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2. Towards the 2021 Duma election: The Russian opposition needs strong leaders
- Author:
- Jussi Lassila
- Publication Date:
- 09-2020
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Finnish Institute of International Affairs
- Abstract:
- Peopleʼs grievances were not reflected in Russia’s regional elections this year. The Kremlin is reaping the benefits of increasingly blatant electoral fraud and citizensʼ political apathy.
- Topic:
- Authoritarianism, Elections, Rigged Elections, and Opposition
- Political Geography:
- Russia, Europe, and Eastern Europe
3. Digital authoritarianism in China and Russia: Common goals and diverging standpoints in the era of great-power rivalry
- Author:
- Elina Sinkkonen and Jussi Lassila
- Publication Date:
- 10-2020
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Finnish Institute of International Affairs
- Abstract:
- China and Russia are jointly advancing their shared interests in the international arena and are building up cooperation in the tech sector. Despite far-reaching plans, the asymmetry of cooperation in favour of China is increasingly at odds with Russia’s national goals in digital technology. Differences in resources and standpoints are also reflected in the implementation of digital surveillance. China’s surveillance system is sophisticated and extensive whereas Russia’s is largely inconsistent and emerging, as evidenced by the fact that there was virtually no control of the internet in Russia until 2012. While advanced surveillance in authoritarian countries is worrying, technology in strategic sectors is also a key field of increasingly disconcerting great-power competition. As a result of strategic competition, the world is faced with the risk of technological decoupling, which would contribute to further fragmentation of the international community and deepening of existing rivalries.
- Topic:
- Science and Technology, Authoritarianism, Digital Economy, and Surveillance
- Political Geography:
- Russia, China, Europe, and Asia
4. The Brain drain from Russia: The Kremlinʼs double-edged sword
- Author:
- Jussi Lassila
- Publication Date:
- 05-2019
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Finnish Institute of International Affairs
- Abstract:
- The accelerated brain drain from Russia concretizes the failures of the Kremlinʼs authoritarian modernization and deepens the country’s longer-term problems. At the same time, the brain drain is reducing the regimeʼs political pressures to make the country more attractive to educated and internationally oriented citizens.
- Topic:
- Education, Globalization, Authoritarianism, and Modernization
- Political Geography:
- Russia, Europe, Central Asia, and Asia
5. Regional elections in Russia: The Kremlin is tackling previous challenges while facing new ones
- Author:
- Jussi Lassila
- Publication Date:
- 09-2019
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Finnish Institute of International Affairs
- Abstract:
- The Kremlin is trying to learn lessons from old problems regarding its electoral authoritarian system, but new ones are constantly emerging. At the heart of these is the Kremlin’s party system.
- Topic:
- Authoritarianism, Elections, Election watch, Local, and Party System
- Political Geography:
- Russia, Europe, and Eastern Europe
6. Glitches in the Kremlinʼs politics of Fear: The dynamics of repression in Russia between 2012 and 2019
- Author:
- Jussi Lassila
- Publication Date:
- 10-2019
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Finnish Institute of International Affairs
- Abstract:
- Along with Vladimir Putinʼs third presidential term, intensified repression has manifested itself in line with the countryʼs increasing economic challenges. The starting point for this political trend was the so-called Bolotnaya Affair in May 2012. Since then, the regime has tightened the screws: non-governmental organizations receiving foreign funding must register as ‘foreign agents’; there are numerous restrictions on the use of the internet, as well as conditions for organizing demonstrations. The regimeʼs policies aim to send signals to the rest of society about the serious consequences that unwanted political and civic activities might cause. However, measures become inflated when the repressive deterrent targets too many. By 2019, along with the changed social mood, unparalleled solidarity against repressive policies, particularly around the regional elections in Moscow, has forced the authorities to retreat from some of their initial repressive goals. The Kremlin duly has to re-evaluate the usage of its repressive deterrent against the political opposition and civil society.
- Topic:
- Civil Society, Elections, Repression, Fear, and Opposition
- Political Geography:
- Russia, Europe, and Eastern Europe
7. Pension reform in Russia: A test of the regime’s resilience and citizens’ patience
- Author:
- Jussi Lassila
- Publication Date:
- 04-2018
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Finnish Institute of International Affairs
- Abstract:
- The Kremlin has cast a cloud over the horizon for millions of Russian citizens. People do not perceive the forthcoming pension reform as a necessary measure for sustaining economic and social stability. Rather, it has ignited a collective sense of anger among the people that they have been cast adrift by the elite
- Topic:
- International Relations and International Affairs
- Political Geography:
- Russia
8. Communist Parties In Russia, Ukraine and Moldova: Struggling with popular demands
- Author:
- Jussi Lassila and Ryhor Nizhnikau
- Publication Date:
- 10-2018
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Finnish Institute of International Affairs
- Abstract:
- The appeal of left-leaning ideas is on the rise in Russia, Ukraine and Moldova. Nonetheless, the main left-wing parties, particularly the communists, remain stuck in the past and at odds with the interests of the electorate. The communists have gradually transformed from opposition forces and political competitors into conformists of the ruling elites. This new function dictates their key interest in maintaining the stability of the system, which also leads to growing dissent among the parties’ members. Embeddedness in the existing political system is preventing the Left from self-reforming and impeding their transformation into modern national social-democratic projects. Yet Moldova has shown that in the new political context old ‘Leninists’ can reinvent themselves and become the most popular political project in the country.
- Topic:
- Communism, Political stability, Political Parties, and Participation
- Political Geography:
- Europe and Moldova