- Docente: Stanislav Tkachenko
- Credits: 4
- SSD: SECS-P/02
- Language: English
- Teaching Mode: Traditional lectures
- Campus: Forli
- Corso: Second cycle degree programme (LM) in Interdisciplinary research and studies on Eastern Europe (cod. 8049)
Learning outcomes
Student is expected to have a deep knowledge of the transformation of Russian economy and regional policy since disintegration of the USSR in 1991, as well as to increase their ability in analysing future trends in development of national economy and regional policy of Russian Federation in mid-term perspective.
Course contents
Day 1. Introduction to the class, explanation of the requirements.
Day 1 and 2. Russian economy in historical perspective
Day 3. Economic and structural reform in Russia since 1991
Day 4. Financial-industrial groups and FDI. Small and medium enterprises in Russian economy
Day 5. Foreign economic policy of Russian Federation. Russia’s membership in WTO
Day 6. EU-Russia economic relations. Energy Dialog
Day 7. Russian regions - overview
Day 8. North-Western Russia and European Union: cooperation and conflicts
Guest lecture: Import substitution in Russia: Strategies and Development for small and medium enterprises.
Dr. Snegur Ekaterina, Ph.D (Political Sciences) from the Sapienza University of Rome,
M.A. The Saint Petersburg State University (International Relations)
Day 9. Case study: Kaliningrad region’s problem in EU-Russia relations. Kaliningrad and EU enlargement.
Day 10. Test: Multiple Choice. Submission of research projects. Students will receive from professor topics for take-home exam (two essays, 5 pages each)
Readings/Bibliography
Day 1 and 2. Russian economy in historical perspective
Obligatory readings:
Anders Aslund and Andrew Kuchins. The Russia Balance Sheet. PIIE & CSIS. April 2009. Introduction. Chapter 1: Russia’s Historical Roots. P. 1-23. (digital folder of the course)
Aron, Leon. Everything You Think You Know About the Collapse of the Soviet Union Is Wrong [http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2011/06/20/everything_you_think_you_know_about_the_collapse_of_the_soviet_union_is_wrong] . In: Foreign Policy, July/August 2011. (digital folder of the course)
Fischer, Stanley. Russia and the Soviet Union then and now. NBER Working paper # 4077, May 1992. (digital folder of the course)
Additional readings:
Javeline, Debra & Sarah Lindemann-Komarova. A Balanced Assessment of Russian Civil Society. In: Journal of International Affairs, Spring/Summer 2010, Vol. 63, No. 2. P. 171-188.
Gaidar, Yegor. Collapse of an Empire: Lessons for Modern Russia. Washington, DC: Brookings Institution Press, 2009. Chapter IV: Cracks in the Foundation: The Soviet Union in the Early 1980s, Chapter VI: Development of the Crisis in the Socialist System. P. 71-200.
Lo, Bobo. 2018. Chutzpah and realism. Vladimir Putin and the making of Russian Foreign Policy. IFRI: Russia/NIS Center.
Millar, James R. Putin and the economy. In: Ed. by Dale R. Herspring. Putin’s Russia: Past Imperfect, Future Uncertain. Rowman&Littlefield Publishers, Inc. 2005. P. 121-140.
Tkachenko, Stanislav. Searching Russia’s economic past for secrets of growth. Russia beyond the Headlines. December 31, 2013. Permanent address of the article: http://rbth.ru/business/2013/12/31/searching_russias_economic_past_for_secrets_of_growth_33045.html
Day 3. Economic and structural reform in Russia since 1991
Obligatory readings:
Anders Aslund and Andrew Kuchins. The Russia Balance Sheet. PIIE & CSIS. April 2009. Chapter 3: Russia’s Economic Revival: Past Recovery, Future Challenges. P. 39-55. (digital folder of the course)
Grigoryev, Leonid. 2016. Russia in the System of Global Economic Relations. Strategic Analysis, Vol. 40, No. 6, pp. 498-512.
Shleifer, Andrei, Daniel Treisman. A Normal Country. NBER Working Paper # 10057, October 2003. http://www.nber.org/papers/w10057 . (digital folder of the course)
Sutela, Peka. Russia’s Economic prospects. Carnegie Endowment, March 28, 2011. (digital folder of the course)
Tkachenko, Stanislav. What can we expect from Russian economy in 2016? Russia Direct, Vol. 4, December 2015 – January 2016, p. 4-9. (digital folder of the course)
Tkachenko, Stanislav L. 2020. BRICS and Development Alternatives. In: ed. by Stefano Bianchini and Antonia Fiori. Rekindling the Strong State in Russia and China: Domestic Dynamics and Foreign Policy Projections. Leiden, Boston: Brill. P. 271-297.
Additional readings:
Aslund, Anders & Andrew Kuchins. Russia: The Balance Sheet. Peterson Institute for International Economics: Washington, D.C., 2009
Connolly, Richard. 2018. Russia's Response to Sanctions: How Western Economic Statecraft is Reshaping Political Economy in Russia. London: Cambridge University Press. 244 p.
Kuchins Andrew and Richard Weitz. Russia’s Place in an Unsettled Order - Calculations in the Kremlin. The Stanley Foundation, Working paper, November 2008. (digital folder of the course)
Remington, Thomas. 10 explanations for Russia’s coming fiscal squeeze. The Washington Post, February 13, 2014. Permanent address of the article is: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/monkey-cage/wp/2014/02/13/10-explanations-for-russias-coming-fiscal-squeeze/The State of the Russian Economy. Russian Analytical Digest, # 38 , April 2nd, 2008. Available at: http://www.res.ethz.ch/analysis/rad/details.cfm?lng=en&id=49890
Tkachenko, Stanislav. Russian ruble roller coaster journey. Russia Direct, August 3, 2015. Available at: http://www.russia-direct.org/opinion/russian-ruble-roller-coaster-journey
Tkachenko, Stanislav. 2016. How the Russian economy changed in 2016. RussiaDirect, December 29th, 2016. Available at: http://www.russia-direct.org/opinion/how-russian-economy-changed-2016
Day 4. Financial-industrial groups and FDI. Small and medium enterprises in Russian economy
Obligatory readings:
Kazun, Anton. 2015. Violent Corporate Raiding in Russia: Preconditions and Protective Factors. Demokratizatsiya: The Journal of Post-Soviet Democratization. Vol. 23 (4) Fall, p. 459-484. (digital folder of the course)
Russia 2010. Report on Transformation. VI Europe-Russia Forum. Eastern Institute, Warsaw, 2010. (digital folder of the course)
Tkachenko, Stanislav. 2014. What you need to know about Russia’s Innovative Economy? Russia Direct Quarterly Report. # 6. September 2014. P. 6-13.
Tkachenko, Stanislav. 2019. Environment and social policy during marker reforms: comparative analysis of Russia and India. In: Chatterjww, Monalisa and Ekaterina Svyatets. Environmental Issues and policy: Exploring past, present and future socioecological relations. San Diego, CA: Cognelia, p. 40-56.
Additional readings:
Hopf, Ted. 'Crime is Ours:' A Discursive History. Department of Political Science, National University of Singapore. January 2016. (digital folder of the course)
Guriev, Sergei and Andrei Rachinsky. The Role of Oligarchs in Russian Capitalism. The Journal of Economic Perspectives, Vol. 19, No. 1, Winter 2005, p. 131-150. (digital folder of the course)
Rutland, Peter. The Oligarchs and Economic Development. In: Ed. by Stephen K. Wegren and Dale R. Herspring. After Putin’s Russia: past Imperfect, Future Uncertain. Boulder: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc. 2009. P.159-182.
Shevtsova, Lilia. Russia – Lost in Transition. The Yeltsin and Putin Legacies. Washington, DC: Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.2007. 118-148.
Tuminez, Astrid S. (2000). Hobbling Along: Russian Banking Reform [http://www.csis.org/ruseura/ponars/policymemos/pm_0105.pdf]. CSIS Policy memo. http://www.csis.org/ruseura/ponars/policymemos/pm_0105.pdf
Day 5. Foreign economic policy of Russian Federation. Russia’s membership in WTO
Obligatory readings:
Foreign Trade and Investment Climate. . Russian Analytical Digest, # 111, April 2, 2012. (digital folder of the course)
Russia and WTO Accession. Russian Analytical Digest, # 24, July 3, 2007. Available at: http://www.res.ethz.ch/analysis/rad/details.cfm?lng=en&id=32675
Tkachenko, Stanislav. 2018. The Political Economy of Russian Information & Communication Technologies. PONARS Eurasia Policy Memo No. 533. June. http://www.ponarseurasia.org/sites/default/files/policy-memos-pdf/Pepm533_Tkachenko_June2018.pdf
Tkachenko, Stanislav. 2020. Development Diplomacy of the Russian Federation. In: ed. by A. Velikaya and G. Simons. Russia’s Public Diplomacy: Evolution and Practice. London: Palgrave Macmillan, p. 61-78.
Additional readings:
Anders Aslund and Andrew Kuchins. The Russia Balance Sheet. PIIE & CSIS. April 2009. Chapter 5: International Economic Integration, Trade policy, and Investment. P. 69-82.
Liuhto, Kari. Genesis of Economic Nationalism in Russia. Electronic publications of the Pan-European Institute 2008-2009, # 3/2008. ISSN 1795-5076. www.tse.fi/pei
Day 6. EU-Russia economic relations. Energy Dialog
Obligatory readings:
Anders Aslund and Andrew Kuchins. The Russia Balance Sheet. PIIE & CSIS. April 2009. Chapter 4: Policy on Oil and Gas. P. 57-68. (digital folder of the course)
Liuhto, Kari. Energy in Russian Foreign Policy. Electronic Publications of Pan-European Institute 10/2010. (digital folder of the course)
Pursiainen, Christer. Russia between integration and protectionism: International road transport, ports, and the forestry sector. Nordregio Working Paper 2007:2. Stokckholm, Sweden. (digital folder of the course)
Tkachenko, Stanislav. Actors in Russia’s Energy Policy towards the EU. In: Ed. by Pami Aalto.The EU-Russian energy dialogue: Europe’s future energy security. Aldershot: Ashgate, 2008. P. 163-192.
Additional readings:
EU Energy Security and Solidarity Action Plan: 2nd Strategic Energy Review. MEMO/08/703. Brussels, November 13th, 2008.
Gomart, Thomas. Europe in Russian Foreign Policy: Important but mo longer Pivotal. IFRI: Russia/NIS Centre, May 2010. (digital folder of the course)
Rahr, Alexander. Germany and Russia: Special Relationship. Washington Quarterly, Spring 2007. Vol. 30, No. 2, pp. 137-145. (digital folder of the course)
Russia’s New Energy Frontiers. Russian Analytical Digest, # 33, January 22, 2008. Available at: http://www.res.ethz.ch/analysis/rad/details.cfm?lng=en&id=46479
Russian Federation. Country Strategy Paper 2007-2013. European Commission. 2006.
Day 7. Russian regions - overview
Obligatory readings:
Ledeneva, Alena, Stanislav Shekshnia. Doing Business in Russian Regions: Informal Practices and Anti-Corruption Strategies. IFRI: Russia/NIS Centre, March 2011. (digital folder of the course)
Petrov, Nikolai & Darrell Slider. The Regions under Putin and After. In: Ed. by Stephen K. Wegren and Dale R. Herspring. After Putin’s Russia: past Imperfect, Future Uncertain. Boulder: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc. 2009. P. 59-82.
Starodubtsev, Andrey. Federalism and Regional Policy in Contemporary Russia. Routledge: 2018.
Additional readings:
Alexandrov, Oleg B., and Andrey S. Makarychev. On the Way to Globalization: Administrative and Networking Strategies of Russia’s Regions. Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Zurich. Working Paper no. 19, 2002. Available at http://cms.isn.ch/public/docs/doc_444_290_en.pdf
Solnik, Steve. Putin and the Provinces. CSIS Policy Memo No. 115. Available at: http://www.csis.org/ruseura/ponars/policymemos/pm_0115.pdf
Wallander, Celeste. Russian Transimperialism and its Implications. Washington Quarterly, Vol. 30, No. 2, Spring 2007. P. 107-22. (digital folder of the course)
Смирнягин Л.В., Бусыгина И.М. Российский федерализм. Electronic publications of the Institute of Europe of Russian Academy of Sciences. (digital folder of the course)
Day 8. North-Western Russia and European Union: cooperation and conflicts
Obligatory readings:
Petrov, Nikolay. 2005. The Implications of Centre-Region Politics for Russia’s North-west Border Regions. In: Ed. by Oksana Antonenko and Kathryn Pinnick. Russia and the European Union: Prospects for a new Relationship. Routledge and IISS: London. P. 133-154.
Tkachenko S. Regionalization of Russian Foreign Policy: The Case of St.Petersburg. Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Zurich. Working Paper no. 21, 2002. Available at http://cms.isn.ch/public/docs/doc_448_290_en.pdf
Tkachenko, Stanislav. 2019. Cooperation between Saint-Petersburg and Finland. Some recommendations for the policy-makers. Baltic Sea Region Policy Briefing series, No. 1. Turku: CentrumBalticum Foundation. ISSN: 2342-3153, p. 1-18.
Additional readings:
Kaartemo, Valterri, Nikita Lisitsyn & Kaisa-Kerttu Peltola Innovation structure in St.Petersburg – Attractiveness from the Finnish managerial perspective. Electronic publications of the Pan-European Institute 2008, # 14/2009. ISSN 1795-5076. www.tse.fi/pei
Liuhto, Kari. Special Economic Zones in Russia – What do the zones offer for foreign firms? Electronic Publications of Pan-European Institute 2/2009 www.tse.fi/pei (digital folder of the course)
Tkachenko Stanislav and Tkachenko Dmitry. Progress of the Special Economic Zones in North-West Russia. Baltic Rim Economies. Bimonthly Review. June 2010. Expert article 535. P. 28. www.tse.fi/pei (digital folder of the course)
Vandoren, Paul. Regional cooperation, that works: The EU’s Northern Dimension Policy. In: Baltic Rim Economies, No. 1, February 27th, 2009. P. 13. www.tse.fi/pei
Day 9. Case study: Kaliningrad region’s problem in EU-Russia relations. Kaliningrad and EU enlargement.
Obligatory readings:
Klemeshev, Andrey and Gennady Fedorov. A Regional Strategy for Kaliningrad. (as well as articles of Hans Jeppson, Natalia Smorodinskaya) In: Ed. by Oksana Antonenko and Kathryn Pinnick. Russia and the European Union: Prospects for a new Relationship. Routledge and IISS: London, 2005. P. 243-281.
Additional readings:
Bort, E. Illegal Migration and Cross-Border Crime: Challenges at the Eastern Frontier of the European Union. San Domenico: Robert Schuman Center for Advanced Studies. EUI Working Paper (RSC no. 2000/9), 2000.
Commission of the European Communities. The EU and Kaliningrad. Communication from the Commission to the Council. COM (2001) 26, final. Brussels, 17 January 2001.
Teaching methods
The course of lectures dealing with transformation of Russian economy and regional policy since disintegration of the USSR in 1991, as well as with analysis of future trends in development of national economy and regional policy of Russian Federation in mid-term perspective.
In first part of the course, lecturer gives a political economy’s analysis of debate about history, current state and future of Russian socio-economic system and characteristics of transformation of national economy from central planning system to market-based system nowadays. Key sectors of Russian economy (energy, telecom, defense industry, as well as macroeconomic policy, monetary policy, financial markets), and key economic partner of Russia in world economy (the European Union, Commonwealth of Independent States, USA and Pacific Rim countries) will be discussed.
Second part of the course is devoted to establishment and functioning of current structure of interregional relations inside Russia between “federal center” and 85 regions. This structure has both elements of federal state, as well as a unitary state under strong control economic and political life by the Presidential Administration and Government of Russia. Several case-studies, including St.Petersburg and Kaliningrad region, will give students better understanding of the structure under analysis during second part of the course.
Assessment methods
You can get 30 points at the course:
Multiple choices test – maximum 7 points
Research project (should be done during course time-limits) – maximum 9 points
Exam essays (take-home, 30 days for writing two essays) – maximum 14 points (7 points each essay).
Teaching tools
Lectures, case-studies, guest lecture, research project and discussion on literature
Office hours
See the website of Stanislav Tkachenko