In modern times, whether "healthy" or "sick" from an economic and political standpoint, Russia has managed to preoccupy outside observers with the changing condition of its psyche. What was known in Europe a century ago as the mysterious Russian soul is now antiseptically referred to as the problem of Russian identity. Paradoxically, while Russia itself is increasingly written off as an international power, and the signs of its potential descent into a repressive autocracy evoke relatively little concern from most Western elites and publics, the unsettled question of its civilizational identity is fraught with new surprises for international politics. This question is likely to be influenced over the long term by the ongoing expansion of Russia's Muslim community, and the increasingly assertive claims of its representatives to ideological influence and even a policymaking role at the federal level. […]
Memo #:
198
Series:
1
PDF:
PDF URL:
http://www.gwu.edu/~ieresgwu/assets/docs/ponars/pm_0198.pdf
Author [Non-member]:
Dmitri Glinski-Vassiliev
