The economic sanctions introduced by the United States and European Union against Russia since 2014 have specifically targeted Russia’s financial system, while having significant negative...Show moreThe economic sanctions introduced by the United States and European Union against Russia since 2014 have specifically targeted Russia’s financial system, while having significant negative consequences for Russia’s macroeconomic position. Yet, today the Russian financial system continues to function in a stable manner while inflation is low for modern Russian standards. The Central Bank of Russia (CBR) is the main actor responsible for guaranteeing the stability of the Russian financial system and has used a range of monetary and institutional policies to do so. Therefore, this research aims to explain the monetary and institutional policies pursued by the CBR in response to economic sanctions in the context of Russia’s political economy. The research uses process tracing in order to analyse the policy decisions by the CBR used since 2014 and explain them in the context of developments in Russia’s political economy in recent decades. The research finds that the CBR’s monetary policy is different compared to earlier crises, but not novel as many policy decisions can be traced back to developments in the CBR’s policies over the last decade. Meanwhile, the CBR’s institutional policies can be linked to developments in Russia’s political economy, as they are increasingly aimed at sterilising the Russian economy from external shocks. Therefore, even though the CBR’s crisis response can be seen as successful from the perspective of Russian policymakers, the content of the policies is not surprising considering broader developments in Russia’s political economy.Show less
Both the Russian and Soviet youths demonstrated an attraction for Western music. With the collapse of the USSR, American popular music has had the opportunity to increment its leverage on the...Show moreBoth the Russian and Soviet youths demonstrated an attraction for Western music. With the collapse of the USSR, American popular music has had the opportunity to increment its leverage on the cultural and political developments of the country. Nowadays, rap is a genre that is playing a major role in Russia society. Even Putin is aware of the magnitude and the influence that rap has on local youth. Indeed, a major control over the development of this genre has been recently brought up to debate by the president. Taking into account the strong censorship which characterized the freedom of music expression during Soviet Union and the importance of the relation between culture and politics in this region; an analysis of the lyrics of contemporary Russian artists can be regarded as an opportunity to better comprehend Russia’s culture and its political stances within today’s globalized reality. Therefore, the concept of glocalization will be adopted in order to pinpoint the adaptation of Hip hop subculture in Russia and its political and cultural impacts on the society of the country.Show less
After Putin’s re-election in 2012, a shift in foreign policy could be observed, which was characterised by renewed hostility towards the West and a rapprochement of global partners of the Russian...Show moreAfter Putin’s re-election in 2012, a shift in foreign policy could be observed, which was characterised by renewed hostility towards the West and a rapprochement of global partners of the Russian Federation. This thesis aims to explore the role of identity politics in this foreign policy shift by assuming that such notions are influenced by the ‘identity dilemma’ left after the fall of the Soviet Union. Through a constructivist lens, this paper finds material as well as identity interests to be mutually constructive and employs this framework throughout. Three empirical chapters explore the relationship of Russia with one of its important regional partners and examine the decisions and motivations in the regions after the foreign policy shift. Through the analysis of Russian bilateral relations with the Middle East, Europe and China the thesis identifies three main trends influenced by identity politics namely, (1) the importance of Central Asia, (2) the use of energy as a method of achieving Great Power status and (3) the undying competition of Russia with its Western counterparts. From the research, the thesis finds that identity politics cannot be ignored, and has a position of importance Russian decision-making processes during and after the 2012 foreign policy shift.Show less
The ongoing conflict in Ukraine has redirected the attention of scholars and political analysts towards the often-forgotten frozen conflicts, now, consolidated into functioning de facto states in...Show moreThe ongoing conflict in Ukraine has redirected the attention of scholars and political analysts towards the often-forgotten frozen conflicts, now, consolidated into functioning de facto states in the Post-Soviet region. The recent opening of the official diplomatic representation of Transnistria in Moscow has sparked a series of questions regarding the intentions of the de facto state and its patron, Russia. While other de facto states, such as Abkhazia and South Ossetia have been recognised and have established official diplomatic missions in Moscow since 2008, the PMR is only taking these steps now. These developments point to a new chapter for Transnistria and raise questions regarding the statehood of the de facto state. This thesis seeks to uncover the overarching mechanisms which foster the development of de facto statehood. Considering the ‘renewal’ of negotiations in the ‘5+2’ format and the declared progress made in in terms of the ‘policy of small steps’ in Transnistria, this is a good place to start. Hence, this thesis aims to explore the causal link between peace processes and de facto statehood.Show less
This thesis aims to assess the effectiveness of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) in protecting Human Rights in Russia, specifically in Chechnya. The thesis investigates Russia’s compliance...Show moreThis thesis aims to assess the effectiveness of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) in protecting Human Rights in Russia, specifically in Chechnya. The thesis investigates Russia’s compliance to the Council of Europe’s regulatory criteria. Therefore, it first focuses on analysing the literature on the Council of Europe, the ECHR and Russia. After which, the thesis considers the different theories of compliance and how Russian power can be qualified. Next, it looks in detail to the Chechen case. It is a particularly extreme case for Human Rights violation. In Chechnya, there are frequent cases of Human Rights violations, such as abduction, torture, and killings. One recent example is the gay purges, showing the precarious situation of homosexuals who are subject to violence.Show less
This thesis conceptualises the language policy development in Ukraine in the aftermath of the Euromaidan revolution. It evaluates how the recent language bills in the country, that aim to...Show moreThis thesis conceptualises the language policy development in Ukraine in the aftermath of the Euromaidan revolution. It evaluates how the recent language bills in the country, that aim to strengthen the Ukrainian language, affect the Russian-speaking community in Ukraine. This is assessed through the conduction of a survey in Kharkiv, inquiring about the national identification of young Russian speakers living in the city.Show less
This study looks into how the Russian permanent residence permit (Propiska) effects the testing and treatment of HIV in Moscow.Propiska is a residence registration stamp in the Russian internal...Show moreThis study looks into how the Russian permanent residence permit (Propiska) effects the testing and treatment of HIV in Moscow.Propiska is a residence registration stamp in the Russian internal passport, which requires the permission from the police to reside a specific place.Show less
The aim of this thesis is to examine why was progress in the Transnistrian conflict achieved after 2016 considering that all the previous efforts of internal as well as external actors after the...Show moreThe aim of this thesis is to examine why was progress in the Transnistrian conflict achieved after 2016 considering that all the previous efforts of internal as well as external actors after the ceasefire agreement proved to be unsuccessful. The thesis applies conflict management and mediation theory, which claims that progress in a conflict is possible when a “ripe moment” arises as a result of Mutually Hurting Stalemate (MHS). The “ripe moment” has to be seized either by the parties themselves or by a mediator, with a problem-solving approach being particularly useful to that end. Based on the review of existing academic literature, the author identifies three hypotheses (the “political agency hypothesis”, the “economic hypothesis”, and the “mediation hypothesis”), which offer alternative explanations why the progress was achieved specifically after 2016. The hypotheses are tested using the qualitative method of process tracing. The systematic analysis of the diagnostic evidence reveals that the progress was not achieved due to the new Moldovan and Transnistrian presidents coming to power at the end of 2016. In 2016, the “ripe moment” arose in the Transnistrian conflict as a result of the poor economic performance of both Moldova and Transnistria, which created the situation of MHS. Moreover, the united position of mediators in the 5+2 format combined with the focus on smaller, practical questions, allowed the “ripe moment” to be seized and thus progress was achieved.Show less
This research paper is focused on current developments of Sino-Russian relations in the Arctic regarding energy cooperation and potential security issues. Taking the perspective of China, a...Show moreThis research paper is focused on current developments of Sino-Russian relations in the Arctic regarding energy cooperation and potential security issues. Taking the perspective of China, a thorough analysis of Chinese propaganda and official communiques are analysed to thoroughly understand the position of China in the Arctic given that the Chinese Communist Party has been disclosing very little information regarding China's ambitions in the Arctic. The theoretical framework of this paper incorporates future scenario models to predict the likelihood of how China and Russia's economic cooperation in the Arctic will develop in the near-future due to pressing factors such as the Chinese Communist Party's domestic political agenda and more broadly, how climate change will also shape the prospect of Sino-Russian relations in the Arctic.Show less
This dissertation provides a new light on the role of the Russian Federation in the Eurasian Economic Union’s (EEU) formation and its economic integration. It looks and assesses the level of...Show moreThis dissertation provides a new light on the role of the Russian Federation in the Eurasian Economic Union’s (EEU) formation and its economic integration. It looks and assesses the level of current integration of the EEU as well as its prospects, epitomized by Russia’s willingness to push for a monetary union. To do so, the Data Analysis section investigates both current and prospects of Russia’s economic integration with the EEU. In sum, the analysis results reveal Russia’s economic motivation towards increasing its further integration with the Eurasian Economic Union. Further remarks point to data limitation and potential future research on the matter.Show less
This thesis focuses on the development of entrepreneurship and SME sector in the post-Soviet Russia. More specifically, it investigates the root-cause of stagnant development of entrepreneurship....Show moreThis thesis focuses on the development of entrepreneurship and SME sector in the post-Soviet Russia. More specifically, it investigates the root-cause of stagnant development of entrepreneurship. Convinced that the answer lies in the legacy of the 1990s crisis period, the thesis poses the following question: To what extent is the legacy of formal and informal constraints to businesses in the 1990s impacting the development of entrepreneurship and SME sector in contemporary Russia? As such, the goal of the thesis is to set a clear diagnosis that will provide a framework with strong foundations for future researchers, thereby aiding them in tackling the problem from the root. For that reason, a new hybrid framework is developed, which looks at structural (top-down) and ideational (bottom-up) factors. Based on the findings, Russia currently does not have a political, economic and socio-cultural structure in which entrepreneurship is in high demand. Statist-patrimonial capitalism, thriving corruption, unfavorable credit conditions, bureaucratic and administrative barriers still pose major problems for small and medium businesses. The overarching culture of informality as an accelerator for achieving goals, low entrepreneurial intentions and deteriorated entrepreneurs’ trust in the state are other survivors of the 1990s transition. Many practices have thus, survived the turbulent transition or have evolved from it. However, the essence has remained the same, which keeps the 1990s legacy alive and the vicious circle turning, thereby leaving entrepreneurship and SME stuck in development. Unless the problem of stalemate in development is tackled from the core on the political, economic and the socio-cultural fronts, it is not likely that major advancements will be made in building a strong entrepreneurial Russia with a large and dynamic SME sector.Show less
Contradictory to the widespread belief that after the Cold War a wave of democratisation would engulf the world, many post-Soviet states descended into authoritarianism. In tradition of their...Show moreContradictory to the widespread belief that after the Cold War a wave of democratisation would engulf the world, many post-Soviet states descended into authoritarianism. In tradition of their Soviet history, the Central Asian regimes declared themselves strictly secular. However, these countries, too, are affected by increasing Islamic radicalism. This thesis therefore researches the link between regime consolidation in Central Asia and a (perceived) Islamic threat. It tries to answer the question whether and how the Central Asian states are instrumentalising a fear of Islamic radicalism to increase their hold on power. I have included five case studies to assess the research question, which are Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. As it turns out, Central Asian governments use a (perceived) Islamic threat in order to eliminate opposition and control their population. Increased security mainly served as a justification for increased surveillance and persecution.Show less
