Russia/China Global Econ

3 Credits · Level: Graduate, Undergraduate

This course has been redesigned in a lecture/discussion format for advanced undergraduate students. It is also open to Graduate Students in Government Department and SFS MA programs. There are no prerequisites. It is helpful but not mandatory for students to have some familiarity with at least one of the two cases. Knowledge of either Chinese or Russian (or both) is welcome but not necessary. THE PROBLEM: Communism as an economic and social system was abandoned almost everywhere within a remarkably short period of time, coinciding with the late 20th century era of globalization. We begin by exploring the relationship between globalization and the demise of Communism. Most of the semester will be devoted to examining the main social-economic systems that have replaced communism in the context of globalization. About a dozen countries have joined the European Union. While their process has been neither smooth nor painless, it is pretty straightforward. For other countries, there are two major development models. China offers a model of economic integration with the global economy without ending Communist Party rule. Soviet leaders introduced major political changes in an attempt to advance stalled economic reforms, leading to the breakup of the USSR. In Russia, the attempt to introduce democracy and a market economy led to something called “managed” or “sovereign”democracy and a Russian style of capitalism. Both China and Russia were among the world’s fastest-growing economies in the first years of the 21st century, yet they present two alternative models for development, differing markedly in their structural and existential relationships with the global economy. While Russia and China will be our primary focus, we will respect Mark Bloch’s admonition that any comparison must involve more than two cases by making frequent reference to the experience of ex-communist EU accession countries and India. MAJOR THEMES: After examining the exit from communism in the context of globalization and some key development questions, we will compare the two countries across a range of topics including regional policy, leading economic sectors, business and the state, corruption, the middle class, civil society, human capital, media and the Internet, inequality and WTO accession.