Russia Clean Notes

• 1. Historical Legacies
     1. Interactions with others: Russia had been conquered by many groups such as the Huns, Mongols and Vikings
        • 1. Strong Eastern influence—look at the architecture. Eastern Orthodox Christianity
          2. Culturally heterogeneous: Since Russia is HUGE and has many different ethnic groups with many different traditions and cultures. Most categorize themselves as slavs though.
          3. Did not benefit from the major modernizations of the West—Renaissance, Reformation, Enlightenment, and Scientific Revolution. Thus, Russia is often considered “backward.”
     2. Imperial Russia:
        1. Russia ruled by Tsars or Czars
        2. In the late 1800’s and early 1900’s Russia was plagued with economic, social and political problems
           1. Serfs (a form of slaves) were not freed until 1861, as a result most were uneducated
           2. Most people lived in rural areas—very few factories or industrialization
           3. Tsars had secret police to enforce laws, banned reformist groups and forced any dissenters into exile
           4. Defeats in the Crimean and Russo-Japanese War were massive embarrassments.
        3. Very poor infrastructure—not many railroads or ways to transport goods and ideas.
     3. The Russian Revolution (1917) and the establishment Communism under the USSR
        1. Forced to give major concessions in the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk in order to get out of WWI.
           1. These will cripple the economy (for example they had to give up a majority of their coal mines)
     4. Communism in the Soviet Union
        1. Stalin’s totalitarian regime stamped out traditional Russian culture and threats to his power
           1. Creates Young Pioneers and Komsomol: Teach the young children how to be good Soviets
           2. Censors everything
           3. Plays on statism and creates strong nationalistic fervor within the country.

1. Did not focus on the individual but on the strength of the Russian state. Believed it should protect them and allowed a strong central government to complete this.
2. Power of the state is paramount
3. Tacit Social Contract: Government will take care of you (Danwei in China!!)
4. West developed civil society, Russia did not.
   • • • 1. Executed massive purges of undesirable ethnic groups in the Soviet Union
         2. Created labor camps called gulags—you did NOT want to get sent there
         3. Stalin’s economy focused on large-scale industrialization and while they did not meet their targets, the pace of industrialization was intense.
       1. WWII: Initially signs Non-Aggression Pact with Hitler…we know how that turned out
          1. Massive causalities for the Soviets, 12 million
          2. War memorials are still extremely important to Russians today
       2. After WWII Stalin signs the Warsaw Pact: Treaty of Eastern European (mostly Communist) countries and the Soviet Union post-WWII (It is a response to NATO)
          1. USSR gains de facto control of much of Eastern Europe (through influence and military force)
          2. Satellite Countries: What we call Eastern European countries who were not part of the Soviet Union but were in the Warsaw Pact and directly influenced by the USSRY
          3. Works to “Rusify” these areas and stamp out the ethnic minorities (Violent)

Ukraine

• • 1. The Cold War
       1. After the death of Stalin, the were will be a period of “de-Stalinization” which brought social relief
          1. Less labor camps, reopened universities
       2. Series of leaders after Stalin sought to continue industrialization but the economy struggled
          1. Did not have much direction in the economy
          2. Many lived in poverty
       3. Also sought to continue spreading of Communist values throughout the world (with less violence).
          1. Some examples includes (but are not limited to): Building of the Berlin Wall, Cuban Missile Crisis, Arms/Space Race, Invasion of Afghanistan, invasion of Czechoslovakia, etc.
       4. Late 1970’s brings when Nixon visits Brezhnev. Détente is the easing of tensions between the US and the Soviet Union
          1. Series of treaties limiting arms: SALT I & II, START I &II, INF, etc

Mikhail Gorbachev

1. Became General Secretary in 1985. Bring 3 major reform efforts, glasnost, perestroika and Democratization.
   • 1. Glasnost: “Openness”
        1. Allowed more open discussion of political, social and economic issues
        2. Allowed criticism of the government
     2. Perestroika: “Restructuring”
        1. Economic reform. Keep the Soviet government structure while allowing private businesses
           1. Nobody wanted to invest in Russia—people were too afraid
           2. Got Pizza Hut!
        2. Had 5 broad initiatives:
           1. Laws for state-run factories
           2. Laws which allow private ownership
           3. Agricultural reforms that allow people to lease or own their land
           4. Lifted government price controls (allow the market to determine price)
           5. Ease restrictions to allow FDI
        3. Failure
     3. Democratization
        1. Reformers removed article 6 from the Soviet Constitution, which had defined the party as the center of Soviet life and government
        2. Brought new members into the Politburo and Central Committee who were like-minded
        3. Restructured Government through a new constitution in 1988 which created an executive branch with a president and vice president and a legislative branch that was elected by the people and the CPSU.
           1. Created in late 1988, set elections for March of 1989
           2. Subject Participatory Political Culture: People voted because they were scared not to. Only voted for Communists because that’s all they knew. Too short of time for political parties to organize
           3. Almost exclusively Communists win in the elections
           4. Extremely weak and ineffectual
        4. Gorbachev allowed the different republics of the Soviet Union to begin to hold elections, Boris Yeltsin is elected in the Russian Republic
     4. Foreign policy
        1. Ended the Brezhnev Doctrine
           1. Left Afghanistan
           2. Berlin Wall Fell
           3. Velvet Revolution: Non-violent transfer of power in Czechoslovakia in 1989
           4. Satellite nations begin moving towards western-style democracy
        2. Began working on the Union of Sovereign States treaty, which would make the Soviet Union much more federal—allow autonomy to republics without independence
           1. Not implemented because the Soviet Union falls
   1. Attempted coup d’etat
      1. In August of 1991, Gorbachev was on vacation at the beach and his Vice President tries to hold a coup d’etat against him
      2. The Soviet press agency (TASS) announced that Gorbachev was on his death bed and that the VP Yanayev and 7 others had taken over the government
         1. Gorbachev and family was taken into custody
      3. Yeltsin was opposed to the coup and when to the Russian White House (parliament) which was surrounded by troops
         1. Stood on tanks and talked the people down and the troops down

• • • 1. Was able to stop the coup and bring Gorbachev back
    1. By the end of December every republic has left the Soviet Union
    2. Russia is the last one to declare independence from the Soviet Union
    3. Gorbachev resigns

The Russian Federation (1991-present)

1. Russian Federation consists of 85 regions
2. Have different titles and designations
3. Creates the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS)
4. United the 15 former Soviet republics
5. Economic and defensive unity
6. Boris Yeltsin as President
7. Yeltsin goes about trying to institute economic reforms known as “shock therapy.” The idea behind shock therapy is that the country would immediately convert to a capitalist system, and that it was better to struggle initially and work through it than go slowly. Same idea as “ripping off the bandaid”
   • • 1. Tries to privatize companies
          1. Spontaneous Privatization

About 95% of the small businesses gained private owners.

restaurants, shoe repair stores, gas stations, etc

Huge industries did not have investors

People didn’t have the money to do this

• • • • 1. Government created a voucher privatization system

All citizens got a voucher worth $10,000 rubles ($25) which could be used to invest in large businesses

Relatively worthless to the people

More shares were offered to the managers of these businesses (the previous Communist elite)

Also offered to the foreign investor

At first very little interest

Eventually a lot

• • • 1. Eventually most major industries in Russia were concentrated into the hands of the few—known as the oligarchs.
         1. Former Communist elite
         2. Incredible corruption and capital flight—moving their money outside of the country

Very few tax laws

• • • 1. Tacit Social Contract
         1. People no longer had this, became very discontented
      2. Problems under Yeltsin
         1. There is a coup attempt in 1993 where Yeltsin dissolved the legislature and wrote a new constitution
         2. Chechnya: Ethno-nationalist conflict with Chechens (Muslims)
         3. Inefficient tax collecting system
         4. Loans for Shares Program: In 1995, the Russian government was basically broke, and the oligarchs provided loans to the Russian government in exchange for shares of the national industries that the government did not sell off.
         5. Economic collapse and inflation in 1997: Had to get a bailout from the IMF (created a Structural Adjustment Program [SAP])
         6. Communist party almost wins the 1996 election
  1. In 1999, months before the 2000 elections
  2. Vladimir Putin, who was his PM takes over

Vladimir Putin

1. Putin’s Economy
2. Putin arrests many of the oligarchs and re-nationalizes many industries. At the end of those industries, Putin has placed his friends and confidants. Many of these people hold high positions in Putin’s government while also running these companies. Thus, they are extremely influential in Putin’s government. This nationalization of industry has jump started the economy in ways that Yeltsin was never able to. This is one of the reasons why Putin is so popular. When the US put sanctions on Russia and encouraged the rest of the world to do the same, it seriously impacted their economy.
   • 1. Major state-run industries
        1. Gazprom: Natural gas
        2. Vneshtorgbank: Bank
        3. Rosneft: Oil
        4. Russian Technologies: Weapons, warfare
        5. United Aircraft Corporation: Aerospace engineering
     2. Putin’s friends own many of the companies that are privately held. This is called insider privatization.
     3. Sanctions: Since the annexation of Crimea in 2014, Russia has dealt with major sanctions on their products from the West—particularly their oil. For a time, this devastated the ruble and threatened the economy. However, by employing strong protectionist policies of subsidies, and support of domestic products. It has also found new buyers of their oil. This tactic has been remarkably successful in the past 4 years and Russia enjoyed surpluses in both 2018 and 2019.
3. Putin’s foreign policy:
   1. Near abroad: Considered to be the former Soviet Republics and satellite countries
      1. Does not believe that the EU should expand into former Soviet Republics
      2. Has interfered in elections in both Ukraine and Belarus
      3. Sent troops into Georgia in 2008 and Ukraine in 2014
   2. Has Security Council Veto power
   3. Bush helps Putin get into the WTO and the G8 (Suspended from G8 after the annexation of Crimea, in Jan 2017 they announced they have no intentions of rejoining)
   4. Huge influence in Iran and Syria, not so much China but still allies
   5. After 9/11 Putin came out in support of the US against terrorism but is against the war in Iraq and Afghanistan

The Government Structure of the Russian Federation

1. The Executive Branch
   1. Created a dual executive: consisting of a president and a prime minister but the president has most of the power.
   2. Semi-presidential system: Hybrid of both presidential and parliamentary systems
   3. Presidential powers:
      1. Domestic and foreign policy
      2. Head of State but more powerful than the PM who is head of government
      3. Send/Receive Ambassadors
      4. Broad powers to issue decrees and directives that have force of law without legislative review
      5. President can dissolve the State Duma under certain conditions
      6. Can schedule referendums
      7. Appoints the Prime Minister
         1. Duma must approve the appointment, and if they reject the president’s nomination 3 times, the president can dissolve them.
         2. Prime Minister becomes president if the president is impeached, dies or resigns
      8. Appoints many important figures in the government including both the Supreme Court and the Constitutional Court
      9. Commander-in-chief of the military
   4. Charges of impeachment can be brought by the State Duma (2/3^rds). Charges much be confirmed by a ruling of the Supreme Court and the Constitutional Court.
      1. Federation Council must have a 2/3rds vote to remove the president. If they do not act in 3 months the charges are dropped.
      2. Prime Minister becomes president if the president is impeached, dies or resigns
   5. Presidential Elections:
      1. Presidential term is 6 years (changed from 4 years in 2012), with a limit of 2 consecutive terms
      2. President must win by a majority
         1. Run-off election may be necessary to receive a majority (within 15 days of the first election, top two candidates)
2. The Legislative Branch
   1. Known as the Federal Assembly: Two chambers, the State Duma and the Federation Council
   2. First elections held after the new constitution in 1993, first group to only serve a 2 year term.
   3. Duma has 450 deputies elected by ½ from plurality from SMD ½ from proportional
      1. Passes bills, approves budget and confirms presidential appts
      2. Limited power
      3. Need 5% threshold to get any seats in proportional representation
   4. Federation Council
      1. Consists of two members from each of the 85 federal regions
         1. Regions can vote to allow Putin to choose the Federation Council
         2. One is selected by the governor and another by the regional legislature
         3. Function is to represent the region
         4. Has almost no power because the Duma can override the Council
3. The Judicial Branch
   1. Constitutional Court
      1. 19 judges appointed by the President and confirmed by the Federation Council
      2. Has Judicial Review: determines if laws are constitutional
   2. Supreme Court
      1. Final court in criminal and civil cases but does not have judicial review
   3. Still used to demonstrate the power of the government rather than being an unbiased branch.
4. Asymmetrical federalism: Some of the regions of the Russian Federation were more powerful than others
   • • 1. “The country is divided between Moscow and non-Moscow”
5. Regional governments
   • 1. 85 Federal Regions
        1. These have different designations, not all are equal (the way that China has different regions with varying levels of autonomy).
        2. Since 2004, governors are appointed by President and confirmed by the regional legislatures
        3. President can remove the governors if they do not comply with national law
     2. 8 (9 if you count Crimea) Federal Districts
        1. Sometimes referred to as “Super” Districts
        2. Created by Putin for the purpose of streamlining the government
        3. Headed by a presidential appointee

Centralization of power/Changes Putin has made since becoming President

1. Creates 8 Federal Districts (technically there are 9, because they have appointed Crimea as one)
2. Amends the Constitution so that appoints the Governors(their legislatures approve their appts)
3. Rule by law, not rule of law
4. Judiciary very controlled
5. No real presumption of innocence
6. Jury rigging
7. Changes the elections to the Duma
8. No more SMD, only proportional then changes it back to a split of SMD and proportional voting
9. Got rid of independents for a time
10. Raises proportional threshold to 7%, then lowers it back 5%
11. Changes terms to 5 years starting with the elections of 2016
12. Changes to Presidential Terms
13. Changes it to 6 years
14. Controls the media
15. Creates new campaign laws
16. Creates spending limits
17. One month campaigns
18. Interest groups and political parties must register with the government
19. Must be national parties
20. Must have at least 50,000 registered members
21. Creates NASHI: Putin’s Youth Movement
22. Political Culture
    • 1. Tradition of statism—strong support for Putin and his show of strength
      2. No civil society
      3. Weak political parties
      4. Suspicion of authority—little trust in government

Political Parties

1. After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, there were many small political parties which sought to become part of the government. It is not uncommon for politicians to change political parties.
2. In the 1990’s and early 2000’s we saw a Floating Party System, or one in which political parties come and go. However, the different tactics Putin has used to centralize power have been effective in limiting the number of political parties.
   1. Communist Party of the Russian Federation
      1. Wants to go back to the old ways, very popular when the economy stunk under Yeltsin
      2. Leader Gennady Zyuganov came in 2^nd in the 1996 and 2000 presidential elections
      3. The State Duma elections in 2016 brought the Communist party success with the second most seats.
   2. Liberal Democrats (it is a right-wing party despite its name)
      1. Make Russia strong
      2. Vladimir Zhirinovsky
      3. Very nationalistic
      4. Build the military, take back the former republics
      5. Extremely radical
      6. Anti-Semitic and anti-woman
   3. United Russia
      1. Founded in 2001 as a merger between the Fatherland All-Russia Party and the Unity Party
         1. Unity had been created by the oligarchs and supported Putin in 2000
      2. Ideologically, it is hard to define other than it’s Putin’s party
3. Election Fraud: There are constant questions as to if there is systemic election rigging in Russia. In 2000, Putin received 52.94% of the vote, 2004, 71% of the vote, 2008 Medvedev received over 70% and in 2012 Putin received 64%. In 2018 Putin won with 77% of the vote. Watchdog groups claim the extremely high percentages are cause for concern over election rigging, however, no systemic election fraud has been found. There are many examples of small-scale fraud, however. Also, Putin has used many of the tactics described in this set of notes to eliminate his opponents before elections.

Issues facing Russia today/Cleavages

1. Its an illiberal democracy
   1. Civil Rights?
      1. Not really, the government targets people who speak out against them.
   2. Competitive Elections?
      1. No, elections are not free, fair and competitive. They are getting better though
   3. Rule of law?
      1. No, rule by law
   4. Civil Society?
      1. Freedoms pretty limited, especially in terms of speaking out against the government.
      2. Somewhat, interest groups are allowed to exist but they have to register with the gov’t and its hard to make them
   5. Capitalism and Affluence?
      1. Somewhat, there is a growing middle class but there is still a huge gap between the wealthy and the poor.
2. 2013 “Gay propaganda” law: Putin signed a law making it illegal for there to be any promotion that is in conflict with “traditional” family values. This law made it a crime to speak out publically about the LGBTQ community and put many lives at risk.
3. Crisis in Ukraine: 2014 Putin annexed Crimea from Ukraine and started a civil war. Ukrainian Nationalists vs. Russian Separatists. Russia is supporting the separatists. International community considers it an invasion rather than a civil war.
4. Chechnya: Region of Russia that is predominantly Muslim. Many terrorist organizations have grown out of this region. The Chechens have fought two civil wars for independence, unsuccessfully.
5. Georgia 2008: Two provinces seceded from Georgia and were backed by Russia—causing a Civil War
6. Edward Snowden
   1. Sought Asylum in Russia after leaking NSA info to the USA
7. Olympics/World Cup
   1. Very expensive, brings heightened scrutiny to Russia
   2. Massive corruption!
   3. Doping Scandals, banned from competing under the Russian flag
8. War in Syria and conflict in the Middle East
   1. The Russians support Assad in Syria and there has been a lot of concern about whether or not military intervention in the Middle East will lead to a proxy war between Russia and the United States.
   2. Russia has been known to support Iranian military troops as well as Hamas and Hezbollah
9. Russian Election Meddling
   1. Russia definitely meddled in the 2016 US presidential election by creating bots that were meant to make divisive statements on social media.
   2. However, the extent to which Russia was directly involved in the campaigns is not clear.