The Putin Paradox

Description

Vladimir Putin has emerged as one of the key leaders of the twenty-first century. However, he is also recognized as one of the most divisive. Abroad, his assertion of Russia's interests and critique of the western-dominated international system has brought him into conflict with Atlantic powers. Within Russia, he has balanced various factions within the elite intelligentsia alongside the wider support of Russian society. So what is the 'Putin paradox?' Richard Sakwa grapples with Putin's personal and political development on both the international political scene and within the domestic political landscape of Russia. This study historicizes the Putin paradox, through theoretical, historical and political analysis and in light of wider developments in Russian society. Richard Sakwa presents the Putin paradox as a unique regime type - balancing numerous contradictions - in order to adapt to its material environment while maintaining sufficient authority with which to shape it. Cover Half Title Title Copyright Dedication Contents Tables Preface Acknowledgements Abbreviations 1 Putin and his Times From kommunalka to the Kremlin The many Putins The post-Cold War context The democracy paradox 2 State, Society and Regime The birth of the regime-state The meta-factions of Russian society The dual state and neo-patrimonialism Reform, transition and beyond 3 Putin and Politics The state of exception and regionalism Putin and the past Anti-revolution as a political practice Putin’s statecraft Stasis, or the developmental impasse 4 Politics and the Third State Regime reset The third state and meta-corruption The third state and micro-factionalism 5 Managed Capitalism State and market Economic performance and plans Powering Putinism Sanctions and their effect 6 From Partner to Adversary: Russia and the West The clash of post-Cold War world orders The logic of Russian foreign policy A new era of confrontation 7 Recreating the Heartland: Eurasian Partnerships Eurasian integration in perspective The post-Atlantic world Putin’s Asian gambit: Escape from confrontation? Global Russia 8 The Winds of Change Towards Putin’s fourth term The return of politics The 2018 presidential election Challenges of Putin’s fourth term 9 The Putin Phenomenon Putin’s people and power Is Putin an ism? Putin’s grand strategy 10 Paradoxes of Putinism When success means failure Towards the succession Russia without Putin Notes 1 Putin and his Times 2 State, Society and Regime 3 Putin and Politics 4 Politics and the Third State 5 Managed Capitalism 6 From Partner to Adversary: Russia and the West 7 Recreating the Heartland: Eurasian Partnerships 8 The Winds of Change 9 The Putin Phenomenon 10 Paradoxes of Putinism Bibliography Index