De focus van dit onderzoek is gericht op de ontwikkeling van de verhouding tussen Bogdanov en de bolsjewistische beweging na 1909. Deze verhouding toonde hoofdzakelijk een vast patroon van continue...Show moreDe focus van dit onderzoek is gericht op de ontwikkeling van de verhouding tussen Bogdanov en de bolsjewistische beweging na 1909. Deze verhouding toonde hoofdzakelijk een vast patroon van continue spanning. De Oktoberrevolutie van 1917 was het belangrijkste moment in deze verhouding, doordat deze gebeurtenis leidde tot een verdere opbouw van spanning. Verder is in dit onderzoek aangetoond dat het buitenspel zetten van Bogdanov uit de politieke arena van grote impact is geweest op de ontwikkeling van de bestuurscultuur van de bolsjewistische beweging. Bogdanovs ideeën bleven in de jaren 1920 van invloed op meerdere Sovjetpolitici, maar werden hierna van minder belang door toenemende censuur.Show less
While the 2014 annexation of Crimea was a complete success for Russia, Russia’s involvement in the Donbas conflict only a month later proved a failure despite the use of similar tactics. Previous...Show moreWhile the 2014 annexation of Crimea was a complete success for Russia, Russia’s involvement in the Donbas conflict only a month later proved a failure despite the use of similar tactics. Previous academic discourse has alluded to these kinds of tactics, here presented as ‘ambiguous warfare’ operations, being implemented in future conflicts. Yet, little attention has been awarded to which factors facilitate successful implementations of ambiguous warfare. The case study presented in this research has set out to determine if the conditions that facilitated ambiguous warfare’s success in Crimea were present in the Donbas. It is additionally explored which differences in the two operations denied Russia a favourable outcome in the Donbas. Results show that four out of six success conditions for ambiguous warfare were not present in the Donbas. Additionally, ambiguous warfare in the Donbas was hindered by ill-suited strategic goals for such operations and insufficient planning. The findings suggest that favorable conditions for ambiguous warfare rarely occur, with the Donbas conflict producing no lasting success for Russia. Yet, states should increase their resilience against ambiguous warfare threats, as such operations may remain appealing options for Russia. This research paper complements the academic understanding of ambiguous warfare.Show less
One year into the 2022 Russia-Ukraine war, debates still rage over the Russian motivations for this war. Purely international explanations, found in offensive and defensive realism, emphasise that...Show moreOne year into the 2022 Russia-Ukraine war, debates still rage over the Russian motivations for this war. Purely international explanations, found in offensive and defensive realism, emphasise that wars are best understood as a means of states to ensure security among states. I argue that domestic considerations matter by stressing the analytical utility of the selectorate theory of war, which argues that state behaviour is best explained by a leader's desire to stay in power through ensuring loyalty by providing public and private goods. Using a qualitative explanatory case study research design, focusing on a single case: the Russian invasion of Ukraine. It is found that before the war, Vladimir Putin was facing a crisis of political survival because his ability to ensure support from the elites he depended on and the wider public was increasingly constrained during his presidency due to a persistently stagnating economy. The war strengthened Putin’s political survival because newly acquired territories provide new sources of revenue for Russia’s elites. For the wider public, this study strongly suggests that Putin was aiming for a rally round the flag effect to distract the public at home from deteriorating circumstances and temporarily reduce the demand for public goods. In addition, the war legitimised greater repression, which signals a high cost of expressing discontent with Putin which deters future opposition and serves as a means to purge the elites and the broader public from disloyalty. Understanding these domestic factors that are negated by the purely international explanations of war is crucial for understanding the 2022 Russia-Ukraine war. This thesis provides a novel contribution to the literature explaining Russia’s foreign policies by using the selectorate theory of war, a theory that has not been used systematically for explaining Russia’s foreign policy.Show less
Amid the war in Ukraine, Russia relocated a substantial number of Ukrainian refugees to its territory, with a significant portion compelled to seek shelter in the Siberian Federal District and the...Show moreAmid the war in Ukraine, Russia relocated a substantial number of Ukrainian refugees to its territory, with a significant portion compelled to seek shelter in the Siberian Federal District and the Far Eastern Federal District. This study delves into the historical and contemporary migration patterns considering Siberia, revealing Russia's persistent drive to populate this region. By examining coerced migrations in the past, alongside the challenges of a declining population in Siberia today, and analyzing the current relocation of refugees to these areas, this research highlights the cyclical nature present in the Imperial, Soviet, and Russian governments' efforts. The programmes and initiatives, implemented by the Imperial, Soviet, and Russian governments to populate the Siberian Federal District and the Far Eastern Federal District, may achieve initial success but eventually encounter difficulties leading to individuals moving out of Siberia again. The resettlement of Ukrainian refugees in Siberia underscores Russia's ongoing pursuit of a "Siberian Solution," shedding light on the intricate dynamics of compelled population movements within the region.Show less
Combining literature on autocratic stability and regime legitimation, this thesis seeks to explore the dynamics between economic shocks in patron states and a decrease in the political stability of...Show moreCombining literature on autocratic stability and regime legitimation, this thesis seeks to explore the dynamics between economic shocks in patron states and a decrease in the political stability of its client state(s). This research focuses on Russia as the patron state, and Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan as its client states. It finds that output legitimacy is the primary strategy of legitimation of Central Asian states, and that economic crises in Russia directly impact the stability of the researched states. However, this effect is somewhat alleviated by moderating factors in the case of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.Show less
This thesis asks the question whether dependence on fossil fuels from Russia for domestic energy supply influenced the support for sanctions against Russia of EU member states following the Russian...Show moreThis thesis asks the question whether dependence on fossil fuels from Russia for domestic energy supply influenced the support for sanctions against Russia of EU member states following the Russian annexation of Crimea and activities in eastern Ukraine in 2014. Support for sanctions is measured using data from previous research by Silva II and Selden (2020). Using multiple regression analysis, several other explanatory factors are accounted for, including expected trade change, FDI stock and former membership of the Eastern Bloc. A small, significant, positive relation between fossil fuel dependence and support for sanctions is found. This leads to three main conclusions: First, energy dependence does not seem to negatively influence the support for sanctions against Russia by EU member states. Second, the analysis suggest a positive relation between these variables might exist. Third, the other explanatory factors accounted for each have no significant influence on support for sanctions. In this time when the EU-Russia energy relations are being reconsidered, this sheds an important light on the debate on energy security and interdependence theory in EU-Russia context.Show less
Hybrid warfare is considered to be a vague term and its usefulness as an analytical tool is doubted by academics. This thesis sets out to test the analytical usefulness of the hybrid warfare term...Show moreHybrid warfare is considered to be a vague term and its usefulness as an analytical tool is doubted by academics. This thesis sets out to test the analytical usefulness of the hybrid warfare term when incorporated by NATO. Through discourse analysis, it was found that the notion of hybrid warfare and its associated terms are employed and defined inconsistently across various NATO publications. This indicates that hybrid warfare may indeed be a weak analytical tool to use. Through a thematic analysis, it was found that there is a broad consensus on the way in which hybrid warfare is defined by academics and NATO officials, which might indicate that there is some practical use for employing the term.Show less
This thesis aims to answer the question: “How can states balance their peace-justice dilemma’s in the Russia-Ukraine conflict?” It will take a qualitative case study approach using primary and...Show moreThis thesis aims to answer the question: “How can states balance their peace-justice dilemma’s in the Russia-Ukraine conflict?” It will take a qualitative case study approach using primary and secondary data and analyze how various levels of state intervention impact the peacejustice dilemmas states face when intervening in a conflict. This thesis will provide a comprehensive review of the existing literature on the topic and create a theoretical framework from which to analyze the case. This research finds that although various levels of state intervention can have a certain degree of impact on a state’s peace-justice dilemma, there is no “perfect” solution to the dilemma as it remains present to some degree.Show less
Since April 2019, Russia has conducted passportization in the Donbas region (Atland, 2020). Although this form of mass extraterritorial naturalization is not illegal, it is considered troublesome...Show moreSince April 2019, Russia has conducted passportization in the Donbas region (Atland, 2020). Although this form of mass extraterritorial naturalization is not illegal, it is considered troublesome by the international community (Natoli, 2010; Peters, 2010; Traunmüller, 2013). Moreover, Eastern Ukraine is not the first conflicted area confronted with this practice (Hoffman & Chochia, 2018; Natoli, 2010). Since passportization is regarded as a potential security threat (Burkhardt et al., 2022b; Traunmüller, 2013), this thesis explores how Ukraine framed Russia’s passportization in the Donbas region between the 24th of April 2019 and the 23rd of February 2022. In particular, the analysis leans on securitization theory. A total of twenty-one official statements, speeches, and interviews by government representatives and President Zelenskyy were analyzed. Findings suggest that, indeed, the passportization is predominantly framed as a security threat.Show less
Russia and Argentina have been, for different reasons, two important international actors over the course of the 20th century. During the 1990s, both countries have undergone a process of economic...Show moreRussia and Argentina have been, for different reasons, two important international actors over the course of the 20th century. During the 1990s, both countries have undergone a process of economic restructuring guided by the International Monetary Fund, at the end of which both experienced a financial crisis (Russia in 1998, Argentina in 2001). This thesis tries to place these events in historical perspective and share a snapshot on the similarities and differences of these experiments, according to the principles of world-system theory. The aim of the research is to determine whether there was a causal relationship between the neoliberal policies implemented at the beginning of the decade and the crises. A central finding of the research is that there is a specific trajectory of economic development and institutional response in semi-peripheral areas, which builds on the presence of weak democratic institutions and debt spirals.Show less
