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
De scheiding van kerk en staat; voor de meeste Nederlanders is dit het normaalste van de wereld: een seculiere staat en een aparte onafhankelijke kerk. Toch is er nog steeds veel discussie over de...Show moreDe scheiding van kerk en staat; voor de meeste Nederlanders is dit het normaalste van de wereld: een seculiere staat en een aparte onafhankelijke kerk. Toch is er nog steeds veel discussie over de scheiding van kerk en staat in Nederland (Addy de Jong, 2016, Anne Gooren 2019). Ook internationaal is er veel aandacht voor de scheiding van kerk en staat (James Lankford, Russell Moore, 2018; Hana M. Ryman and J. Mark Alcorn, The First Amendment Encyclopedia; Neal Hardin, 2019; James C. Kennedy, NWO) En zo richt de blik van de internationale gemeenschap zich ook vaak op landen waar de scheiding van kerk en staat vaak veel minder is dan in hun eigen omgeving. In het boek Religion and Politics in South Asia bespreken verschillende auteurs hoe religie en politiek in Zuid-Azië elkaar beïnvloeden en door elkaar heen zijn gaan lopen. Een ander land, waaraan echter meer aandacht besteed mag worden, is Rusland. De Russisch orthodoxe kerk (ROK) is een oud instituut en heeft al eeuwen een grote rol gespeeld in de Russische samenleving. Sinds de grondwet van 1993 is Rusland officieel een seculiere staat geworden, maar er zijn sterke signalen, dat Rusland niet zo seculier is al het lijkt. Dit onderzoek zal de vraag beantwoorden: Hoe gebruikt de Russische staat het instituut van de Russische orthodoxe kerk voor binnenlandbeleid? Uit een analyse van toespraken en uitspraken in de media blijkt dat de Russische staat en de ROK graag met elkaar samenwerken en verder gaan dan een samenwerking tussen de staat en een sociaal instituut.Show less
At the turn of this millennium Russia stood before the behemoth task of rising from the ashes left behind by the chaotic 90's. Russia's seemingly endless natural resources and an accompanying rise...Show moreAt the turn of this millennium Russia stood before the behemoth task of rising from the ashes left behind by the chaotic 90's. Russia's seemingly endless natural resources and an accompanying rise in oil prices only go so far in its development. However, to gain relevance on the world stage beyond the constant military flexing and being an energy appendage to the upper echelon industrialised countries, it needs to produce marketable technologies and secure a spot among the greatest economies. At the end of the first decade a new paradigm in the way we transact information found prominence in the minds of the tech savvy, which turned into the explosive development of the Blockchain technology. This potentially revolutionary new technology has the characteristics to alter the social fabric in which old power structures become obsolete, but at the same time provide a golden opportunity for the relative young and unbound Russian IT sector to thrive and leave a global mark. The new generation technocrats plead for full scale adoption, regulation and development of this technology, but their older and politically more powerful Soviet rooted counter parts plead against the dangers of this shift in dynamics. In this work I looked at what the blockchain technology means for Russia and how the Russian authorities took a stance in adapting the technology.Show less
The Russian counterinsurgency campaign in Chechnya from late 1999 has been typical for the authoritarian model of counterinsurgency and demonstrates the authoritarian inclinations and mindset of...Show moreThe Russian counterinsurgency campaign in Chechnya from late 1999 has been typical for the authoritarian model of counterinsurgency and demonstrates the authoritarian inclinations and mindset of the Putin regime. Instead of increasing government legitimacy, winning the Chechen population's 'hearts and minds' and in this way realising a durable solution to the Chechen conflict, the Putin administration relied mainly on at first mostly indiscriminate and later more selective violence and repression, for which it relied on an indigenous counterinsurgency force under the command of the Kadyrovs, in order to coerce the Chechens in compliance. At the same time, the Putin administration placed a lot of effort in preventing the national will to continue fighting in Chechnya from eroding by making the Chechen conflict invisible, creating the impression of normalisation and reducing Russian casualties. To this end, the Kremlin tried to reduce the freedom of the press and bring the media and civil society, which it viewed as a threat to its war effort, under its control, while at the same time it increasingly came to rely on its Chechen proxies, who in the mid-2000s took over the brunt of the counterinsurgency operations from the Russian military. Thus, although the Putin regime in the early 2000s was still regarded as a 'hybrid' or 'transitional' regime, the Russian counterinsurgency campaign in Chechnya from late 1999 demonstrates that Putin and the members of his inner circle from the start viewed democracy, free media and a strong and vibrant civil society as threats to their ability to govern, their war effort in Chechnya and their own positions.Show less
Lithuania gained more energy independence from Russia after building the Floating Storage Regasification Unit Independence (FSRU Independence) in Klaipėda in 2014. Diversification meant that...Show moreLithuania gained more energy independence from Russia after building the Floating Storage Regasification Unit Independence (FSRU Independence) in Klaipėda in 2014. Diversification meant that Lithuania being solely reliant on Russian energy changed and therefore, possibly Russia’s foreign energy policy towards Lithuania as well. This could indicate that Russia might not have used its well-known energy weapon in Lithuania’s domestic energy politics after 2014. This study therefore has as research question: What elements of Russia’s foreign energy policy has Russia used with regard to Lithuania’s domestic energy politics since 2014? The research argues that Russia has not effectively or not at all resorted to using elements of its foreign energy policy with regard to Lithuania’s domestic energy politics after 2014. Russia rather has attempted to reduce Lithuania’s larger leverage over Russia than Russia had on Lithuania in the last few years. Clearly, the identified elements of Russia’s foreign energy policy were not applicable after Lithuania’s diversification of energy and therefore, Russia should probably resort to new foreign policy tools in the future in case if it is willing to influence Lithuania’s domestic energy politics again.Show less
Research clearly shows the negative attitude that Russian citizens have towards Protestantism. An interesting question that raises here, is: how would the members of Russian Protestant churches...Show moreResearch clearly shows the negative attitude that Russian citizens have towards Protestantism. An interesting question that raises here, is: how would the members of Russian Protestant churches experience this attitude towards them? To what extent do they feel tolerated by their society, as members of a non-traditional religion? The aim of this thesis is to research this, with the main research question being the following: “How do members of a non-traditional religious community in Russia experience religious tolerance in their country?”Show less
Business incubators (BIs) are considered to be popular tools to aid and accelerate the foundation of successful (technological) entrepreneurial companies. They typically support new start-up...Show moreBusiness incubators (BIs) are considered to be popular tools to aid and accelerate the foundation of successful (technological) entrepreneurial companies. They typically support new start-up ventures with the aim that these will develop themselves into self-sustaining and effective businesses. However, the divergence in theoretical perspectives on the nature of BIs causes literature to hold discrepant views on the number of BIs in Russia. Therefore, explaining the operations of Russian BIs will serve existing literature to indicate the actual density of BIs in the country in perspective to the theoretical lens employed. Possibly, this will give future research an indication of the actual influence of BIs on economic innovation in Russia. This thesis concludes that the current operations of business incubators in Russia are highly divergent as a result of substantial differences in services offered. Besides, the scope in which an organization can be identified as a business incubator in Russia seems to rather unlimited, which causes enormous differences in the perception of BIs within the country. The majority of BIs are no more than empty office spaces lacking even the most basic facilities. This raises the question if the stimulated growth of business incubators within the Russian Federation turned out to be failed project.Show less
How do Ukranian and Russian people refer to the separatists? Turns out that Ukraine is using more propaganda then the separatists or Russia. This thesis is meant to open the way to several new...Show moreHow do Ukranian and Russian people refer to the separatists? Turns out that Ukraine is using more propaganda then the separatists or Russia. This thesis is meant to open the way to several new researches on the languagepolicy of Ukraine.Show less
