All Articles - Institute of Modern Russia

Why Russia Doesn’t Need High Oil Prices

Details: Economics

Why Russia Doesn’t Need High Oil Prices

Details: 15 October 2013; Olga Khvostunova

Oil price fluctuations that exceed $100 per barrel create comfortable conditions for Russia’s economy, as its budget is balanced at around $90 per barrel. Further escalation of the situation in the Middle East could bring oil prices up, seemingly playing into the Russian government’s hands. But according to IMR Advisor Olga Khvostunova, high oil prices will not help the country’s sagging economy.

Putin’s “Praetorian Guard”

Details: Politics

Putin’s “Praetorian Guard”

Details: 10 October 2013; Donald N. Jensen

In September, Vladimir Putin appointed Colonel General Viktor Zolotov, who used to head the Russian president’s security service, as deputy commander of the Interior Ministry troops, a large paramilitary force of about 170,000 soldiers. This appointment may be a step toward the creation of a new National Guard. Donald N. Jensen, Resident Fellow at the Center for Transatlantic Relations at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, contends that Putin’s actions point to his fear of renewed mass protests in Russia.

Russia’s Slave Labor

Details: Nation

Russia’s Slave Labor

Details: 09 October 2013; Alexander Podrabinek

Last month, Russian political prisoner Nadezhda Tolokonnikova penned an open letter detailing the conditions in the Mordovia prison camp in which she is held. Among other things, she described forced prison labor. Author and analyst Alexander Podrabinek discusses the world’s conflicting attitudes to prison slave labor—and the goods it produces.

The Secret Service Terror and the “Jewish Question”

Details: Nation

The Secret Service Terror and the “Jewish Question”

Details: 07 October 2013; Alexander Yanov

The Institute of Modern Russia continues the series of articles by prominent historian Alexander Yanov. The new installment focuses on the views of the third generation of Slavophiles who called for the “neutralization” of Germany as part of the worldwide struggle against the Jews.

The Random Prisoner: Vladimir Pereverzin Presents His Book in New York

Details: News

The Random Prisoner: Vladimir Pereverzin Presents His Book in New York

Details: 07 October 2013; Boris Bruk

On October 2, former political prisoner Vladimir Pereverzin presented his book entitled Hostage: The Story of a Yukos Manager at the Brooklyn Public Library in New York. The event was organized with the support of the Institute of Modern Russia.

Questions for Medvedev

Details: Politics

Questions for Medvedev

Details: 07 October 2013; Tatiana Stanovaya

One of the best Soviet movies, The Very Same Munchausen, has a scene in which the baron, while preparing for a flight to the moon on a cannonball, with dramatic music playing in the background, is pressing his beloved Martha: “Say something!” She is frantically searching for words that she thinks the baron would like to hear, but he only keeps crying out in disappointment: “Wrong!” While listening to Dmitri Medvedev’s attempts at saying what people would like to hear, one wants to cry out: “Wrong!” Political analyst Tatiana Stanovaya reviews the prime minister’s new article “The Time for Easy Solutions Has Passed.”

Details: News

Russia: A Postmodern Dictatorship?

Details: 03 October 2013; Olga Khvostunova

On October 15th, the Institute of Modern Russia, the Legatum Institute, and the International Forum for Democratic Studies at the National Endowment for Democracy (NED) will hold a panel discussion on the recent political developments in Russia. The discussion will be based on “Russia: A Postmodern Dictatorship?”, a paper by Peter Pomerantsev.

The “Shelling of Parliament”: Myths and Reality of October 1993

Details: Politics

The “Shelling of Parliament”: Myths and Reality of October 1993

Details: 02 October 2013; Vladimir Kara-Murza

Twenty years ago, on October 3–4, 1993, the conflict between Russian President Boris Yeltsin and the leaders of the Supreme Soviet spilled into an armed confrontation on the streets of Moscow. Some call these events the “shelling of Parliament;” others maintain that they were about defeating an attempted communist and nationalist coup d’état. IMR Senior Policy Advisor Vladimir Kara-Murza contrasts popular myths about the 1993 crisis with facts and with its actual chronology.

Russia and its Neighbors: the Limits of the Kremlin’s “Privileged Interests”

Details: Politics

Russia and its Neighbors: the Limits of the Kremlin’s “Privileged Interests”

Details: 02 October 2013; Donald N. Jensen

The return of former Soviet republics to the Kremlin’s sphere of geopolitical influence remains one of Vladimir Putin’s principal goals. Donald N. Jensen, Resident Fellow at the Center for Transatlantic Relations at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, discusses the prospects of Moscow’s renewed integration drive.

The EU Eastern Partnership, or Friendship “à la Russe”

Details: Politics

The EU Eastern Partnership, or Friendship “à la Russe”

Details: 30 September 2013; Tatiana Stanovaya

In November, the summit of the EU Eastern Partnership will be held in Vilnius, the objective of which is to develop cooperation between the EU and six ex-Soviet states. The Kremlin is carefully getting ready for this event, eagerly trying to influence Ukraine, Moldova, Armenia, and Azerbaijan. According to political analyst Tatiana Stanovaya, the European integration of former Soviet republics is one of the biggest “nightmares” of the Russian elite, which still considers the post-Soviet space a zone of Russian influence.

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