All Articles - Institute of Modern Russia

Dual Citizenship Check

Details: Law

Dual Citizenship Check

Details: 15 April 2014; Ekaterina Mishina

On March 31, 2014, Deputy Andrei Lugovoy, a member of the Liberal Democratic Party, introduced a bill to the State Duma making the failure to provide information about foreign citizenship (nationality) to immigration authorities a criminally liable offense. IMR Advisor Ekaterina Mishina analyzes this bill and comments on Russia’s history of parliamentary attempts to criminalize dual citizenship.

IMR Recommends “The Crisis in Ukraine: Its Legal Dimensions”

Details: News

IMR Recommends “The Crisis in Ukraine: Its Legal Dimensions”

Details: 15 April 2014

A report titled “The Crisis in Ukraine: Its Legal Dimensions” was recently released by Razom, a Ukrainian-American human rights organization. The report outlines a number of crucial issues in the ongoing Ukrainian crisis, including the annexation of Crimea, the Budapest Memorandum on international security guarantees, and the human rights and humanitarian law. It contains legal conclusions on Eastern Ukraine and closes with policy recommendations to resolve the crisis.

Mikhail Khodorkovsky, Yuriy Lutsenko and Lyudmila Ulitskaya to Launch a Ukraine-Russia Forum

Details: News

Mikhail Khodorkovsky, Yuriy Lutsenko and Lyudmila Ulitskaya to Launch a Ukraine-Russia Forum

Details: 14 April 2014

On April 24-25, a forum entitled “Ukraine-Russia: the Dialogue” will take place in Kiev. It is organized by Mikhail Khodorkovsky’s Open Russia Foundation, the Third Republic of Ukraine movement and the PEN club of Russia. Khodorkovsky will join Ukrainian politician Yuriy Lutsenko and modern Russian novelist Lyudmila Ulitskaya to open the forum.

How to Regulate Separatism

Details: Politics

How to Regulate Separatism

Details: 11 April 2014; Alexander Podrabinek

The lack of international regulation of separatist processes has resulted in a whole spectrum of interstate abuses, including the use by aggressive countries of separatist movements as a smokescreen for their objective of annexing neighboring territories. Russia’s behavior toward Crimea serves as a striking example of such an abuse. According to writer Alexander Podrabinek, the creation of an international convention on separatism could help the problem.

The Czar’s Last Mistake, Part Two

Details: Nation

The Czar’s Last Mistake, Part Two

Details: 10 April 2014; Alexander Yanov

The Institute of Modern Russia continues its series of articles by Alexander Yanov on the history of Russian nationalism. The current essay is published in two parts. In the first part, the author argues that Czar Nicholas I brought Russia to the outbreak of the fatal Crimean War of 1853–56. Part two explains why this war is portrayed as a “conspiracy against Russia” in Russian history textbooks.

Crimea Has Been Annexed. What’s Next?

Details: Politics

Crimea Has Been Annexed. What’s Next?

Details: 08 April 2014; Tatiana Stanovaya

The annexation of Crimea is now complete. Two entities, the Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol, have become part of Russia. However, the global community has not and will not recognize the annexation of the peninsula, carried out as it was “at gunpoint.” According to political analyst Tatiana Stanovaya, the key issue here is not Russia’s isolation from the international community, but the long process the Kremlin faces in integrating the new territories into the state—a process that will be accompanied by various political, legal, financial, and economic problems.

Afghanistan at a Crossroads

Details: World

Afghanistan at a Crossroads

Details: 04 April 2014; Daria Mattis

2014 is an important year for Afghanistan, as it marks the end of the Karzai era, with a new president slated to be elected on April 5. For the United States, 2014 marks the end of a military operation that began in Afghanistan in 2001. Afghanistan also remains an important issue for Russia, which recently commemorated the 25th anniversary of the Soviet forces’ withdrawal from that country. As Harriman Institute visiting scholar Daria Mattis points out, the upcoming elections are of critical importance to the future of the Afghan state.

Ukraine Crisis: The U.S. Pushes Back

Details: World

Ukraine Crisis: The U.S. Pushes Back

Details: 03 April 2014; Donald N. Jensen

On March 20, U.S. president Barack Obama expanded economic sanctions against Russia following the annexation of Crimea. Donald N. Jensen, resident fellow at the Center for Transatlantic Relations, points out that so far, the West’s policy has been one of bureaucratic compromise, and it will only become effective if sanctions tighten enough to turn Putin’s inner circle against him.

The End of Independent Media in Russia

Details: Politics

The End of Independent Media in Russia

Details: 01 April 2014; Tatiana Stanovaya

The annexation of Crimea was a turning point for Vladimir Putin’s regime. The price of retaining power has increased dramatically, which in practice means that direct repressions will be used against opposition media. However, according to political analyst Tatiana Stanovaya, this trend may prove to be reversible.

“Saving the Honor of Russia”: Film on Soviet Dissidents Presented in London

Details: News

“Saving the Honor of Russia”: Film on Soviet Dissidents Presented in London

Details: 27 March 2014

On March 24, the Institute of Modern Russia and the Legatum Institute co-hosted the London screening of They Chose Freedom, a documentary film on the Soviet dissident movement. The panelists, who included the legendary Soviet-era dissident Vladimir Bukovsky, discussed both the history and the present-day challenges of standing up for human rights and freedom in Russia.

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