The Dissolution of Multi-Ethnic Empires and Post-Imperial Inter-Ethnic Relations: The Case of the Soviet Union
The dissertation argues that the relationship between the Russian Federation and the fourteen non-Russian successor states is unequal, with the Russian Federation as the dominant power. It resurrects the old-time construct of the empire as a specific type of political system different from that of the modern state in order to explain the asymmetrical pattern of power relations that emerged between the Russian Federation and the non-Russian successor states as well as the weakness or absence of relations among the non-Russian successor states. It characterizes the political system of the Soviet Union as an empire and draws a parallel between the dominance of the Russian Republic in the Soviet System and the dominance of the Russian Federation vis-a-vis the non-Russian successor states. The endurance of imperial power structures, both economic and political, established during the Soviet era has compromised the independence of the non-Russian successor states.
University of Illinois - Urbana-Champaign
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University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign