The results may be predictable, but Russia’s parliamentary elections hint at the next stage of regime mobilisation.
Creating the appearance of stability is the Russian political elite’s primary goal. Yet colonial-like rule over the country’s regions, combined with a lack of civic activity, harms the Kremlin’s legitimacy on the ground. RU
Farm workers in the depths of southern Russia are hardly a protest constituency, but corruption and corporate raids have pushed them to the brink. They may even take their grievances to Moscow — by tractor. Русский
For years, ‘liberal’ has been a dirty word in Russia, a shorthand for everything undesirable. Yet state propaganda is having an unexpected side-effect: the rehabilitation of liberalism.
Uneven modernisation has left its mark on Russia, and the authorities are only too happy to exploit it. What does the future hold for Russia’s regional divide? Русский
Amid a crumbling and fragile system, central and regional elites gear up for a new power struggle in Russia’s North Caucasus.
Against a background of mass protests, Moldova’s parliament has just approved a new government in record time. Русский
Mikheil Saakashvili may have left his native Georgia for Odessa, but one particular legacy of his years in power is still strong. Русский
In Bashkortostan, the hills are alive with the sound of limestone quarrying. Now local civil society is taking on one of Russia’s largest chemical consortia. Русский
Russia's prison system is dehumanising people. The recent death of an inmate in a southern Russian penal colony is only further proof. Graphic warning. RU
The first sentences under a new law limiting freedom of association in Russia are coming into effect. Their target? ‘Malicious picket-holders’. Русский
On 27 July, Russian special forces abducted a senior Dagestan official from his home and transported him to Moscow for investigation. The Dagestani authorities knew nothing about it.
