The Terrorism-Corruption Nexus in the North Caucasus
Two terrorist attacks have shaken Russia in the past year: the bombing of the Nevsky Express train en route to St. Petersburg in November 2009 and the double suicide explosion…
Modernizing Sovereign Democracy? Russian Political Thinking and the Future of the ‘Reset’
“We have changed,” was the main message of President Dmitry Medvedev’s speech at the June 2010 St. Petersburg Economic Forum (SPEF). Trying to persuade foreign governments and investors alike to…
Russian Expansion: A Challenge and Opportunity for the Emerging Authoritarian Regime in Ukraine
The year 2010 marked a swift rapprochement between new Ukrainian authorities, headed by President Viktor Yanukovych, and the Russian tandem of Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and President Dmitry Medvedev. The…
Russia’s Gordian Knot: Radical Nationalism, the North Caucasus, and Migration
With the legislative and presidential campaign of 2011-2012, Russia is entering a phase of uncertainty, and debates that have hitherto been reserved for the establishment have become ever more visible.…
Russia as an Energy Power between Europe, the Middle East, and Asia
In May 2009, Russia’s National Security Strategy discussed energy for the first time, outlining the country’s opportunities and challenges in the international energy market within the framework of broader security…
Rethinking the Revolutionary Past: How Color Revolutions Have Led to New Interpretations of Russian History
Contemporary historical writing in Eastern and Central Europe is filled with “presentism,” the idea that major past events should be treated in a way that supports the pursuit of specific,…
Local Chronicles vs. National History: The Search for Russian Identity
While Russia’s federal government has paid close attention to the depiction of Russian history since Vladimir Putin’s first administration began reshaping the symbolic landscape of the country in the early…
New Actors, Old Obstacles: Security Cooperation in Eurasia
The main obstacle to developing an appropriate security architecture for post-Soviet Eurasia are the number of perceptual and conceptual gaps that exist among the actors involved. Major states and regional…
Neither Friend nor Foe: Perceptions of Russia in Azerbaijan
Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, Azerbaijani-Russian relations have undergone significant change. Consequently, the perception of Russia by ordinary Azerbaijanis has also often changed. Several factors have been influential…
The End of the Chapter? The 2011-2012 Electoral Cycle in Russia
Once again, forthcoming elections in Russia—parliamentary in December 2011 and presidential in March 2012—are about a transfer of power. With expected changes to the roster of MPs as well as…
Turning Pipe Dreams into Pipelines: Eurasian Energy Transit and the Credible Commitment Problem
Russia’s 2009 gas cutoff to Ukraine and the European Union and subsequent efforts to establish control over the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) reignited concerns about a “re-energized” Russian foreign policy…
The Color Revolutions Betrayed
The color revolutions of Georgia (2003), Ukraine (2004) and Kyrgyzstan (2005) promised these countries substantive democratization, which was supposed to end the immoral practices of post-Soviet imitation democracies, foster market-driven…