Political science

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Философия Philosophy
Политология Political science
История Historical science

 
Kirill Benediktov
Russia–France: Possible Conservative Alliance? (№ 3, 2015)

The article studies the possible Russian-French alliance retrospectively and analyses its fundamental features. The main assumption is that France is one of the two Western European countries that could build a strategic alliance with Russia, with Germany being the other one. Starting from it, the author shows that only shared values could provide a solid foundation for an effective alliance. Otherwise the alliance between Russia and the leading European country would be at best tactical, rather than strategic. While there are few, if any, shared values with Germany following the forced transformation of the German cultural code in the wake of the WWII, relations with France have evolved differently. With conservative values shared by most Russians and Frenchmen, the ideological proximity brings the two countries closer. Nowadays some French politicians regard Russia as a guardian and a stronghold of traditional European values that have fallen prey to globalization and are ousted by the aggressive Anglo-Saxon civilization and its model. The sympathizers include intellectuals that form the political agenda and shape public opinion. Others are political activists, mobilizing the electorate. Marine Le Pen, the president of the French National Front, is the most favorably disposed towards Russia among European politicians. The examples of the National Front and its leader reveal the attitude of French conservatives towards Russia. As seen from France, Russia is returning to its roots, so French conservatives regard the resurgence of the Russian Orthodox Church, the formal LGBT propaganda ban and other events as the signs of a titanic battle between the living European Christian tradition endorsed by both France and Russia and the post-Christian and anti-Christian world based on the Anglo-Saxon globalization concept. They also interpret them as signals for possible ideological rapprochement.
Keywords: France, Russia, Alliance, Values, Conservatism, National Front, Marine Le Pen.

Paul Grenier
Russian Conservatism and its Reception the West through the Prism of Ideological Liberalism (№ 3, 2015)

The author focuses attention, first, on the poor reception in the West of Russia’s current attempt to define its national idea by reference to its own pre-communist philosophical tradition. He demonstrates that this negative reception, however, is conditioned by what may, optimistically, be temporary political-ideological exigencies, at a period when very little that is associated with the Russian leadership is able to get a fair or warm reception in mainstream U.S. publications. The author points out that the Russian religious philosophical tradition was widely considered admirable and constructive in the West prior to 2014. At present, however, the typical approach in the U.S. and European press is to contrast Russian realpolitik policies with abstract Western ideals rather than Western realpolitik policies. Meanwhile, the very existence of legitimate Russian ideals is dismissed. The author then turns his attention to Russia’s present efforts to define its own ideals in a conservative vein. He suggests that this effort demands a careful definition of categories and to this end distinguishes between ideological and non-ideological brands of both conservatism and liberalism. He urges Russia’s intellectual leadership to embrace the whole of its tradition (i.e. the best of its tradition) rather than only a part. He notes a tendency by Russian conservatism to privilege what in Plato’s Republic were the virtues of the Guardians (as opposed to the Traders). But the Russian heritage incorporates, according to the author, both liberal and conservative elements, even as it is ultimately grounded in а realm that lies beyond liberalism and conservatism.
Keywords: International Relations, Realism, Barack Obama, Demagogy, Liberalism, Conservatism, Ideology, Russian national idea, N. Berdyaev, G. Fedotov, V. Solovyov, I. Ilyin, Pierre Manent, Jane Jacobs, Plato’s Republic.

Mikhail Ilyin
A Diaologue about Islands and Straits, Intermarums and Intermunds (№ 1, 2015)

Mikhail Ilyin reviews main subjects of scholarly debate between himself and Vadim Tzimburski since early 90s when they both were promoting geopolitical and chronopolitical studies in new Russia. The debate focused on five major issues: character of geopolitics, links between geopolitics and chronopolitics, geopolitics of Russia (Eurasia), limitrophe areas around Russia and particularly Balto-Pontida. Very clear and coherent differences between both analysts would not undermine their essential agreement on basis issues and would not prevent their co-authorship. Furthermore, disagreements were complementary. Even now they continue to inspire further investigations.
Keywords: geopolitics, chronopolitics, Russia-Eurasia, Island of Russia, Heartland, limitrophe areas, Balto-Pontida, Balto-Pontic system.

Leonid Ionin
Projects of Total Democracy: Power of Referendums, E-Democracy, “One Man – One Vote” (№ 3, 2015)

This work regards total democracy as a commitment to solving problems and dealing with contradictions in modern representative democracies through maximizing equality and granting the public with direct access to the mechanisms of social control. The paper considers the proposals to create a “community” run by referendums, to establish online democracy, and to improve the egalitarian principle of “one man – one vote”. It also analyses the sociological and epistemological basis of these models. It draws a conclusion that the conservative approach is more promising, that is the use of the mechanisms elaborated at the earlier, relatively distant stages of political development, the use of mechanisms which take into account diverse particular features of the political process.
Keywords: Public Opinion, Referendum, Scientific Knowledge, Common Knowledge, Qualifications, Classes, Universalism, Particularism.

Andrey Ivanov
The Slogan “Russia for Russians” in Conservative Thought in the Second Half of the XIX Century (№ 4, 2015)

The article studies the origin of the slogan “Russia for Russians” and its conservative interpretations in the second half of the XIX century. The study is based on numerous works, most of which have never been previously used. The author analyzes the attitude to the slogan “Russia for Russians” of well-known conservatives, such as Emperor Alexander III, V. Skaryatin, I. Aksakov, M. Katkov, M. Skobelev, S. Syromyatnikov, V. Rozanov, A. Suvorin and others.
Keywords: “Russia for Russians”, Russian Conservatism, Russian Nationalism, Pan-Slavism, Emperor Alexander III.

Alexei Kharin
The First Book about the Great Geopolitician (№ 1, 2015)

The article is devoted to the intellectual biography V.L. Tsymbursky, written by a political scientist B.V. Mezhuev. In the monograph, Mezhuev succeeded to show basic landmarks of work and the main ideas of the thinker, as well as to determine the value of Tsymbursky’s works. Separate positions cause a discussion, but on the whole the book turned out well.
Keywords: B.V. Mezhuev, V.L. Tsymbursky, “the Island of Russia”, Great Limitrophe, geopolitics, chronopolitics, civilization.

Stanislav Khatuntsev
Vadim Tsymbursky, a Russian Geopolitician (№ 1, 2015)

The article covers geopolitical conceptualization of a prominent Russian philologist, cultural philosopher, thinker, and political writer V.L. Tsymbursky, in particular, his “Island Russia” model, the concepts of “Euronapping” and of the Great Limitroph; as well as their criticism, the author’s opinion of some problems brought up by Tsymbursky. The category of limitrophic spaces is supplemented with the category of limbic territories.
Keywords: V.L. Tsymbursky, “Island Russia”, geopolitics, civilization approach, civilization geopolitics, internal geopolitics of Russia, “Euronapping”, Great Limitrophe, limb, transfer of the capital city.

Stanislav Khatuntsev
“Preserving the Future”: Konstantin Leontiev’s Seven Geopolitical Pillars (№ 4, 2015)

This article analyses the issues related to the “seven pillars” approach, K. Leontiev’s set of ideas about the new «Eastern Slavic culture», and his geopolitical ideas.
Keywords: Heptastylism (Seven Pillars), Anatolism, K. Leontiev, Geopolitics, “Eastern Question”, Constantinople, “Eastern Union”, Russian History, Russian Post-Reform Political Thinking, Historiosophy.

Aleksey Kozhevnikov
Russia’s Present and Future in A. Solzhenitsyn’s and I. Shafarevich’s Works: “From Under the Rubble” Collection (1974) (№ 4, 2015)

The article analyzes A. Solzhenitsyn’s and I. Shafarevich’s political essays. Solzhenitsyn’s and Shafarevich’s articles, published in the “From Under the Rubble” collection, dwelt on the historical problems and development of the Russian nation.
Keywords: A. Solzhenitsyn, I. Shafarevich, “From Under the Rubble” Collection, Russian National Values, Historical Problems of the Russian Nation, Development of the Russian Nation.

Yegor Kholmogorov
Searching for Lost Tsargrad: Tsymbursky and Danilevsky (№ 1, 2015)

The article analyzes how Nikolay Danilevsky’s geopolitical ideas influenced Vadim Tsymbursky, and reveals the similarities and differences in the approaches of both thinkers to Russia’s internal and external geopolitics. Their ideas critically underline vulnerable points of each other’s concepts. Разбираются Danilevsky’s nationalism, pan-Slavism and the programme of the struggle for Constantinople are observed, as well as Tsymbursky’s ideas of «Island Russia», limitrophe zone, internal colonization, and his attention to the region of Novorossia. The author comes to a conclusion that the key problems stated by Danilevsky and Tsymbursky don’t have a solely geopolitical solution and demand the transition to chronopolitics, the consideration of civilizations not only as geographical, but also as historical and cultural integrals.
Keywords: Danilevsky; Tsymbursky; geopolitics; Constantinople; pan-Slavism; nationalism; “Island Russia”; civilization; limitrophe; Siberia; internal colonization; Novorossia; Konstantin Leontiev; chronopolitics; Byzantium.

Olga Malinova
The Conservatives and Collective Memory: Cultivating a Repertoire of Politically Usable Past (№ 3, 2014)

The paper analyses a development of “infrastructure” of a usable past in post-Soviet Russia. It argues that the latter is both a resource and a matter of symbolic investments for the ruling elite. It concludes that after more than 20 years after the collapse of the USSR the repertoire of the usable past remains rather scarce, and “memory policy” is still far from being consistent. The paper supposes that more systematic development of the repertoire of the usable past could be a matter of efforts of the conservatives as well as the other political forces who must be interested in development of this resource that might be considered as fundamental common good.
Keywords: political uses of the past, collective memory, symbolic politics, B. Yeltsin, V. Putin.

Boris Makarenko
Never the Twain Shall Meet? Conservatism in Russia and in the West (№ 3, 2015)

The article compares and contrasts the main values and political principles of contemporary Western and Russian conservatism. The key assumption is that in the West conservatism relies on the uninterrupted tradition of political participation, while Russian conservatism is reinventing its values and political practices, relying on the philosophical and political heritage of the past ages. In the West, conservatism exists in democracies and market economies, while in Russia, conservatism develops in a society in transition, undergoing rapid and uneven modernization. The “strong state” for the West lies in democratic sovereignty, a competitive and efficient economy, and an optimized “welfare state”. Russian conservatism lacks a comprehensive economic doctrine; the value of sovereignty is believed to lie in the defense of internal and external security, and the “welfare state” is largely paternalistic. In the West, conservatism fosters moral and cultural values of the post-industrial age; in Russia these values retain their traditional character, but modernization necessitates their adaptation to the changing society. While, amid the emergence of new conservative ideas, Western conservatism faces the major challenge of developing a “new synthesis”; Russian conservatism needs to respond to the challenge of developing a comprehensive system of values in conformity with the contemporary stage of Russia’s political development.
Keywords: Conservatism, Values, Comparative Politics, Political Development, Political Parties.

Mikhail Maslin
Classic Eurasianism and Its Modern Transformations (№ 4, 2015)

The article reveals the essence of classical Eurasianism in the 1920-1930s. The author makes a general critical evaluation of A. Dugin’s neoeurasianism. Neoeurasianism distorts classical Eurasianism, presenting the image full of xenophobia, racism and aggression. Meanwhile, the author demonstrates the intellectual potential of undistorted classical Eurasianism taking the example of A. Panarin’s heritage.
Keywords: Eurasianism, Neourasianism, Orientalism, Geopolitics, Russian Emigration, Atlantism, Russophobia, Mysticism, Conspirology.

Oleg Matveychev
“The Philosophy of Inequality” by N. Berdyaev – the Manifesto of Liberal Conservatism (№ 3, 2015)

The report describes the concept of the ideological mix. Analyzing “The Philosophy of Inequality”, the author illustrates that N. Berdyaev voices purely liberal-conservative ideas in it. This fact accounts for valid interpretation and popularity of the book in Western Europe in the 1920s and 1930s.
Keywords: “The Philosophy of Inequality” by N. Berdyaev, Ideological Mixes, Liberal Conservatism.

Boris Mezhuyev
Mapping of Russian Europeanism (№ 1, 2015)

This article deals with the evolution of geopolitical views of Vadim Tsymburski in the context of his conceptualization of the problem of “buffer”, or “limitroрhe” territories between Russia and Europe which were called by the author of “The Island of Russia” as “straitterritories”. It is known that Vadim Tsymburski thought that the loss of control by Russia over these territories has strengthened the security of our country that was damaged throughout the history by Russia’s own urge to eliminate these «buffer» territories for the geopolitical confluence of Russia and Europe. The question arises, how could Vadim Tsymbursky treat the elimination of “strait territories” by Europe in terms of his system, could it be seen by him as a threat to Russian security? The article proves that in the end of his life just this point motivated the scholar to reconsider his geopolitical conception but this reconsideration was prevented by his death.
Keywords: geopolitics, strait-territories, buffer territories, Russian Europeanism.

Andrei Nikiforov
The Crimean Contribution to the Revolutionary Restoration of Geopolitical Justice and the New Mission of Russia (№ 3, 2015)

The “Crimean Spring” was a manifestation of the expanding regionalization, that the world has been witnessing in recent years. An integral region becomes the actor of world politics. The region relies on the collective political will of the regional community rather than on separate nation-states with their borders established by treaties of by force. The Crimean issue has provoked sharp divisions in European society, virtually splitting it in two parts: a group of regionalists, advocates of traditional values and a group of neo-liberals and all those who scrounge off globalization. The “Crimean Spring” marked the beginning of the revolutionary restoration of geopolitical justice.
Keywords: “Crimean Spring”, Regionalism, Traditional Values.

Tatyana Plyashchenko
Conservative Liberalism in Russia the Post-reform Period: The History of a Failure (№ 4, 2015)

The article dwells on the peculiarities of Russian conservative liberalism in the second half of the 19th century and its proponents, including A. Gradovsky, K. Kavelin, and B. Chicherin. The article gives special prominence to the policies of the Russian conservative liberals at both theoretical and operative level.
Keywords: Conservative Liberalism, Liberal Nationalism, Nation-State.

Leonid Polyakov
The Eternal and Momentary in Russian Conservatism (№ 4, 2015)

The article pinpoints the plurality of meanings of the terms “conservatism” and “conservatives” which were in use in the Russian philosophical and political thought in second half of the XIX – early XX centuries, and gives a critical evaluation. The study starts with Nikolai Berdyaev’s definition of “conservatism” which poses the key dilemma: either to mercilessly criticize the momentary from the point of view of “eternity”, or to ascribe to the existing momentary a rank of “Eternal”. Through this dilemma it is possible to demonstrate how authentic conservative principles and meanings could have been presented in different and alternative ideological paradigms. The everlasting character of this dilemma in the pre-revolutionary Russian conservative thought for a long time deprived of a possibility for political representation, brought about a fatal gap between conservatism “from above” and radical-left mood “from below”. The ultimate outcome was the collapse of the Empire. The contemporary situation in Russia allows to escape such a scenario through assuming conservative principles as “spiritual bonds” tying authorities and the people.
Keywords: Conservatism, Liberalism, Progressivism, Reactionary, Revolution.

Alexei Rutkevich
Peculiarities of Russian Conservatism. Map and Territory (№ 4, 2015)

Russian conservatism makes part of European political thought, as well as Russian party practices in Russia in the XIX century. The article consistently analyzes the stages of development of conservative ideology in Western Europe and in Russia.
Keywords: Ideology, Baroque, Romanticism, Conservatism, Reaction, Liberal Conservatism, Political Philosophy, Map, Territory.

Aleksey Shchavelev
The Islander or Thinking about “Conjunctures of Land and Time…” (№ 1, 2015)

The paper is a survey commentary on the last book by V.L. Tsymburskiy “Conjunctures of Land and Time”.
Keywords: V.L. Tsymburskiy, review, philosophy of history, historiography.

Alexander Shchipkov
Russian Identity and Russian Tradition at the End of the Globalization Era (№ 3, 2015)

The report dwells on a new demand for tradition and identity, which emerges as globalization exhausts itself. The keynote of Russian identity is claimed to be religious and ethical, rather than ethnic. Irredentism – the reunification of the largest divided nation (Russian) – should be viewed as a key element of Russian identity. It should be distinguished from russification of other ethnic groups by force. To cite Weber’s famous formula, the core of Russian identity is formed by “Orthodox ethics and solidarity spirit, that is equity, partnership and mutual assistance. This is a particular Russian ethos. In practice, justice plays the role of the categorical imperative in the Russian tradition. The author believes that meaningful socio-cultural ideas can be centred round Christian ethics. This factor, along with the Russian language, allows to make the “Russian World” concept more precise from the semantic point of view, as this notion still needs to be fully defined.
Keywords: Identity, Orthodox Ethics, Globalization Limits, Russian World, Solidarity, Justice, Tradition, Ethos

Aleksandr Shiriniants
Conservatism and the Party System in Modern Russia (№ 3, 2014)

The programs of Russian modern political parties, proclaiming conservative aims are analysed in the article through the patterns of phenomenology and axiology of Russian conservatism. The problem of the role of conservatism in contemporary ideological quest in Russia is discussed; original definitions of conservatism and its basis are proposed; links between conservatism and tradition and theoretical reflection are described; specific features of Russian political conservatism and the sources of its heterogeneity are revealed; accent is put on the role played by Russian intelligentsia in formation of conservative ideology; “oppositional” and “progressive” character of conservatism is marked down; comparison of conservative declarations with conservative values is developed.
Keywords: conservative ideology, conservative values, political parties, party-building in modern Russia.

Konstantin Simonov
Conservatism Facing Uncertainty (№ 3, 2015)

European values and the centuries-old picture of the world are exposed to erosion and are undergoing transformation. This is manifested, in particular, in neglecting the obvious benefits of trade and economic relations with Russia, in undermining free competition through affirmative activities, which involve, among other things, the policy of gender and juvenile equality. Such changes make the prediction of the future impossible.
Keywords: Values, Europe, Future Forecasts.

Alexander Tsipko
Soviet Intellectual Community Converting to Russian Conservatism (On Spontaneous Anti-Communism Untying USSR Ideological Bonds) (№ 4, 2015)

The article identifies the interdependence of conservatism, including its Russian version, and anti-communism. It focuses on the ideology of the “Russian Party”, a departure in Soviet political thinking in the 1960s-1970s. The article contains its comparative analysis with the ideology and policies of “Polish Party”, the Polish intellectual community of the 1970s-1980s leading the “Solidarity” movement. It also highlights the differences between the “Russian party” and the Sixtiers.
Keywords: Soviet Political Thinking, “Russian Party”, Conservatism, Anti-Communism, The Sixtiers, “Polish Party”.

Andrei P. Tsygankov
«Island» Geopolitics of Vadim Tsymbursky (№ 1, 2015)

The article analyzes the role of V. Tsymbursky in rethinking geopolitics. In particular, his theory of Russia as a geopolitical “island” is discussed. Other discussed issues include the geopolitics of values, intellectual influences, and Tsymbursky’s position in Russian foreign policy debates. The article formulates two lessons of the thinker for Russia – the need in mastering Russian cultural space and a long period of flexible foreign policy under the conditions of uni-multipolar world.
Keywords: geopolitical “island”, the geopolitics of values, the uni-multipolar world.

Andrei Tsygankov
«Island» Geopolitics of Vadim Tsymbursky (№ 1, 2015)

The article analyzes the role of V. Tsymbursky in rethinking geopolitics. In particular, his theory of Russia as a geopolitical “island” is discussed. Other discussed issues include the geopolitics of values, intellectual influences, and Tsymbursky’s position in Russian foreign policy debates. The article formulates two lessons of the thinker for Russia – the need in mastering Russian cultural space and a long period of flexible foreign policy under the conditions of uni-multipolar world.
Keywords: geopolitical “island”, the geopolitics of values, the uni-multipolar world.

Vadim Tsymbursky (1957 – 2009)
Morphology of Russian Geopolitcs. An excerpt from the book. Chapter Five. First Eurasian Epoch of Russia: from Sebastopol to Port-Arthur (№ 1, 2015)

Vadim Tsymbursky made his PhD thesis «The Morphology of Russian Geopolitics and the Dynamic of International Systems of XVIII–XX centuries» in about 1997-2003. He could not complete his work but he left some fragments of it in manuscript. In the fifth chapter of thesis entitled «The first Eurasian interlude: from Sebastopol to Port-Arthur» the scholar made the analysis of the geopolitical thought of this period of time which was periodically repeated in the Russian history. This period is characterized by temporary backwash after the Russian onslaught on Europe and concentration on the eastern borders of Empire. The chapter describes in detail geopolitical views of prominent authors such as Fyodor Dostoevsky, Nikolai Danilevsky, Alexander Hertzen, Rostislav Fadeev etc.
Keywords: Eurasian interlude, Baltic-Black Sea region, European bipolarity, Balkan question.

Vasiliy Vanchugov
From «Island» to «Fortress»: Methaphor as an Instrument of Political Analysis and Practical Politics (№ 1, 2015)

This article is devoted to the representation of ideas, in particular, the use in the field of geopolitics, metaphors, analogies, comparisons, as well as cases of mythologizing ideologies. For this purpose, the author has made a comparison of the various narratives, methods and techniques of modern production of knowledge in the humanities in general, and in politics in particular. Taking the complex of ideas from the book “The Island of Russia”, the author of the article is going to highlight one of his key works in the context of contemporary issues, because, in his opinion, the most topical issue is the “dismantling” of the empire, discussion of which gives us the opportunity to be engaged in designing future.
Keywords: politics, geopolitics, history, philosophy of history, metaphor, formula, hermeneutics, myth, empire, power, governance.

Yan Vaslavsky
Russia and Europe: A New Crossroads (№ 3, 2015)

The article analyses the changing concept of united Europe from the times of Napoleon Bonaparte. The author ponders on two visions of European politics and development promoted by advocates of Napoleon Bonaparte and philosophers who eschewed the Napoleonic imperial model, respectively. Moreover, the article seeks to study the current relations between Europe and Russia given the changing concept of united Europe.
Keywords: France, Napoleon Bonaparte, Pan-European idea, Napoleonic Wars, Russia and Europe, Russian-European Relations.

Anton Zakutin
Modern Conservatism in the UK and in Russia: Possible Convergence Points (№ 3, 2015)

The article compares and contrasts basic conservative notions of modern political discourse in the UK and in Russia. Despite profound differences between the two political cultures, the two conservative brands exhibit a number of possible convergence points. The need to defend genuine traditional values against a background of expanding globalization, can unite advocates of various and diverse conservative trends. This article gives an overview of the most common ideas in parties’ platforms, among think tanks, among conservative thinkers of the states in question.
Keywords: Conservatism, Comparative Politics, Euroscepticism, Toryism.