Reports of Dr. Svyatoslav Kaspe
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Russia in the time of Covid: Schrodinger’s Putin and bulldogs with masks (Part 2)
In Russia, the Covid-19 outbreak has undone years of centralization by the Kremlin. Regional governors had to be granted powers that Moscow may not be able to take back once the pandemic ends. The crisis has also exacerbated friction between the church and the government, while dropping oil prices have ...
Russia in the time of Covid: Schrodinger’s Putin and bulldogs with masks (Part 1)
The Putin administration rushed a wide range of constitutional amendments through parliament during the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic. Most analysts have come to the conclusion that the sole purpose of the changes was to allow the Russian president to hold on to power, but several developments contradict this ...
Leadership Challenges 2020: The splendor and misery of Russian governance
Evaluating the efficiency of the Russian government is a nearly impossible task because it has no declared policy goals. Corruption remains rampant, and the territorial conflict with Ukraine will require decades before relations between the two countries can be normalized. What is unclear is whether the Putin administration was pursuing ...
Essay: A new actor in Russian politics – citizens
For years, the only role “the people” have played in Russian politics is one in which they legitimize the regime in power. Though admittedly important, that role did not involve shaping the political agenda. Now, that seems to be changing – all because of a mismanaged election for Moscow’s city ...
Essay: Why Russia’s political regime is not changing, and how it can
Predictions of systemic transformation in Russia have invariably proved wrong. Sooner or later, however, fundamental changes in the current political regime must occur. Recent events suggest that they may start with a crucial yet often unappreciated element of the power structure.
Unraveling the Crimean knot
Any sensible person can see that status quo in Crimea is unacceptable, while restoration of the status quo ante is impossible. That means the scope of possibilities is very narrow. When looking for the least bad solution for the conflict between Russia, Ukraine and the West, perhaps two wrongs can ...
Opinion: What kind of Russian meddling?
Russian “meddling” in other countries is so much a part of our political discourse that it has become fodder for jokes. But what is behind this interference, and who is doing the interfering? Visions of a centralized command center in the Kremlin ignore the freestyle nature of Russian politics in ...
Opinion: Populism as Reformation
Though it is popular to contrast “populism” with “democracy,” the two are more alike than different. Like the Reformation 500 years ago, today’s populist movements aim to wrest power from the elites and give it back to the people. Instead of petering out, variations on the democratic populist system are ...
