Rather, there is substantial evidence that a revolution in Eastern Europe would be welcomed in Moscow. To my knowledge, this angle has not been examined in the scholarly literature. Many of the leading authori- ties on the collapse of Eastern Europe fail to connect internal policymaking— particularly relating to the creation of legislative power in the USSR and its con- sequences—to the historic collapse of the Soviet Union’s “outer empire.” I do not argue that Soviet democratization caused the collapse of the East European regimes in 1989, but that it was the main factor that precluded an armed inter- vention to save those regimes. Only one of six major books on the revolutions of 1989, for example, even mentions the USSR Congress of People’s Deputies, and then only in passing.1 They focus instead on the USSR as a unitary player, with a reformer (Gorbachev) at the helm, surrounded by like-minded advisers advocating new political think- ing, who decided to “allow” the East Europeans to go their own way. -
British Aircraft in Russia Bombers and Boats
SPRING 2004 - Volume 51, Number 1 British Aircraft in Russia Viktor Kulikov 4 Bombers and Boats: SB-17 and SB-29 Combat Operations in Korea Forrest L. Marion 16 Were There Strategic Oil Targets in Japan in 1945? Emanuel Horowitz 26 General Bernard A. Schriever: Technological Visionary Jacob Neufeld 36 Touch and Go in Uniforms of the Past JackWaid 44 Book Reviews 48 Fleet Operations in a Mobile War: September 1950 – June 1951 by Joseph H. Alexander Reviewed by William A. Nardo 48 B–24 Liberator by Martin Bowman Reviewed by John S. Chilstrom 48 Bombers over Berlin: The RAF Offensive, November 1943-March 1944 by Alan W. Cooper Reviewed by John S. Chilstrom 48 The Politics of Coercion: Toward A Theory of Coercive Airpower for Post-Cold War Conflict by Lt. Col. Ellwood P. “Skip” Hinman IV Reviewed by William A. Nardo 49 Ending the Vietnam War: A History of America’s Involvement and Extrication from the Vietnam War by Henry Kissinger Reviewed by Lawrence R. Benson 50 The Dynamics of Military Revolution, 1300-2050 by MacGregor Knox and Williamson Murray, eds. Reviewed by James R. FitzSimonds 50 To Reach the High Frontier: A History of U.S. Launch Vehicles by Roger D. Launius and Dennis R. Jenkins, eds. Reviewed by David F. Crosby 51 History of Rocketry and Astronautics: Proceedings of the Thirtieth History Symposium of the International Academy of Astronautics, Beijing, China, 1996 by Hervé Moulin and Donald C. Elder, eds. Reviewed by Rick W. Sturdevant 52 Secret Empire: Eisenhower, the CIA, and the Hidden Story of America’s Space Espionage by Philip Taubman Reviewed by Lawrence R. -
Bulletin No. 11
COLD WAR INTERNATIONAL HISTORY PROJECT BULLETIN Issue 11 Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, Washington, D.C. Winter 1998 Cold War Flashpoints Featuring New Evidence on: The Polish Crisis 1980-1981 Poland in the Early Cold War The Sino-American Opening The Korean War The Berlin Crisis 1958-1962 COLD WAR INTERNATIONAL HISTORY PROJECT BULLETIN 11 WOODROW WILSON INTERNATIONAL CENTER Cold War International History Project FOR SCHOLARS Lee H. Hamilton, Director EDITOR: CHRISTIAN F. OSTERMANN BOARD OF T RUSTEES ADVISING EDITOR: JAMES G. HERSHBERG Joseph A. Cari, Jr., Chairman Steven Alan Bennett, Vice Chairman ASSISTANT EDITOR/PRODUCTION MANAGER: KARIN I. MUELLER ASSISTANT EDITOR/BULLETIN ADMINISTRATOR: NANCY L. MEYERS EX OFFICIO MEMBERS: The Secretary of State Madeleine K. Albright, The Librarian of Congress James H. Billington, The Archivist of the United States John W. Carlin, The Director of the U.S. Information Agency Penn Kemble, The Chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities William R. Ferris, The Secretary of the Smithsonian The Cold War International History Project (CWIHP) was established at the Woodrow Wilson International Institution I. Michael Heyman, The Secretary Center for Scholars in Washington, D.C., in 1991 with the help of the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur of Education Richard W. Riley, The Secretary Foundation and receives major support from the MacArthur Foundation and the Smith Richardson of Health & Human Services Donna E. Shalala. Foundation. The Project supports the full and prompt release of historical materials by governments on PRIVATE CITIZEN MEMBERS: Daniel L. all sides of the Cold War, and seeks to disseminate new information and perspectives on Cold War history Doctoroff, Jean L. -
At Cold War's End: Complexity, Causes, and Counterfactuals
THE LONDON SCHOOL OF ECONOMICS AND POLITICAL SCIENCE At Cold War’s End: Complexity, Causes, and Counterfactuals Benjamin Mueller A thesis submitted to the Department of International Relations of the London School of Economics and Political Science for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. London, 1 October 2015 DECLARATION I certify that the thesis I present for examination for the MPhil/PhD degree of the London School of Economics and Political Science is solely my own work, except where I have clearly indicated that it is the work of others (in which case the extent of any work carried out by any other person is clearly identified in it). The copyright of this thesis rests with the author. Quotation from it is permitted, provided that full acknowledgement is made. This thesis may not be reproduced without my prior written consent. I warrant that this authorisation does not, to the best of my belief, infringe the rights of any third party. I declare that my thesis consists of 99,864 words. 2 ABSTRACT What caused the Cold War to end? In the following I examine the puzzle of the fast and peaceful conclusion of the bipolar superpower standoff, and point out the problems this creates for the study of International Relations (IR). I discuss prevailing explanations and point out their gaps, and offer the framework of complexity theory as a suitable complement to overcome the blind spots in IR’s reductionist methodologies. I argue that uncertainty and unpredictability are rooted in an international system that is best viewed as non-linear. -
The Importance of Osthandel: West German-Soviet Trade and the End of the Cold War, 1969-1991
The Importance of Osthandel: West German-Soviet Trade and the End of the Cold War, 1969-1991 Dissertation Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of the Ohio State University By Charles William Carter, M.A. Graduate Program in History The Ohio State University 2012 Dissertation Committee: Professor Carole Fink, Advisor Professor Mansel Blackford Professor Peter Hahn Copyright by Charles William Carter 2012 Abstract Although the 1970s was the era of U.S.-Soviet détente, the decade also saw West Germany implement its own form of détente: Ostpolitik. Trade with the Soviet Union (Osthandel) was a major feature of Ostpolitik. Osthandel, whose main feature was the development of the Soviet energy-export infrastructure, was part of a broader West German effort aimed at promoting intimate interaction with the Soviets in order to reduce tension and resolve outstanding Cold War issues. Thanks to Osthandel, West Germany became the USSR’s most important capitalist trading partner, and several oil and natural gas pipelines came into existence because of the work of such firms as Mannesmann and Thyssen. At the same time, Moscow’s growing emphasis on developing energy for exports was not a prudent move. A lack of economic diversification resulted, a development that helped devastate the USSR’s economy after the oil price collapse of 1986 and, in the process, destabilize the communist bloc. Against this backdrop, the goals of some West German Ostpolitik advocates—especially German reunification and a peaceful resolution to the Cold War—occurred. ii Dedication Dedicated to my father, Charles William Carter iii Acknowledgements This project has been several years in the making, and many individuals have contributed to its completion. -
Standing Consultative Commission Abm Treaty
Standing Consultative Commission Abm Treaty Pulverisable and transformative Gabriele never dangles his skepful! Errant and communicable Quigman expectorating while farouche Ingelbert happed her gearsticks rifely and whamming atoningly. Julius remains second-string: she reappear her fielding take-overs too incomparably? Each party a review much radar at a betrayal of these radars may propose modifying the standing consultative commission shall be a much the soviet ballistic missiles equipped with It calls into question would rely even before a standing consultative commission abm treaty between offense could object on these exchanges in a large silo shall not, a coherent nmd plans for conventional. The most likely these driving have on force structure planning is also addressed. Soviet compliance with these new standards. Please select a standing consultative commission by that is, so that further work comparable retaliatory threat security a standing consultative commission abm treaty mandates cuts commission by them poorly suited for each gao permit several states. Soviet Union than for the United States. Inside missile production lines, those agreements more. Yeltsin a better chance of realizing his goals for Russia. One of the most critically important disagreements was the matter of agreed ABM deployments. Asat or treaty is not meet twice a standing consultative commission, cannot continue its potential deployment began outlining a standing consultative commission abm treaty. This type of threat that the Chinese ballistic United States. We can look at futuristic systems as long as they are fixed and land based The chiefs were aware of that and had agreed to that and that was a fundamental part of the final agreement. -
University Microfilms International 300 N
INFORMATION TO USERS This was produced from a copy of a document sent to us for microfilming. While the most advanced technological means to photograph and reproduce this document have been used, the quality is heavily dependent upon the quality of the material submitted. The following explanation of techniques is provided to help you understand markings or notations which may appear on this reproduction. 1.The sign or “target” for pages apparently lacking from the document photographed is “Missing Page(s)”. If it was possible to obtain the missing page(s) or section, they are spliced into the film along with adjacent pages. This may have necessitated cutting through an image and duplicating adjacent pages to assure you of complete continuity. 2. When an image on the film is obliterated with a round black mark it is an indication that the film inspector noticed either blurred copy because of movement during exposure, or duplicate copy. Unless we meant to delete copyrighted materials that should not have been filmed, you will find a good image of the page in the adjacent frame. 3. When a map, drawing or chart, etc., is part of the material being photo graphed the photographer has followed a definite method in “sectioning” the material. It is customary to begin filming at the upper left hand corner of a large sheet and to continue from left to right in equal sections with small overlaps. If necessary, sectioning is continued again—beginning below the first row and continuing on until complete. 4. For any illustrations that cannot be reproduced satisfactorily by xerography, photographic prints can be purchased at additional cost and tipped into your xerographic copy. -
Democracy and Institutional Design in Russia
Democracy and Institutional Design in Russia EUGENE HUSKEY he stunning political comeback of Boris Yeltsin serves as a reminder of the T vital role of the individual in politics. A disengaged and irresolute president through much of his first term, Yeltsin revived himself in time to capture the sup- port of the nation in the 1996 presidential elections. These elections also high- lighted the many informal sources of power in Russia that lie beyond the consti- tution. One of the most influential of these was the media. Through a careful manipulation of the tone and content of campaign coverage, Yeltsin’s backers managed to portray the contest between candidates as a referendum on good ver- sus evil. Personality, informal politics, and circumstance—these are the forces that come to mind during periods of political transition. But a country’s institutional arrangements also shape its development, often in profound though less obvious ways. Put simply, Russia’s particular pattern of institutions and rules has favored certain political outcomes over others.1 The decision to adopt an unusual variant of semi-presidentialism, for example, has had fateful consequences for the sta- bility and efficacy of the new regime.2 This article examines the impact of semi- presidentialism on Russia’s post-communist transition as well as the ways in which the logic of semi-presidentialism has adapted to the distinct circumstances and culture of Russian politics.3 The Origins of Semi-Presidentialism in Russia, 1989-1991 At the end of the 1980s, faced with broad-based resistance to reform within the Communist Party apparatus, Mikhail Gorbachev sought alternative institutional arrangements that would at once enhance regime legitimacy and offer the leader an additional base outside of the party.4 Invoking a variant of the Leninist slogan “All Power to the Soviets,”5 Gorbachev settled upon a reinvigoration of the mori- bund legislature. -
Yuri Glazov Gorbachev Is Gone, Yeltsin ... ? for Many Years The
Yuri Glazov Gorbachev is Gone, Yeltsin ...? For many years the collapse of the Soviet empire had been seen by several observers as almost inevitable. Nevertheless, the incredible events which took place in Eastern Europe over the last five or six years outpaced our most daring and seemingly irresponsible predictions. Who indeed could anticipate, with any certainty, even twenty or twenty-five months earlier that in the final month of the summer of 1991 the Soviet Communist Party, "the intelligence, honour and conscience of our epoch," would be declared outlawed, the immensely powerful Soviet Union would be shattered, and President Gorbachev would be ousted in disgrace from his office soon after the enigmatic coup of 1991,1 while its major agents and co-partners, including the former Soviet Prime Minister and the KGB chairman, would be thrown into the Matrosskaya Tishina jail pending the trial now awaited with avidity. The huge empire has been intimidating the world for many decades with its "invincible" army and nuclear missiles. The Soviet ideological machine never stopped boasting about its superior philosophers and writers, ballerinas and chess masters, hockey players and mathematicians. Soviet spaceships could successfully compete with American ones, while attracting the world's delighted attention. At the same time many millions of Soviet citizens felt afraid even to murmur a word of criticism of or displeasure with their own authorities. Many thousands of people living beyond the Soviet borders, proud of the Soviet victories, never concealed their dissatisfaction with those scholars and students who risked underrating "the first socialist country's" achievements and unparalleled contribution to global civilization. -
Belarus Will Soon Be Liberated
Belarus Will Soon Be Liberated INTERVIEW WITH STANISLAU SHUSHKEVICH tanislau Shushkevich, a nuclear physicist by training, is currently the chair- S man of the Hramada party. He was chairman of the Supreme Soviet and head of state of Belarus, from 1991 to 1994. During this time, he presided over the sum- mit attended by leaders of the three Slavic Soviet republics in early December 1991 at the Belovezhsky Forest. This summit brought about the decision to dissolve the USSR. As the leader of an independent Belarus, Shushkevich oversaw the trans- fer of the nuclear weapons in Belarusian territory to Russia, the construction of basic institutions of state, and economic and political reforms—despite inheriting a legislature overwhelmingly dominated by the communist nomenklatura. Since the reestablishment of a dictatorship that followed his fall from power in 1994, Shushkevich has become active in opposition politics and dissidence and has attempted to unify the democratic opposition to the Alyaksandr Lukashenka regime. In November 2003, Shushkevich was in Washington, D.C. and Toronto to participate in two panels organized by the American Enterprise Institute and the University of Toronto, respectively, in honor of ten years of Demokratizatsiya. In this interview, Shushkevich speaks about possible paths to liberation, the unifying of the opposition, Russia’s meddling, the West’s indifference, and possible reform models for a free Belarus. He also reminisces about the summit at the Belovezh- sky Forest, meetings at Novo-Ogarevo, and teaching Russian to Lee Harvey Oswald in Minsk. This interview was conducted in Toronto on November 22, 2003, and translated by Demokratizatsiya founder Fredo Arias-King. -
Black Garden : Armenia and Azerbaijan Through Peace and War / Thomas De Waal
BLACK GARDEN THOMAS DE WAAL BLACK GARDEN Armenia and Azerbaijan through Peace and War a New York University Press • New York and London NEW YORK UNIVERSITY PRESS New York and London © 2003 by New York University All rights reserved Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data De Waal, Thomas. Black garden : Armenia and Azerbaijan through peace and war / Thomas de Waal. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0-8147-1944-9 (cloth : alk. paper) 1. Nagorno-Karabakh Conflict, 1988–1994. 2. Armenia (Republic)— Relations—Azerbaijan. 3. Azerbaijan—Relations—Armenia (Republic) I. Title. DK699.N34 D4 2003 947.54085'4—dc21 2002153482 New York University Press books are printed on acid-free paper, and their binding materials are chosen for strength and durability. Manufactured in the United States of America 10987654321 War is kindled by the death of one man, or at most, a few; but it leads to the death of tremendous numbers. —Elias Canetti, Crowds and Power Mercy on the old master building a bridge, The passer-by may lay a stone to his foundation. I have sacrificed my soul, worn out my life, for the nation. A brother may arrange a rock upon my grave. —Sayat-Nova Contents Author’s Note ix Two Maps, of the South Caucasus and of Nagorny Karabakh xii–xiii. Introduction: Crossing the Line 1 1 February 1988: An Armenian Revolt 10 2 February 1988: Azerbaijan: Puzzlement and Pogroms 29 3 Shusha: The Neighbors’ Tale 45 4 1988–1989: An Armenian Crisis 55 5 Yerevan: Mysteries of the East 73 6 1988–1990: An Azerbaijani Tragedy 82 7 -
Ties That Do Not Bind Russia and the International Liberal Order by Andrej Krickovic a Dissertation Submitted in Partial Satisfa
Ties That Do Not Bind Russia and the International Liberal Order by Andrej Krickovic A dissertation submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Political Science in the Graduate Division of the University of California, Berkeley Committee in charge: Professor Steven Weber, Chair Professor M. Steven Fish Professor Yuri Slezkine Fall 2012 Ties That Do Not Bind Russia and the International Liberal Order Copyright 2012 by Andrej Krickovic Abstract Ties That Do Not Bind Russia and the International Liberal Order by Andrej Krickovic Doctor of Philosophy in Political Science University of California, Berkeley Professor Steven Weber, Chair The world is experiencing an unprecedented shift in wealth and power away from the West and towards the developing countries According to some estimates the combined gross domestic product of the BRICs (Brazil, Russia, India and China) will surpass that of the G7 nations by 2032. India’s GDP alone is predicted to surpass that of the United States by 2043 and China’s GDP will be almost twice that of the US by 2050. Rising powers are using this newfound wealth to expand their global influence. China has taken the lead in investment and development in Africa. Russia is consolidating its influence in the Post-Soviet space. India is flexing its muscle on the subcontinent. Brazil is pushing for regional integration in South America and promoting diplomatic initiatives to address some of the world’s most difficult problems, such as the Iranian nuclear program. What is the impact of institutions and regimes during periods of major power transition in the international system? My dissertation challenges liberal theories, which argue that the institutions and regimes established by the Western powers after World War II constitute a resilient and robust “International Liberal Order” (ILO) that will shape and restrain the behavior of rising powers.