PONARS Eurasia
  • About
    • Contact
    • List of Members
  • Policy Memos
    • List of Policy Memos
  • Podcast
  • Online Academy
  • Events
    • Past Events
  • Recommended
Contacts
Address 1957 E St NW, Washington, DC 20052 adminponars@gwu.edu 202.994.5915
NEWSLETTER
Facebook
Twitter
YouTube
Podcast
PONARS Eurasia
PONARS Eurasia
  • About
    • Contact
    • List of Members
  • Policy Memos
    • List of Policy Memos
  • Podcast
  • Online Academy
  • Events
    • Past Events
  • Recommended
DIGITAL RESOURCES
digital resources

Bookstore 📚

Knowledge Hub

Course Syllabi

Point & Counterpoint

Policy Perspectives

RECOMMENDED
  • COVID-19 in Eurasia: PONARS Eurasia Policy Perspectives

    View
  • Preparing for the Parliamentary Elections of 2021: Russian Politics and Society (Gel’man, Lankina, Semenov, Smyth, and more)

    View
  • Russians supported Putin’s moves in Crimea in 2014. Here’s what’s different in 2021

    View
  • Putin’s Rules of the Game: The Pitfalls of Russia’s New Constitution

    View
  • In the Caucasus, There Is a Peace Agreement but Not Peace

    View
RSS PONARS Eurasia Podcast
  • Music and Politics in Contemporary Russia [Lipman Series 2021] April 12, 2021
    In this week's PONARS Eurasia Podcast, Maria Lipman chats with Alexander Gorbachev about the dynamic music scene in contemporary Russia, and how free Russian musicians are to make political statements.
  • How is the Russian Government Coping with Rising Food Prices? [Lipman Series 2021] March 15, 2021
    In this week's PONARS Eurasia Podcast, Maria Lipman chats with Anton Tabakh about rising food prices in Russia, and what they might mean for Russia's current and future stability.
  • The Communist Party of the Russian Federation: More Than Just Systemic Opposition? [Lipman Series 2021] March 5, 2021
    In this week's episode of the PONARS Eurasia Podcast, Maria Lipman chats with Felix Light and Nikolay Petrov about the contemporary Communist Party of the Russian Federation, including the divisions between its leadership and membership, its attitude toward Alexei Navalny, and why it might be more than just "systemic" opposition after all.
  • Internet Resources: Civic Communication and State Surveillance [Lipman Series 2021] February 16, 2021
    In this week's PONARS Eurasia Podcast, Maria Lipman chats with Andrei Soldatov and Tanya Lokot about the role of the internet in contemporary Russian politics, including both as a tool of the Russian opposition and as an instrument of the increasingly repressive Russian regime.
  • The Rise of Alexei Navalny's Political Stature and Mass Protest in Russia [Lipman Series 2021] February 1, 2021
    In the first PONARS Eurasia Podcast of 2021, Maria Lipman chats with Greg Yudin about the current protests taking place in Russia, and what Alexei Navalny's growing popular support means for the Putin regime.
  • Russian Social Policy in the COVID-19 Era [Lipman Series 2020] December 21, 2020
    In 2020’s final episode of the PONARS Eurasia Podcast, Maria Lipman chats with Sarah Wilson Sokhey and Ella Paneyakh to discuss Russian social policy in the COVID-19 era, and public perception of Russia’s overall pandemic response.
  • Conscious Parenting Practices in Contemporary Russia [Lipman Series 2020] December 10, 2020
    In this week's episode of the PONARS Eurasia Podcast, Maria Lipman chats with Julia Yuzbasheva and Maria Danilova to learn more about the proliferation of "conscious parenting" practices in contemporary Russian society.
  • The Transformation of Belarussian Society [Lipman Series 2020] November 11, 2020
    In this episode of the PONARS Eurasia Podcast, Masha Lipman chats with Grigory Ioffe about the long-term and short-term factors that led up to the current protests in Belarus, and the ongoing transformation of Belarussian society.
  • Russian Lawmakers Adjust National Legislation to the Revised Constitutional Framework [Lipman Series 2020] October 26, 2020
    In this week’s PONARS Eurasia Podcast, Maria Lipman chats with Ben Noble and Nikolay Petrov about ongoing changes to Russia’s national legislation based on the recently revised constitutional framework, and what these changes portend for the 2021 Duma election.
  • Russia's Regional Elections [Lipman Series 2020] September 25, 2020
    In this week’s PONARS Eurasia Podcast, Maria Lipman chats with Graeme Robertson and Konstantin Gaaze about Russia’s September 13 regional elections and whether or not the Kremlin should be worried about upcoming Duma elections.
  • Recommended | Рекомендуем

New Policy Memo: “Nationalization of the Elites” and its Impact on Russian Foreign Policy

  • June 14, 2013
  • Viatcheslav Morozov

One of the consequences of Russia’s recent political foment has been a phenomenon experts have labeled “nationalization of the elites.” The goal of the policy, which Vladimir Putin launched soon after his return to the presidency, was to reduce the odds that public servants and politicians would have multiple allegiances making them less loyal to the Kremlin. The most conspicuous element of the policy has been a recently adopted law banning government officials from owning financial assets abroad and establishing a requirement that they declare all real estate outside of Russia. This has been accompanied by a more infamous crackdown on the liberal part of civil society, perceived as a fifth column acting on behalf of the West.

The “nationalization of the elites” has multiple implications, mostly for the domestic balance of power within the Russian ruling class. This memo addresses the potential foreign policy consequences of “nationalization.” I argue that the phenomenon relies on an intensified hostility toward the West as the main external “other” in Russian identity politics. However, the very intensity of this antagonism points to the fact that Russia is dependent on the West and unable to sustain total isolation. Accordingly, the authorities’ harsh rhetoric is primarily a tool for achieving domestic political goals; it does not imply aggressive intentions in the international arena that would truly isolate Russia. That said, spontaneous aggression resulting from a new domestic crisis cannot be excluded.

“Nationalization of the Elites” and its Impact on Russian Foreign Policy

PONARS Eurasia Policy Memo No. 251

by Viatcheslav Morozov

June 2013

View the Policy Memo (PDF)

Viatcheslav Morozov
Viatcheslav Morozov
Website | + posts
Professor, EU–Russia Studies
Affiliation

University of Tartu, Estonia
Links

University of Tartu (Bio)
Expertise

Democracy, Identity and Nationalism, Ideology and Discourses, EU-Russia relations
  • Viatcheslav Morozov
    https://www.ponarseurasia.org/members/viatcheslav-morozov/
    Why Would the Kremlin Root for Bernie Sanders? Mistrust of Mass Politics and the Outward Projection of Domestic Insecurities
  • Viatcheslav Morozov
    https://www.ponarseurasia.org/members/viatcheslav-morozov/
    Why Russia’s Strategic Deception Is Popular: The Cultural Appeal of the Trickster
  • Viatcheslav Morozov
    https://www.ponarseurasia.org/members/viatcheslav-morozov/
    Russia and the "West's Rules": On the Cultural Aspects of Great Power Misconduct
  • Viatcheslav Morozov
    https://www.ponarseurasia.org/members/viatcheslav-morozov/
    Russia’s Internal Otherness – Analysis
Related Topics
  • Morozov
  • Russia
Previous Article
  • Policy Memos | Аналитика

“Nationalization of the Elites” and its Impact on Russian Foreign Policy

  • June 14, 2013
  • Viatcheslav Morozov
View
Next Article
  • Policy Memos | Аналитика

The Russian Military under Sergei Shoigu: Will the Reform Continue?

  • June 14, 2013
  • Dmitry Gorenburg
View
You May Also Like
View
  • Recommended | Рекомендуем

COVID-19 in Eurasia: PONARS Eurasia Policy Perspectives

  • PONARS Eurasia
  • April 19, 2021
View
  • Recommended | Рекомендуем

Preparing for the Parliamentary Elections of 2021: Russian Politics and Society (Gel’man, Lankina, Semenov, Smyth, and more)

  • Robert Orttung
  • April 14, 2021
View
  • Recommended | Рекомендуем

Russians supported Putin’s moves in Crimea in 2014. Here’s what’s different in 2021

  • Timothy Frye
  • April 13, 2021
View
  • Recommended | Рекомендуем

Putin’s Rules of the Game: The Pitfalls of Russia’s New Constitution

  • Brian Taylor
  • April 12, 2021
View
  • Recommended | Рекомендуем

In the Caucasus, There Is a Peace Agreement but Not Peace

  • Georgi Derluguian
  • April 10, 2021
View
  • Recommended | Рекомендуем

Russia’s Niche Soft Power: Sources, Targets and Channels of Influence

  • Marlene Laruelle
  • April 8, 2021
View
  • Recommended | Рекомендуем

A Weak Link in NATO? Bulgaria, Russia, and the Lure of Espionage

  • Mark Kramer
  • April 6, 2021
View
  • Recommended | Рекомендуем

Russia’s Weak Strongman: The Perilous Bargains That Keep Putin in Power

  • Timothy Frye
  • April 5, 2021

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

PONARS Eurasia
  • About
  • Membership
  • Policy Memos
  • Recommended
  • Events

Permissions & Citation Guidelines

Input your search keywords and press Enter.