Power and Wealth in Russia

3 Credits · Level: Graduate, Undergraduate

From the Tsarist period through the Soviet era to contemporary Russia, political and economic power have been tightly linked. Usually, the goals of economic growth and prosperity have taken a back seat to highly centralized political power. During the first third of the course, we will examine how this phenomenon developed in the Soviet period and how the Soviet Union failed to resolve this dilemma and collapsed. The second part of the course will be devoted to the last twenty-five years of the development of post-Soviet Russia with emphasis on the lasting legacy of Soviet economic decisions, the constraints and benefits of an economy heavily dependent on oil and gas revenues, and the contemporary challenges Russian leaders face as the Russian economy is experiencing an extended recession. In the final section of the course, we will explore alternative scenarios for Russian development and look at comparative experiences of how other authoritarian systems manage political, social, and economic change.