Everett Doman Taylor Warnke Caleb Dick RUSSIA

MAP OF RUSSIA

 Sovereignty, Authority and Power  Political and Economic Change  Citizens, Society and the State  Political Institutions  Public Policy OVERVIEW

RUSSIA TIMELINE

 Tsars ruled in Russia until  The Tsars were also the head of the Russian Orthodox Church  The first steps to Westernization were taken by Peter and Catherine the Great POLITICAL CHANGE

 Tsarist rule ended in 1917 with the Bolshevik Revolution, led by Vladimir Lenin and his group of supporters, and assassination of Tsar Nicholas II. POLITICAL CHANGE (CONT.)

 Lenin set up his version of Communism in Russia, which differed from the Communism in Maoist China, and created the USSR.  Lenin utilized the system of democratic centralism called the Vanguard to run the country.  After Lenin’s death in 1927, Joseph Stalin came to power.  He dismissed the Vanguard and put in power the Communist Party.  Stalin was an extremely cruel dictator and ruled with an iron fist. POLITICAL CHANGE(CONT.)

 After Stalin’s death Mikhail Gorbachev came to power and attempted to “de-stalinize.”  Gorbachev utilized the system known as “Glasnost” to try to improve relations with the West. POLITICAL CHANGE(CONT.)

 Further attempts to democratize Russia came about when the Russian Federation was formed in 1991 following the collapse of the USSR.  Boris Yeltsin was the first elected president.  He created a 3-branch government.  In 2000, Vladimir Putin became president.  In recent years, it appears that Putin is shifting Russia back into a more authoritarian state. POLITICAL CHANGE(CONT.)

 Comparisons:  Like the U.K., Russia began under the rule of a royal family.  But unlike the U.K. Russia did not become as centered around democratic principles after the fall of their monarchs.  China, similar to Russia, has instituted more aspects of democracy into its government recently. POLITICAL CHANGE(CONT.)

 Under the Tsars the economy was similar to that of the feudal system in medieval Europe.  The economy was mostly centered around agriculture.  Under Lenin, a new economic policy was instituted which allowed for private ownership under a centralized leader.  After Lenin’s death, Stalin instituted the five year plans which called for more goals for industrialization and agriculture. ECONOMIC CHANGE

 After Stalin’s death, Nikita Khrushchev decentralized the economy and restructured collective farming.  Gorbachev tried to rapidly democratize the economy.  Yeltsin attempted to privatize the economy and shift towards a market economy through his “Shock Therapy” which proved to be way too fast and led to an economic downturn in Russia.  Currently, Putin has re-centralized some of the economy and uses the state-capitalist model.  Comparison: Russia, like Mexico, utilized para- statals in their economy. ECONOMIC CHANGE(CONT.)

RUSSIAN GDP IN RECENT YEARS

 Throughout Russia’s history, the political culture has always focused around a powerful central leader, unlike other countries such as Great Britain.  Before the Bolshevik Revolution, Russia was ruled by monarchs known as Tsars. SOVEREIGNTY, AUTHORITY AND POWER

 Historically, legitimacy has been based on strong government rule, unlike Mexico, where leaders are selected based on charisma.  The Tsars, and the dictators during the 20 th century, are examples of this type of strong government rule.  After the downfall of the Communist regime, legitimacy was very low due to the recent regime change.  Since Putin was elected the governmental approval has been on the rise. GOVERNMENT LEGITIMACY

 As a result of repeated invasions earlier in Russia’s history, Russia has become home to people of wide cultural diversity.  This cultural heterogeneity has intensified ethnic cleavages and conflict, similar to the issues faced by Nigeria. CULTURAL INFLUENCE ON GOVERNMENT

 The Economy:  Historically, Russia’s economy has had problems balancing a centralized economy vs a free market system.  Russia has also had issues with too much dependence on oil for their economy, similar to Nigeria and Iran.  Russia’s economy has been suffering recently due to dropping of oil prices.  Foreign Policy: Russia is attempting to redefine its place in the world.  Recently, Russia has stirred up controversy over control of the recently independent Crimean Peninsula. PUBLIC POLICY

 Relations with the West:  Russia was accepted into the WTO in  Russia struggles with relations with the west but maintains good relations with the other members of the BRIC countries. PUBLIC POLICY(CONT.)

 Terrorism:  After multiple acts of terrorism in 2004, Putin has put in place reform to try to boost funding for national security. Similar issues are faced by the U.K. regarding terrorism.  Population:  Recently, Russia has suffered from a huge drop in birth rate.  Russia’s population is predicted to fall to 116 million in PUBLIC POLICY(CONT.)

 Recentralization:  Putin has tried to increase re-centralization of the government and economy.  He has controlled the government continuously since he was first elected through alternating between Prime Minister and President. PUBLIC POLICY(CONT.)

Population estimates- 148 million people One of the most sparsely populated countries in the world. Russia is composed of 85 federal subjects. In these federal subjects, many cleavages based on ethnicity, religion, social class, and residence exist. Russia is composed of 47 oblasts (provinces), 21 republics (states), 8 krais (territories), 6 okrugs (autonomous districts), 2 federal cities (Moscow and St. Petersburg), and an autonomous Jewish oblast. CITIZENS, SOCIETY, AND STATE

 Like Nigeria, Russia has a number of ethnic-based cleavages  73% of Russians live in urban areas while 27% live in rural areas.  Russian 77.7%, Tatar 3.7%, Ukrainian 1.4%, Bashkir 1.1%, Chuvash 1%, Chechen 1%, other 10.2%, unspecified 3.9%  80% of Russians identify as following Russian Orthodox, 2% Other Christian, 10% Islam, 8% Other  While the Russian government has adopted a tolerant view of minorities there is still prejudice against groups such as Muslims and Jews. CLEAVAGES

 With the fall of the Soviet Union many countries broke away from the union in However many nations remained within the Russian Federation.  Many of these nations have cultures very different from Russia and would like to leave to form their own countries. The Russian government extends trade benefits to many of these groups in order to keep them satisfied. Chechnya, a Muslim region in the Caucasus Mountain Range, is the most independent-minded nation and has fought against Russia in order to gain independence. Nigeria has dealt with similar conflicts in their Bafarian Civil War. SOCIETY

Because of Russia’s past as a dictatorship there remains few linkage institutions between the government and the people. Political parties are fluid and weak and often tend to centralize around a charismatic leader like those in Nigeria, rather than an idea as in the U.K. and Mexico. The most successful of the numerous parties is the United Russia Party, headed (officially or unofficially) by Vladimir Putin. POLITICAL INSTITUTIONS

 Russia has a bicameral legislature: the Duma (lower house) and the Federation Council (upper house). While the Duma is the lower house, it is far stronger than the Federation Council which mainly functions to represent the regions of the federation. Both houses are unable to effectively counter the presidency. The U.K. has a similar legislative system in their House of Lords and House of Commons.  The judiciary branch under the Soviet Union was completely ruled by the Communist Party and little has changed today, for the Constitutional Court does not check Putin. The courts are not effective because they are riddled with corruption, tightly controlled by the executive, and are still transitioning from the Soviet legal system. INSTITUTIONS OF GOVERNMENT

 After the fall of the U.S.S.R. the military was weakened by the chaos that enveloped Russia after The military suffered defeat by the Chechen rebels, and has struggled to maintain itself after being denied resources by its government. Since 1999 the military has recovered thanks to President Putin though he has kept tight control and has kept it from being a political force.  This is in contrast to Nigeria where the military is the main political stabilizer. INSTITUTIONS OF GOVERNMENT(CONT.)

 Under President Putin most of the regional autonomy that regions formerly enjoyed were electoral powers. The removal of these powers has turned the country away from a federation and into a union.  Despite this, elections still continue and thrive on a local, state, and national level.  The political system contains three types of national votes: the Referendum, the Duma elections, and the Presidential Election. LINKAGE INSTITUTIONS- ELECTIONS

 The Executive Branch is split between a President and a Prime Minister. Both have strong powers. The President is able to appoint the Prime Minister, issue decrees with the force of law, and dissolve the Duma. Although the prime Minister is actually the head of government, he is actually the president’s deputy, and is more likely to carry out the President’s decrees than make any. This system is similar to that of Iran, whose Supreme Leader is the ultimate authority, while the President is more of his subordinate. LINKAGE INSTITUTIONS- ELECTIONS(CONT.)

 With the introduction of capitalism to Russia, much of the government’s industry became purchasable allowing a few individuals to purchase industries at almost nothing. With this vast economic power, they established an unofficial oligarchy that funded first Boris Yeltsin, and later Vladimir Putin.  Since 2003 however the oligarchical control has waned after severely clashing President Putin. Much of their political power is gone and they are now losing their sovereignty after going into debt with the Russian government.  State corporatism has expanded under President Putin. Just as state corporatism has expanded in Iran POLITICAL INSTITUTIONS-OLIGARCHY, STATE CORPORATISM

The End