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"In the realm of political discourse there is a distinct gap in understanding between Russia and the West. To an outsider, the ideas that animate the actions of Russia's ruling elite, opposition, and civil society--from the motivations driving Russia's political actors to the class structure and international and domestic constraints that shape Russia's political thinking--remain shrouded in mystery. Contrary to the view that a bleak discursive uniformity reigns in Putin's Russia, Political Ideologies in Contemporary Russia shows that the country is engaging in serious theoretical debates across a wide spectrum of modern ideologies including liberalism, nationalism, feminism, and multiculturalism. Elena Chebankova argues that the nation is fragmented and the state seeks to balance the various ideological movements to ensure that none dominates. She shows that each of the main ideological trends is far from uniform, but the major opposition is between liberalism and traditionalism. The pluralistic picture she describes contests many current portrayals of Russia as an authoritarian or even totalitarian state. Offering an alternative to the Western lens through which to view global politics, Political Ideologies in Contemporary Russia is a major contribution to our understanding of contemporary Russia."--

Unlike other books on civil society in Russia which argue that Russia's civil society is relatively weak, and that democratisation in Russia went into reverse following Vladimir Putin's coming to power, this book contends that civil society in Russia is developing in a distinctive way. It shows that government and elite-led drives to encourage civil society have indeed been limited, and that the impact of external promotion of civil society has also not been very successful. It demonstrates, however, that independent domestic grassroots movements are beginning to flourish, despite difficulties and adverse circumstances, and that this development fits well into the changing nature of contemporary Russian society.

chapter 1 Methodology, theoretical considerations, and the structure of the study -- chapter 2 Russia's federalism under Yeltsin: The structure, process, and origins of Putin's reforms -- chapter 3 The centre and the regions: A new balance of power -- chapter 4 Institutions of centre- regional integration: monocentrism and its potential implications -- chapter 5 Business and politics in Russia's regions: The problem of political style -- chapter 6 The unintended consequences of gubernatorial appointments in Russia -- chapter 7 Inter- regional relations and territorial problems -- chapter 8 Conclusion.

The development of centre-regional relations has been at the forefront of Russian politics since the formation of the Russian state and numerous efforts have been made by the country's subsequent rulers to create a political model that would be suitable for the effective management of its vast territory and multiple nationalities. This book examines the origins, underlying foundations, and dynamics of the federal reforms conducted by President Putin throughout the eight years of his presidency. It offers a comprehensive analysis of the nature of Russia's federal relations during this period.

The ongoing turbulence in global politics has been accompanied by calls to shift the current order of international relations from a rules-based world towards a multipolar system rooted in international law. Political leaders and commentators, primarily of Russian origin, have often referred to those initiatives as a moral revolution in the current world order. This paper examines the theological and philosophical background behind the ideas that support such a change. The discussion argues that these proposals, though they sound revolutionary, echo the Abrahamic principles of international dialogue drafted by medieval Christian theologians, Reformation thinkers, and Jewish and Islamic religious philosophers. The account stresses that contemporary adherents of the replacement of the rules-based world do not openly refer to religious doctrines. However, the core tenets of the suggested reforms align well with those earlier ethical principles. This conclusion is purely scholarly and contributes to the history of ideas.

Feminism emerged as an important ideological trend in contemporary Russia. Different strands of this thought focus on divergent problems experienced by Russian women. Some researchers consider the experience of women representing Russia's growing middle class. Others tend to focus on the problems of dispossessed and less privileged layers of the Russian society. The difference in the focus of attention is reminiscent of the pre-existing Western division of the feminist thought on the feminism of equality and feminism of difference. This paper will consider the main directions of these debates in Russia focusing on key aspects pondered by feminism in general. It will also argue that the state deploys both strands of feminist thought selectively in situations that suits its ideological and political purposes.

This article discusses the changing ideological paradigms of the Russian society in the past century. It explains how some political leaders rise to prominence by being able to respond to deeply held demands of the public.