Russian Political Elite Research Articles

Value model of political communications of the Russian elite in conflictual and deviant polysubject environment

The article, based on the results of a comprehensive political analysis, substantiates that in the modern socio-political reality, the formation of a multipolar world, the problem of the effectiveness of political communications are closely related to the potential of political and administrative power elites. The communicative qualities of a modern politician are enhanced by value-civilizational and moral parameters, the ability of strategic vision and the ability to maintain civilizational and value discourse in the political and economic system and direct it towards sustainable advanced development of society. This, in turn, involves the analysis and development of parameters for diagnosing the quality of modern Russian political and administrative elites, their moral and professional adequacy and aptitude; so is the actualization and solution of the problem of deviations at the elite level of political power. In order to form a value model of political communications of the Russian elite, it is necessary to comprehensively consider management systems based on specific values (including management of public values), identify and position public values as determinants of socio-political development, develop mechanisms to counteract the value degradation and marginalization of national elites, take into account the propensity of the Russian government to identify internal and external enemies in the previous stages of development, and also to the uncritical borrowing of the models of democracy alien to the Russian cultural and civilizational code, and the image imitation of elite qualities.

Fantasies of cultural sovereignty and national unity: Russia?s ontological (in)security and its assertion of ?spiritual-moral values??

AbstractDrawing on ontological security studies and Lacanian theory, the article examines the role of ?spiritual-moral values? (SMV) in Russian politics. It argues that SMV have been employed by the Russian political elite to construct an (illusory) sense of ontological security, presented as attainable via the promotion of sovereignty and national unity. Through the analysis of policy documents and Vladimir Putin?s speeches for the period 2012?2023, the article outlines three interlocking narratives: (a) Russian cultural norms are under attack; (b) attacks can be resisted through cultural sovereignty, with SMV playing a crucial role; and (c) the Russian population is united through the same SMV. These narratives (?fantasies? in the Lacanian sense) create promises destined to remain unfulfilled: cultural sovereignty is based on the unrealistic belief that culture can remain unaltered, while existing policies fragment society, causing the ontological insecurity of ethnic and sexual minorities, but also the Russian population more widely.

Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin: A Study of a Rank-and-File Actor in an Authoritarian Regime

The article analyses the thinking of the Russian prime minister, Mikhail Mishustin, about the current political regime. The analysis considers his personal policy agenda, which is informed by serving in technocratic positions and his ideological positioning within the Russian political elite, as well as the role of the prime minister in Russian politics. Special attention is dedicated to Mishustin’s perception of the invasion of Ukraine and its impact on Russian politics. Our findings illuminate the role of rank-and-file political actors not only in the context of the Russian non-democratic regime but in personalised autocracies in general.

The 19th Century Origins of Russia’s Fixation on Ukraine: Strengthening Global Influence and Securing Domestic Stability

Abstract The present article aims to propose a theoretical framework capable of elucidating the intriguing resilience of the ideas shaping the attitudes of Russian ruling circles and intellectuals toward Ukraine. Offering a perspective that incorporates the latest findings on Russia’s “empire-nation dilemma” into the explanatory model, it delves into the historical context in which the Russian political and intellectual elite’s worldview and self-narratives were shaped – the period spanning from the 1830s to 1917. It reveals the intricate link between their sense of ontological (in-)security in relation to the West and the belief that assimilating Ukraine was pivotal for bolstering external power and ensuring internal stability within the Russian state.

Intellectuals in the ruling elite political stratum of modern Russia: theoretical and applied aspects of sociological analysis

The article deals with the rather urgent problem of the qualitative composition of the modern elite political stratum of the Russian society and the place occupied by intellectuals in it. The article compares the categories of intelligentsia and intellectuals, which allows us to say that intellectuals are a special social layer that has a number of basic features of the intelligentsia, with the exception of the representation of many of its members with a special ethical self-determination characteristic of this group. This is largely confirmed by the analysis of biographies of 685 political figures representing the modern Russian political elite. Using the latest research on this problem and the results of his own analysis of biographies of elite members, the author comes to the conclusion that, having the necessary theoretical basis, professional characteristics (in the form of appropriate education, experience of activity) modern intellectuals in the ruling elite form layers, one of which in the ruling elite group represents more formal-technocratic stratum, however, far from the layer of technostructure described by J. Galbraith, and in the near-elite environment – the layer of formally deideologized experts.

The consolidation of putin’s power through legal and political means: implications for identity construction

The sources of identity for the state are subjected to a constant process of change dependent upon, but not reduced to the aspect of who is creating the collective consciousness of the state’s self-awareness at the specific point in time. This paper traces and analyses the legal and political changes made in Russia’s legislature and governance model over the course of the past 20 years. This article argues that constitutional and legal changes have promoted and identify the president of Russia as a ‘curator’ of foreign policy—controlling the decisions made and the state identity that supplements them or enables them. As a result, it can be argued that although in the Russian political elite, several key agents can be identified as the ones shaping and influencing Russia’s foreign policy and constructing its identity, President Vladimir Putin, from a legal and political perspective has the most legal power and authority and thus can be considered the main agent of Russia’s identity construction. Keywords: consolidation; constitution; identity; power; Putin; Russia.

Образование как средовой фактор и канал рекрутинга политических элит

The issues of reproduction of Russian political elites, improving the quality of political culture remain relevant. An extensive empirical array of data on the properties of political elites, their study by means of continuous re-finement of the conceptual apparatus of the theory of political elites, conducting directed studies of the qualities of political elites, detecting properties as complementary effects of studies of various subjects of political elites allows us to investigate the environmental nature of education, its influence on the properties of political elites. The interrelation of the processes of education, upbringing, and training in the process of forming the proper-ties of political elites is substantiated; the analysis of education as an environmental factor of political elites is carried out; the forms of determination of education, upbringing, training on the properties of political elites are revealed; a natural connection between the immanent nature of education and the formed properties of politi-cal elites is formulated. The criteria of differentiation of elite and elite education are formulated.

The Linguistic Factor in the Deterrence Conversation between Russia and the West: If and How Russians Understand the Meaning of “Deterrence?”

Given Russia's aggressive actions in Ukraine and its hostile remarks toward its NATO neighbours, the question of why the credible deterrence posture of the Alliance is not producing the desired results is becoming increasingly important. Either Russian political leaders do not want to comply with the Western credible deterrence posture, or they do not understand what is expected from them. Linguistic factors (e.g., the ‘lost in translation’ effect) affect the effectiveness of the conversation on deterrence between Russia and the West, including NATO. The Russian language does not have one unambiguous equivalent for the Western term “deterrence.” There are several possible translations for deterrence in Russian, including sderzhivaniye, ustrasheniye, sderzhivaniye putem ustrasheniya, sderzhivaniye prinuzhdeniyem, as well as others. These terms are not synonymous, with each having its own different meaning and some being used in Russian military-political theory, where they refer to different concepts. The current study focuses on the most visible linguistic complications in the deterrence dialogue between Russia and the West. Based on the current study, it would often be more reasonable to talk to the Russian political and military elite about containment or coercion, which are more common and have clear, specific meanings in Russian.

Personality and Political Activity of Otto von Bismarck Through the Eyes of the Russian Political Elite during the second half of the 19th century

The attention towards the figure of Bismarck, known as the "Iron Chancellor" was connected with the fact that when he was in the highest positions of the government the relations between the Russian Empire and Germany were developing along very dramatic lines. Bismarck was one of the very few state officials who respected the Russian Empire and considered it as one of the most important participants in the European political game. According to his understanding, the views of the Russian political elite were very important to the governments of every European country. Taking into consideration these circumstances, it is important to trace the different aspects of the public opinion of the Russian political and intellectual elite which were expressed in the documents of the second half of the 19th century.

The Role of Discursive Practices in Public Diplomacy and International Relations: The Case of Russia–Japan Relations

Utilising discourse analysis to evaluate Russian President Vladimir Putin and Foreign Affairs Minister Sergei Lavrov’s public speeches as part of public diplomacy, this study deconstructs the discursive practices of Russian political elites in Russia–Japan relations. The data analysis demonstrates that, when speaking from a position of power, Putin and Lavrov delegitimise Japan’s political decision-making sovereignty and the role of the Japanese public in the negotiation process. This article argues that even though the discursive practices of Russian political elites are oriented towards a foreign public, the impact on their domestic legitimacy is greater.

From mercenary to legitimate actor? Russian discourses on private military companies

ABSTRACT The Russian private military company (PMC), the Wagner Group, went from being a public secret to openly fighting alongside Russian forces in Russia’s war in Ukraine. By looking at Russian pro-government media discourses on PMCs, this paper argues that this development is largely made possible by a discursive shift, which happened before the war. Two basic discourses are found in the period leading up to the war – a discourse that denies the existence of Russian PMCs, and a discourse of normalization, which constructs PMCs as legitimate businesses and Russia as a great power. The two discourses previously kept the PMCs in a grey zone, allowing the Russian political elite deniability, while also taking credit for the foreign policy successes the PMCs achieved. However, this paper shows a discursive shift of recognizing PMCs as legitimate actors, which allowed for the Wagner Group to play a key role in Russia’s war.

The Turmoil in the Moscow State at the Beginning of the XVII Century and Its Influence on the Transformation of the Foundations and Principles of Russian Statehood (Political Science Aspect)

The article gives the author’s interpretation of the nature and degree of influence of the events of the Time of Turmoil at the beginning of the XVII century in Russia on the evolution of the foundations and principles of Russian statehood. The author of the article notes that this problem, which is important for understanding the history of Russian statehood, has not yet received proper coverage and the necessary scientific study. Agreeing with the opinion of researchers who assess the events of the Turmoil as the first deep state crisis in the development of the country, the author of the article draws attention to the fact that modern publications do not take into account the fact that in many respects it was the tragedy of the Turmoil that predetermined many new phenomena in the state and public life of Russia, which ensured the country’s exit from the Turmoil and the restoration of state order. On the one hand, the masses, under the influence of the events of the Turmoil, began to assimilate new ideas about the relationship between the government and society that were not peculiar to them before, linking the concept of the state with the “land”, with the concept of “common benefit”. On the other hand, the Russian political elite was also forced to revise the previous methods of government and build their relations with citizens on the basis of taking into account public interests, common “zemstvo” benefits. The article substantiates the methodologically important position that it is from the events of the Turmoil that it is possible to start the formation of a new understanding of the state and state power in Russian society in their modern meaning. The author of the article leads to the idea that it was these changes in the consciousness of the masses and the behavior of the elite that became decisive for the country’s exit from the Turmoil, at the same time drawing a parallel with the Byzantine model of power, the stability of which in times of crisis was also explained by the presence of a unique state structure that connected the rigid monarchical vertical and the horizontal of developed self-government.

AGGRESSION AGAINST GEORGIA AND UKRAINE: CONTEXT AND PARALLELS

AGGRESSION AGAINST GEORGIA AND UKRAINE: CONTEXT AND PARALLELS

Commitment to Carbon Neutrality

The economic and political processes taking place at the global level, aimed at reducing the negative impact of the anthropogenic factor on the environment, have a significant impact on the foreign and domestic policy of the Russian Federation and can serve both as a basis for strengthening the country’s international political influence and global competitiveness, and as a source of serious conflicts. in the international arena and within the Russian political elite. As a turning point that marked the beginning of a new stage in global climate policy, one can consider the so-called Paris Agreement under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, prepared to replace the Kyoto Protocol during the Climate Conference in Paris, adopted by consensus on December 12, 2015 and signed on April 22 2016. The agreement calls for all countries to commit themselves to reducing their emissions and work together to adapt to the impacts of climate change, and encourages countries to strengthen their commitments over time.

Russian Imperial Identity in the Reign of Anna Ioannovna and the Birth of the Petrine Myth

The paper is devoted to the issue of self-identification of the Russian monarchy of the 18th century and its environment. The authorities and elites constantly turned to the symbolic practices of succession to Peter I in the process of acquiring a new imperial identity. They manifested themselves in various forms: legislative acts, calendar, holidays of Peter’s dates, illuminations, etc. The personality of Peter I and adherence to his ideas formed a certain consensus within the political and economic elite, in connection with which the image of the first Russian emperor began to play one of the fundamental roles in the communicative strategies of Russian monarchs of the 18th century. The reign of Anna Ioannovna became a bifurcation point for the mechanism of political self-identification and continuity of the Russian imperial power. In response to the political crisis of 1730, the cult of Peter the Great began to be formed, reflecting the imperial idea of Russia. Anna Ioannovna, taking advantage of the Russian military success in the 1730s, revised the cult to in order to build her own original ideological narrative. It involved emphasizing the empress’s virtues and presenting Russia as the main defender of the Christian world. A subsequent attempt to “debunk” the Petrine cult, on the contrary, led to its strengthening, both among the Russian political elite and a wider strata (guards and officer corps). This finally formed the Petrine myth. The personality of Peter I turned into something transcendent for the political system of the Russian Empire.

Когнитивные механизмы персуазивности политического дискурса

The article deals with the persuasiveness of political discourse from a cognitive perspec-tive. The research object is text units with the semantics of purpose functioning in the contexts of persuasive speech in natural dialogues of the reciprocal-response type. These units were obtained for the study from transcripts of political interviews with representatives of the Russian political elite using the unselected sam-plingmethod. The paper aims to describe cognitive models (frames, situational models) of natural language interaction (and persuasion) in discourse of the argumentative type and to identify cognitive mechanisms. The key concept used is persuasiveness, which, as applied to contexts with the semantics of purpose and viewed from a cognitive perspective, is understood in the paper as a change in the initial knowledge of the addressee or (in the absence of such knowledge) as its formation at the time of communication in the course of interaction, and which is presented as a unidirectional strategic action (as opposed to communicative). Using the methods of discourse analysis and elements of conversational analysis, basing on the principles of frame semantics and sociolinguistics, the author describes the cognitive mechanisms of 6 cognitive models of the persuasive argumentative discourse, including causative and circular, built on the principle of circularcomposition. Each model was studied through selection and detailed consideration of priority cognitive tools. The paper identifies groups of cognitive mechanisms in terms of their functionality, describes options for their inclusionboth in a dialogically directed discourse (within the framework of speech interaction) and in the process of speech as a strategic action performed solely for the purpose of persuasion.

Российская политика поворота на Восток: проблемы и риски

The article addresses the political and economic risks and prospects for the Russian policy of turning to the East, in the context of the new geopolitical situation that has taken shape by the autumn of 2022. The object of the study is the region of East Asia, where Russia possesses significant interests in the spheres of economy, politics and security. Among the risks for the Russian policy of turning to the East the authors mention the lack of experience of Russia’s involvement in the regionalization processes of East Asia, as well as the cautious attitude of certain Asian countries towards Russia as an external player in the region, associated with Russia’s image as a non-Asian country and the West-centric thinking of the Russian political elite. Another risk is an increasingly noticeable tilt in Russia’s Asian policy towards China, both in the economic and political-diplomatic spheres, which is most evident in the increasing dependence of Russian energy export on the Chinese gas markets. Such tilt endangers Russia’s status of a neutral power enjoying a special authority in the region as a country with considerable mediation potential not involved in any of the regional conflicts. Among the recommendations for Russia, the authors mention the necessity for the projects of “coupling” the Greater Eurasia with the infrastructure development in the Asia-Pacific countries, which should be devoid of an ideological commitment and should be based solely on pragmatic considerations. Besides, Russia needs to step up its diplomacy in the multilateral economic and political organizations of the region – the SCO, BRICS, RCEP, the East Asian Summit, as well as think over long-term plans for the development of relations with major Asian partners on bilateral tracks. Finally, it would be desirable to develop the “second track” dialogue with partner countries, both in bilateral and multilateral formats, which would provide a platform for a frank exchange of views against the background of insufficient level of the political contacts. In any case, it is necessary to pursue a meaningful and well-coordinated strategy in the East, based on an accurate understanding of national interests and the effective use of available resources.

Verbal Aggression in Statements Made by the Authorities (based on materials from the “Word of the Year” contests)

This paper sets out the results of a sociolinguistic study of statements made by representatives of the modern Russian political elite, based on materials drawn from Russia’s annual “Word of the Year” competition. The acuteness of the problem of a lack of direct bilateral dialogue between government and society advances the academic task of analyzing the discourse of power and defining its key characteristics, so as to assess the readiness of leading politicians to either establish such a public dialogue, or completely abandon it. The research focused on the phenomenon of verbal aggression and its quest in the statements made by those in power as the paramount verbal attitude, testifying against any orientation towards constructive communication with all parts of society. Semantic analysis of lexical units which have won the “Word of the Year” competition in recent years (words, expressions, phrases extracted from the discourse of power) found indicators of verbal aggression. The statements of the authorities are characterized by the WE/THEY opposition, contraposing Russia to the West, military vocabulary, the contraposition of OURS/THEIRS, pointing to the search for internal “enemies”, substantive and evaluative opposition to the power of the people, sometimes in the form of morally offensive expressions. The results of the analysis indicate the rejection by the authorities of the principle of dialogue and the verbal aggression that arises from this rejection, leading to an increase in social tension in a society divided through the efforts of the political elite into evaluatively polarised “Ours” and “the Others”.

Damsels in distress: Fragile masculinity in digital war

The Russian full-scale invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022 was a culmination of anti-Ukrainian rhetoric that Russian political elite and state-controlled media have been promoting at least since 2013. Apart from accusing Ukraine of being a Neo-Nazi state, pro-Kremlin commentators have espoused a heavily gendered rhetoric describing Ukraine as a loose woman in need of saving by its older brother. Gendered discourse was instrumentalized in Russian foreign policy not only through aggressive masculinity, but also through femininity. The latter, in contrast, sought to downplay the aggressive masculinity associated with fascism and consequently diminish Ukraine’s agency and status compared to Russia. This article offers a taxonomy of feminization rhetoric that shows how different types of gendered constructs influence the success of securitization process. Drawing on empirical material from Russian social networks during the first war in Ukraine in 2014–2016, this article argues against gender’s silencing role but, instead, its central role in influencing every stage of securitization process. Moreover, the author shows how feminization rhetoric paved the way to the legitimation of the current war.

Transformation of the highest political elite in Russia after Peter the Great in the process of “palace coups”

The article is devoted to the study of the transformation of the highest political elite of the Russian Empire after the death of Peter the Great. This is one of the most difficult and dramatic periods in Russian history, called the era of “palace coups”. The main properties of the Russian political elite formed by the reforms of Peter the Great are analyzed, its main features are determined that influenced the nature of the intra-elite struggle and led to the transformation of the highest political elite in Russia. The composition and goals of the main court groups that fought for power under Catherine I, Peter II, Anna Ioannovna are considered in detail. The formation of such bodies as the Supreme Privy Council under Catherine I and the Cabinet of Ministers under Anna Ioannovna and their influence on ensuring the interests and transformation of the highest political elite are analyzed. Attempts to limit royal power by members of the Supreme Privy Council were considered and conclusions were drawn about the reasons for their failure.