{"product_id":"russian-politics-a-very-short-introduction","title":"Russian Politics: A Very Short Introduction","description":"\u003cp\u003eRussia is rarely out of the news. This has been particularly true since it launched the largest war in Europe since World War II when it invaded Ukraine in 2022. Yet Russian politics can be difficult to understand.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIt is powerfully shaped by large, impersonal forces such as geography, and Russia's place in the international political and economic system. At the same time, Russia's formal political institutions, such as the Constitution and electoral procedures, are relatively weak and manipulable compared to those of stable, established democracies. Under these circumstances, powerful leaders such as Mikhail Gorbachev, Boris Yeltsin, and Vladimir Putin represent a source of potential dynamism and change.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis Very Short Introduction provides a guide to understanding Russian Politics that goes beyond the headlines, offering a vivid account of the key forces driving Russian politics. It places Russia in a global context while explaining its internal political development. Several major themes run through the book, including the primacy of the state over society, the role of the so-called \"West,\" which has represented a source of inspiration, of threat, and of competition for generations of Russians, and the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe Soviet collapse brought about dramatic change across multiple spheres, from the nature of the political and economic system to the country's borders and who counted as a citizen. To this day, Russia is still working its way through the consequences of these transformations.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv dir=\"ltr\"\u003eFormat: Paperback\u003cbr\u003ePublished: UK, 2025\u003cbr\u003ePublisher: Oxford University Press Inc\u003cbr\u003ePages: 168\u003cbr\u003eLanguage: English\u003cbr\u003eISBN 10: 0197516025\u003cbr\u003eISBN 13: 9780197516027\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Brian D. Taylor","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50792191394058,"sku":"","price":12.95,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0282\/6066\/3399\/files\/9780197516027.jpg?v=1740226971","url":"https:\/\/www.shakespeareandsons.com\/products\/russian-politics-a-very-short-introduction","provider":"Shakespeare \u0026 Sons Buchhandel GmbH","version":"1.0","type":"link"}