Home - Institute of Modern Russia

Khodorkovsky and Putin

Details: 25 June 2013; Vladimir Kara-Murza

June 26 marks the 50th birthday of Mikhail Khodorkovsky—and his 10th birthday behind bars. IMR Senior Policy Advisor Vladimir Kara-Murza discusses the personalities and the times of Mikhail Khodorkovsky and Vladimir Putin, modern Russia’s two antipodes.

Details: World

Three Women and Russia

Details: 21 June 2013; Donald N. Jensen

The promotion of Susan Rice, Samantha Power, and Victoria Nuland to key foreign policy positions in the US administration could signal a shift in White House policy on Russia. Donald N. Jensen, Resident Fellow at the Center for Transatlantic Relations at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, ponders whether the “reset” can continue after the personnel changes.

Details: Politics

The Case of Experts: “You are either with us or against us.”

Details: 21 June 2013; Tatiana Stanovaya

A new criminal case known as the “case of experts” is underway in Russia. Its first outcome was the emigration of Sergei Guriev, rector of the Moscow New Economic School, who fled the country following interrogations over his participation in a panel of experts that reported on the infamous Yukos trial. Guriev himself has called his case a special one, but history might prove otherwise. Political analyst Tatiana Stanovaya asks whether the new case targets those involved in the Yukos trial, or whether it is the start of a broader attack on liberal experts in Russia.

Details: Politics

The Kremlin’s Voice: 10 Years Without Independent TV in Russia

Details: 20 June 2013; Vladimir Kara-Murza

Ten years ago, Russian authorities terminated the broadcasts of TVS, the country’s last nationwide independent television channel. The monopoly on information has allowed the Kremlin to consolidate its power and expand corruption on an unprecedented scale. According to IMR Senior Policy Advisor Vladimir Kara-Murza, the purging of independent TV has allowed Vladimir Putin to significantly delay the development of Russian society—but not to stifle it altogether.

Details: Politics

They Need Peace—and the World

Details: 20 June 2013; Alexander Podrabinek

According to reports in the Russian press, Vladimir Putin has decreed that a separate budget be set aside for the improvement of “Russia’s image” abroad. Author and analyst Alexander Podrabinek contends that no amount of investments will be able to improve the international reputation of the current Kremlin regime.

Our newsletter delivers a digest of analytical articles and op-eds published on our website, along with the latest updates on the IMR activities on a monthly basis.