Russia, Diaspora

Excerpts from the JRL E-Mail Community :: Founded and Edited by David Johnson

#9
From: "Igor Zevelev" <ZevelevI@marshallcenter.org>
Subject: New book "Russia and Its New Diasporas"
Date: Wed, 28 Nov 2001

New book from the United States Institute of Peace Press
RUSSIA AND ITS NEW DIASPORAS
By Igor Zevelev
www.usip.org/pubs/catalog/RAIND.html

The book examines the political significance of ethnic Russian "diasporas" and their implication for the future of Eurasian security. As Russian politicians and intellectuals reassess the "Russian Question" in the post-Soviet era, these ethnic Russian communities - mostly in Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Latvia, and Estonia - serve not only as an important factor in Russia's quest for a national identity, but also as a conduit for influence.

Igor Zevelev, Russia and Its New Diasporas (Washington, DC: United States Institute of Peace Press, 2001). 220 pages. ISBN 1-929223-08-0

Contents
Foreword by Richard Solomon
Acknowledgements
Introduction: The "Russian Question" into the Twenty-First Century

Chapter I. Nation-State Building and Diasporas in the Security Context
1. Nation-Building as a Potential Security Threat
2. Globalization and Diasporas as Potential Security Threats
3. The Unfinished Quest for Russian Identity and its Security Implications: Three Scenarios

Chapter II. Transformations of Russian Identity
1. The Boundaries of the Russian People: Theoretical Perspectives
2. Inarticulate Nationhood
3. Problems of Identity in Russian Intellectual History
4. Soviet and Post-Soviet Theoretical Discourse on Russian Nationhood
5. Public Opinion: An Overview

Chapter III. Politics of Nation-Building in Modern Russia
1. Historical Traditions and Parallels
2. Formation of Five Projects of Nation-Building
3. Political Parties and Nation-Building
4. Political Alliances and Rivalries

Chapter IV. Russian Communities Outside Russia Before and After the Breakup of the Soviet Union
1. Russians and Russian-Speakers
2. Diversity of Russians and the Russified Groups
3. "The Law of Colonial Ingratitude" in Eurasia
4. Migrants and Refugees: "Our Country Is No More, but We Still Exist..."
5. Typology of Russian Diasporas and Future Prospects

Chapter V. Policy of the Russian Federation Toward the Russian Diasporas
1. Dual Citizenship
2. The Concept of "Compatriots Living Abroad"
3. Multilateralism
4. Nationalist Rhetoric, Imperatives of State-Building, and Future Prospects

Conclusions and Implications
1. Rethinking the Theoretical Framework
2. Understanding Possible Russian Responses to the Challenges Presented by the Diaporas
3. Forging a New U. S. Approach to Eurasia

Notes
Index

Back to the Top