Russian Federation

I. Authoritarian Oligarchy or Budding Democracy Between 1945-1991 global politics defined

by competition between the USA and USSR Collapse of Soviet Union in 1991 left the

Russian Federation as the largest piece of territory remaining from the USSR, its population was cut in half, but it still remained the largest country in the world in terms of geographic size

Boris Yeltsin became 1st president of the Russian Federation, he initiated “Shock Therapy” reforms Democracy Free Market Economy

Oligarchy vs. DemocracyContinued Oligarchy – a small group of Yeltsin’s family

members and personal advisors took control of government and granted themselves favors inviting political and economic corruption

Vladimir Putin replaced Yeltsin in 1999 and has attempted to contain the oligarchies influence in some aspects of government Centralization of Power in President Movement towards authoritarian rule Unpredictability of Russia (No experience with

democracy and free market economy) Slavic roots provide strong tendency to

autocratic rule

II. Sovereignty, Authority, and Power Most of 20th century authority in Soviet Russia

came from the Politburo of the Communist Party Politburo – small group of men who climbed

the ranks of the party through the nomenklatura system (patron-client system). Nomenklatura – ordered path from local party

soviets to the “commanding heights” of leadership Patron-client networks---an informal system of policymaking in which a

powerful patron offers resources in return for support of lesser clients

When the Soviet Union dissolved the authority and power of the Politburo dissolved with it.

III. Legitimacy Political legitimacy for Russia is currently very low, partly

because changes are a drastic departure from the past Recent evidence that country began to stabilize under

Putin. Putin has used authoritarian strategies to solidify

Russia’s weak, illiberal democracy. Historically Russia’s political legitimacy has been based

on strong, centralized, autocratic rule Tsars Communist rule propagated by Marxism-Leninism

Democratic-Centralism: rule by a few for the benefit of the many

Stalinism changed the regime to totalitarianism Constitution of 1993 – provided for a strong president,

although power of the president can technically be checked by popular elections and the Duma

IV. Historical Influences on Politics Absolute, Centralized Rule Extensive Cultural

Heterogeneity – ethnic diversity and numerous “republics” and “autonomous regions” reflected in name “Russian Federation”

Slavophile vs. Westernizer Revolutions of 20th Century

V. Political Culture

Characteristics Geographic Setting Eastern Orthodoxy Equality of Result Hostile toward Government Importance of Nationality

Geographic Setting

Geographic Setting Largest country in world Contains 11 time zones Majority of country is north of 49th

degree latitude (U.S. – Canada border), which means it is mostly frozen

Abundance of Natural Resources that exist in inhospitable or inaccessible geographic locations

Eastern Orthodoxy

Eastern Orthodoxy Early in their history Russians established ties with

Constantinople and adopted Eastern Orthodox Christianity as their religion

This meant that they did not share the values of the Renaissance, Reformation, Scientific Revolution and Enlightenment

Russians came to value a strong state to protect them from geographic vulnerabilities instead of individualism

Russian statism existed in contrast to Western “civil society”

Eastern Orthodoxy also linked with the state, separation of church and state therefore did not exist in Russia

Russia developed a sense of global mission linked to there self-proclaimed title as the “Bastions of Eastern Christianity”. This sense of global mission would be promoted by the Soviet Union in their spread and preservation of communism (the Third International)

Equality of Result

Equality of Result Communist regime instilled a value of equality in

the Russian people already strong in a country of peasants with similar living standards

Egalitarianism has survived the fall of the Soviet Union

Most Russians resent differences of wealth or income

Equality of Result vs. Equality of Opportunity Russian political culture is not particularly

conducive to the development of capitalism

VI. Political & Economic Change1. Long period of Autocratic rule by Tsars –

ruled Russia from the 14th century to the early 20th. Control of Russia passed down through the Romanov family from the 17th century on, but transitions were often accompanied by brutality and assassinations

2. 20th century rule by Communist Party – began in 1917 when Lenin’s Bolsheviks seized control of the government after the last tsar, Nicholas II, was deposed. The regime toppled in 1991 when a failed coup from within the government created chaos

3. Regime change to Democracy and Free Markets in 1991 – President Boris Yeltsin put western-style reforms in place to help create the Russian Federation

Early Tsarist Rule

First tsars were princes of Moscow who cooperated with Mongol rulers in the 13th century

After Mongol empire weakened the princes named themselves “tsars” in the tradition of the “Caesars” of ancient Rome

Autocratic from the beginning to protect themselves against invasion and attack

Tsars served as official head of Eastern Orthodox Church, they were seen as political and religious leaders

“Western” Tsars Peter the Great

Ruled in late 17th and early 18th century Introduced western technology and culture to Russia First tsar to travel to Germany, Holland, & England Brought engineers, carpenters, and architects to Russia Set Russia on course to becoming a world power

Catherine the Great Originally from Germany Ruled during the late 18th century Russia gained warm water access to the Black Sea

under her reign “Enlightened Despot” – interested and read

Enlightenment ideas, she ruled absolutely but with the good of the people in mind

Tsars after Peter and Catherine alternated between emphasizing Slavic roots and tolerating western reforms

19th Century Russia invaded by Napoleon in 1812 Alexander I resists invasion and ultimately drives French out

of Russia Russian intellectuals influenced by Western thought grew

weary of tsarist absolutism and revolted: Decembrist Revolt of 1825 Revolt crushed by Nicholas I

Crimean War – Russia defeated by UK, France, and Ottoman Empire. Defeat was a significant blow for confidence in tsarist leadership among Russians

Tsars used secret police for investigations, as well as exiling and execution of dissenters in 19th century

Alexander II only 19th century tsar to embrace reforms, however he was assassinated in 1881. He freed Russian serfs Set up regional zemstvas (assemblies)

Alexander III reacted to assassination by undoing reforms and intensifying efforts of secret police.

Revolution of 1917

Causes Russia’s defeat in Russo-Japanese War

(1904-1905) Ineffectiveness in World War I

Riots first break out in 1905 after Russians defeated by Japanese

Revolts were suppressed but state collapsed in 1917 amidst World War I

Russian soldiers were fighting without guns and shoes, military defections from the war helped send the state into chaos

Lenin and the Bolsheviks

Mensheviks – Russian Marxists who believed that socialist revolutions would first take place in industrialized countries such as Germany and England, Russians would have to wait to modernize

Vladimir Lenin – communist who disagreed with Mensheviks, he argued for democratic-centralism, or a “vanguard” leadership group to lead the revolution in the name of the people

Bolsheviks – followers of Lenin, practice Marxism-Leninism, took control of Russian government in late 1917 (October Revolution).

Lenin & Bolsheviks continued Brest-Litovsk Treaty – negotiated between Bolsheviks

and Germans to end Russian involvement in WWI. Russians ceded a third of their arable land to the Germans under the Treaty

In 1918 civil war broke out in Russia between the White Army, led by Russian military leaders and backed by the Allies, and the Red Army led by Lenin and the Bolsheviks. Red Army victorious.

New Economic Policy (NEP) – instituted by Lenin in 1920 following civil war, allowed for a great deal of private ownership to exist under a centralized leadership

Lenin dies in 1924, after brief struggle for power amongst Bolsheviks he is succeeded by Josef Stalin, “Man of Steel”

Command and Market Economies Factories, Farms and

shops are controlled by the state

Production decisions made by the state

State decides what to sell

Prices for basic goods are subsidized by the state and kept low

Unemployment is considered unacceptable

Factories, Farms and shops privately owned

Most production decisions are made by individuals

People are responsible for finding their jobs

Producers sell what they think people will buy

Prices are set by producers, what the market will bear

Some unemployment is considered acceptable

Stalinism Stalin places Communist Party (CPSU) at center of control

Leaders identified through nomenklatura – process of selecting individuals from lower levels within party (Kept a file for anybody who was somebody)

Central Committee: group of 300 party leaders who were the top government officials Politburo: “heart and soul” of Communist Party, group of 12 men from the Central Committee who ran the country, all government agencies and departments were at their disposal and carried out their decisions General Secretary: head of the Politburo, “dictator” of the country (Stalin was General Secretary from 1927–1953)

General Secretary

Politburo

Central Committee

Party Congress

Party Structure under Communism

Regional and Local party structure (cells)

Stalinism II

Collectivization & Industrialization Replaced the NEP with “collective farms” Private land ownership abolished, kulaks forced to move

to cities or labor camps Five-Year Plans: ambitious goals for production of heavy

industry such as oil, steel, and electricity. Labor and factories fueled by agricultural surplus produced from the farms

Gosplan: Central State Planning Commission, in charge of Five-Year Plans, became the center for the economy, determined production and distribution of virtually all goods in Soviet Union

Stalinism – the two-pronged program of collectivization and industrialization, carried out by central planning, executed with force and brutality

Stalin’s Foreign Policy

Primary concern internal development, foreign policy was meant to support this Stalin advocated “socialism in one country” Signed Non-Aggression Pact with Nazi Germany in 1939 After Nazis invade Soviet Union in 1940, Stalin joins the Allies to fight Germans in World War II Red Army drives Nazis out of Soviet Union and back to Berlin where the Germans are defeated in 1945. Red Army occupies majority of Eastern Europe during this time period Tensions between Soviets and the West, particularly the United States, become a growing foreign policy concern for Stalin Cold War

The Purges

Execution of millions of Soviet citizens As many as one million communist

party members executed Stalin obsessed with disloyalty within

the party Generals, Central Committee

members, and Politburo officials purged as a result of Stalin’s paranoia

Khrushchev Follows Stalin as General

Secretary after brief power struggle in CPSU

1956, gives “secret speech” (based on letter written by Lenin) denouncing Stalinism, initiates reforms that lead to “DeStalinization” process in Soviet Union

Diplomatic and military failure of the Cuban Missile Crisis leads to his downfall and removal as General Secretary

Khrushchev’s Reforms

Loosen government censorship of press

Decentralization of economic decision-making

Restructuring of collective farms “Peaceful Coexistence” foreign policy

in Cold War diplomacy with U.S. (Cuban Missile Crisis threatens this initiative)

Brezhnev Eventually succeeds

Khrushchev as General Secretary of CPSU and head of state of the Soviet Union

Hard-line, conservative member of Communist party

Ends reforms initiated by Khrushchev

“Détente” is dominant foreign policy in Cold War diplomacy with U.S., this ends with the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan ordered by Brezhnev in 1979

Gorbachev

Takes over as General Secretary in the mid-1980’s

Leads a younger generation of communists Educated and more “westernized” then

previous Soviet leaders Initiates a wave of reforms that included:

Glasnost Perestroika Demokratizatsiia

Glasnost – “Openness”

Open discussion of political, social, and economic issues

Allowed for open criticism of government and government policies

Gorbachev stressed that the ultimate test of the party lay in improving the economic well-being of the country and it’s people Open market relations Pragmatic economic policy Less secretive government

Perestroika – “Restructuring” Loosened controls of the Communist

Party, allowing group formation in other sectors of society

Economic Restructuring Modernization from within Transfer economic power from central

government to private hands and market economy Authorization of privately owned companies Penalties for under-performing state factories Price reforms Encouragement of joint ventures with foreign

companies Leasing of farm land outside the collective farms

Demokratizatsiia

Gorbachev wanted to insert some democratic characteristics into the old Soviet structure

However, he did want to maintain Communist Party control

Reforms included:1. A new Congress of People’s Deputies with

directly elected representatives2. New position of “President” that was

selected by the Congress Deputies were often critical of Gorbachev Increasing levels of displeasure with government

from both liberal and conservative members of Communist Party

Boris Yeltsin

Former member of Politburo, removed because his radical views offended conservatives Even more extreme than Gorbachev

Elected president of Russian Republic as result of voting procedures put in place by Gorbachev

Emerged as president of the largest republic, Russian Federation, after Soviet Union dissolves

Attempts to create a “western-style” democracy “Shock Therapy” economic reforms (Immediate

market economy) Russian economy does not respond to “shock therapy”

reforms Conflict erupts between Yeltsin and the Duma

Shock Therapy Even well established market economies

need strong state institutions (ironic) Russia lacked

1. effective tax collection: the government can’t acquire revenues needed to pay its own bills and provide services

2. regulatory functions: no rules regarding how the banks operated or labor standards

Also, no federal system of government Increased power of oligarchs (Russian

capitalists) who held a tremendous amount of power and wealth

Rise of mafia

Yeltsin II

Poor president Hires and fires numerous

prime ministers Alcoholic & frequently ill;

this leads to erratic political behavior

Resigns before the 2000 elections

Vladimir Putin, Yeltsin’s prime minister, takes over and wins the 2000 & 2004 elections

Без перевода

VII. Citizens, Society, and the StateNationality Most important single cleavage in

Russia 80% of population is Russian Others include:

Tatars Ukrainians Armenians Chuvashes Bashkis Belorussians Moldavians

Nationality continued

Nationality cleavages determine the organization of the country into “federations”, “autonomous regions”, republics, and provinces

Many ethnic groups would like to have their independence, but are enticed by trade benefits with the Russian government to stay in the Federation

Chechnya is the one exception

Chechnya

Primarily Muslim region of Russia Contains some valuable resources, such

as oil fields Independence movement is strong, and

Russian government has struggled to keep Chechnya region within its control

Chechens have reverted to terrorist tactics including taking over a heavily attended Russian theater and in 2004 the seizure of a school that resulted in the deaths of over 350 people, mostly children

VII. Citizens, Society, and the State continuedReligion Russian Orthodox under the tsars All religion prohibited during the Soviet

Unions rule Boris Yeltsin encouraged Russian

Orthodox Church to reestablish itself to signal a break from communism and a reflection of old Russian nationalism

Other religions represented in very small percentages (Roman Catholic, Jews, Muslims, Protestants)

VII. Citizens, Society, and the State continuedSocial Class Russian society much more egalitarian than

western societies with a few notable exceptions Nomenklatura: only about 7% of the citizenry were CPSU

members, and all political leaders were chosen from this group. However within this group egalitarian measures were followed, and little significance was given to economic and social background

Business Oligarchy: emerged during Yeltsin’s regime, often former KGB and CPSU leaders, granted favors by Yeltsin government to promote business. Struggled in late 1990’s but have emerged as leaders in Russia after acquiring major corporations, ie. Media Most & Yukos Oil. Putin had to arrest or send into exile CEO’s of these companies for refusing to pay or underpaying government taxes

Rural vs. Urban Life

73% of all Russians live in urban settings, usually in the western part of the country

Economic divide between rural and urban residents is wide, however, all Russians have been hit hard by recent economic woes of the post-Cold War Russia

Urban residents tend to be more educated and in touch with western culture

Beliefs and Attitudes

Mistrust of Government – result of treatment and government secrecy during tsarist and Soviet regimes

Statism – despite mistrust of government, Russian citizens still expect the state to take active role in their lives

Economic Beliefs – nearly all groups and political factions favor market reforms, although not all do so enthusiastically

Westernization - “Slavophile vs. Westernizer” – some political parties emphasize nationalism, Russian interests, and Slavic culture; others emphasize reform, and integration of Russia into world economy and global trade

Political Participation During Soviet rule political participation was forced, and therefore was close to 100% Gorbachev’s reforms created competitive elections in the Soviet Union that followed through to the Russian Federation In 1991 voter turnout in the Russian Federation was higher than the U.S. Political participation for the Duma elections of 1993 was only 50.3%, but this followed a failed attempt by the Duma to take over the country Presidential voter turnout has declined from 75% in 1991 elections to less than 65% for the 2004 elections Lack of participation may be due to Russia’s underdeveloped civil society Only 1% of Russia’s citizens report being a member of a political party Few Russians are members of clubs, churches, or cultural groups