Tag Archives: arkhangelsk

Signals from the mountains

Over the past weeks, the Republic of Altai, a small, rural region bordering China and Kazakhstan was, if not at the top of Russia’s domestic news agenda, but at least noted. The reason was an ongoing dispute between the governor … Continue reading

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Shrinking spaces

From keeping up appearances to maintaining social stability and meeting the needs of the army, regional officials are finding themselves in tight spots more and more often. A handful of developments from the recent past highlight the means and pitfalls … Continue reading

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Agents of Control

Where do Russia’s new appointees in the occupied Eastern Ukrainian territories come from, and what do these appointments tell us about Russia’s designs with the occupied territories?

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A mirror, a rehearsal, a vote

The 2021 Duma election started exactly a week ago and ended with a result that most people expected and feared: a renewed United Russia supermajority, propped up by fraud, intimidation and a toolbox of tricks. The election will no doubt … Continue reading

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The 225 meanings of legitimacy

Amidst an increasingly harsh crackdown on dissent, a crisis of legitimacy haunts the Duma elections that will take place in seven weeks. But what does this actually mean? I argue that Russia in 2021 is not Belarus in 2020, but … Continue reading

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Merge, subordinate, centralize

Last year’s constitutional reform created the concept of federal territories, a new type of administrative division, and seemed to integrate municipalities into the system of administrative power. 2020 also brought the issue of regional mergers back onto the political agenda. … Continue reading

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The voice of the regions

Regional protests have become a fixture in Russian politics in recent years. This is partly due to worsening social and economic conditions as well as the emergence of well-organised and resilient grassroots networks in several regions. They also highlight four … Continue reading

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