Increasingly, the idea of being a modern Russian means to be detached from Russia itself. The problem has long, Soviet roots, and the ruling tandem acknowledges there is a problem. But are they capable of reversing the trend, wonders Wayne Merry ...
Under the direction of the new Polish presidency, the EU has dangled a huge integration carrot in front of Ukraine’s misbehaving political elite. The rationale, no doubt, is to win out in an us-or-Russia scenario. But Mykola Ryabchuk remains unconvinced the Yanukovych clan needs persuading which w
On the eve of the new year, Ukraine’s former Interior Minister Yuri Lutsenko was arrested by special forces as he walked his dog. Six months later he remains behind bars, facing corruption charges considered by many to be incoherent and politically-motivated. At openDemocracy’s request, journalist
When Sergei Sobyanin was appointed Mayor of Moscow in October last year, many residents had come to loathe his predecessor Yuri Luzhkov’s ability to trade historic architecture for nepotistic building contracts. Sobyanin’s early talk on architectural preservation was tough, reports Clementine Ceci
Self-censorship was an important feature of Soviet life, but old habits, it seems, die hard. Mikhail Loginov reports on the return of “unwritten rules” to the Russian regional press
The degree of press freedom in Russia has fluctuated violently over the 20 years since the fall of communism. The situation in the Orenburg region, as everywhere, is a balancing act between principles and funding. And it’s always more difficult to rebuild what has been lost, laments Elena Strelnik
From self-styled “great Russian poet” to conceptual performance artist, Dmitri Prigov (1940 – 2007) was a nonconformist Renaissance man who survived institutionalisation in a Soviet asylum and died on the day he was due to collaborate with the Voina collective, enfants terribles of the new generat
The recent appointment of Mikhail Prokhorov as leader of the liberal party Right Cause is puzzling. He’s the third richest man in Russia, so why should he bother? He has no choice, argues Mikhail Loginov. The Kremlin wants a hate figure on the scene to shore up support for Putin’s United Russia ah
President Yanukovych makes a show of trying to root out corruption, but a recent government deal to buy an oil rig, with $150 million in kickbacks for officials, has hit the headlines big time. Natalia Sedletska tried to find out more.
Effective opposition in Belarus has traditionally been limited by a limited sense of nationhood, a deeply controlled society and a social contract that exchanges rights for “stability”. The country’s deepening financial crisis undermines all three of these pillars. Could it be that the time for ch
Director Andrei Konchalovksy and film critic Professor Ian Christie continue a fascinating conversation. In this second part: censorship, the Communists, corruption and civilisation. Part one can be found here
From subversive Soviet art films to Hollywood blockbusters, biting satires on postcommunist Russia to a recent 3D fantasy, director Andrei Konchalovsky has produced an extraordinary and diverse body of work. Ian Christie, meanwhile, is an acknowledged authority on world cinema and Professor of Fil
