Wednesday, June 7
“Foreign Agents”: From Stigmatization to Demonization
Maxim Krupskiy writes about how an existential threat narrative towards “foreign agents” is formed in Russia, explains how it relates to the new Concept of Russian Foreign Policy and what goals the Putin's regime is trying to achieve by expanding the “foreign agents” legislation.
Sunday, June 4
Ukrainian Raid into Russian Territory Exacerbating Shortage of Russian Military Resources
Nikolay Mitrokhin writes that Ukraine’s recent foray into Russian territory aims to divert manpower and equipment from the main theater of war and create an image of Russians leading the attack. The Russian volunteers who were involved are far-right extremists who fled Russia for Ukraine after committing serious violent crimes.
Tuesday, May 30
United Russia and Partial Mobilization
Ilya Kalinin looks at the issues that the Russian regime has encountered during the war with Ukraine and sees a paradoxical internal challenge that makes victory costlier for this power than defeat.
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Tuesday, June 6
The Russian Government’s Imaginary Bridge to the Future
Nikolai Petrov analyzes the recent visit to China by a Russian government delegation and Moscow’s latest plans for technological sovereignty. He deems the former disappointing and the latter unattainable.
Thursday, May 25
Kremlin Tries to Minimize Sanctions Damage and Maintain Control Over Alrosa
Nikolai Petrov takes Alrosa, one of Russia’s biggest commodity companies, to show how sanctions are forcing the Kremlin to make certain personnel decisions and change its tax policy.
Monday, May 15
The Rise of Prigozhin and the ‘Donbasization’ of Russia
Nikolai Petrov writes that Yevgeny Prigozhin, the founder of Wagner, is increasingly visible in the public space, reflecting the migration to Russia of the gangster norms and practices that have developed in the Eastern Donbas since 2014.
Monday, June 5
‘There Will Be no Collapses, but Rather a Viscous, Slow Sinking into Backwardness’
Natalia Zubarevich talks about the labor shortage in Russia, the trends in labor migration within the country, how resource exports are being redirected to China, how compensation from the state is helping to get men to sign up, and how Russians, unable to change anything, are building barriers between themselves and the war.
Wednesday, May 31
Russians Voicing Support for ‘Special Operation’ while Empathizing with Mobilization Dodgers
Vladimir Zvonovsky writes about the implications of Russians’ readiness to fight, in word and in deed, and about their attitudes toward fellow citizens who are trying to avoid being sent to Ukraine.
Friday, May 26
A Dead End for Russia’s War Economy
Vadim Grishin writes that Russia’s better than expected economic performance over the past year is misleading and describes the grave challenges that lie ahead and the Kremlin’s limited options.
Tuesday, May 23
‘Almost All Famous Artists Have Left or Will Leave, and Those Who Remain Will Be Blacklisted and Banned’
Artemy Troitsky discusses the pop music scene since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and compares it to Soviet ideological constraints and repressions. In his view, today’s situation is more toxic than it was back in the 1980s.
Thursday, May 18
How the ‘90s Have Become a Source of Inspiration for Pop Artists 
Maria Engström looks at the cultural recycling of the 1990s in contemporary Russian popular culture which works with mass things, trashy, insignificant and previously rejected, such as the shabby Khrushchevka housing, bad music, all kinds of kitsch, and dubious political ideas.
Saturday, April 22
Can music help Russians unite against the regime?
The authors explore how opposition-minded Russian musicians navigate the minefield laid by the increasingly authoritarian regime and offer a tentative basis for broader social solidarity against repression.
Thursday, June 1
Can One Expect a Peaceful Restructuring of the Russian Federation?
Guzel Yusupova explains that the war in Ukraine might lead to demands for greater autonomy from Russia’s regions and argues that the ethnic factor may be just one precipitating a restructuring of Russia.
Saturday, April 15
Who is helping domestic violence victims in Russia
Anna Zueva looked into private shelters in Tomsk, Nizhny Novgorod and outside Moscow to find out what kind of help women get there and what challenges the organizations face. The biggest problem, she claims, is that the Russian state does not recognize domestic violence as a problem.
Saturday, March 4
Polarization in Siberia: Thwarted Indigeneity and Sovereignty
Marjorie Mandelstam Balzer updates her monograph Galvanizing Nostalgia? to explore why many in the republics are against Russia’s war in Ukraine. Drawing on long-term fieldwork in Sakha, Tyva and Buryatia and with diaspora communities, she outlines an uneven legacy of revitalization and grievances in relation to the Kremlin and its policies.
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