Publication

The two articles in this edition of the RAD do indeed focus on identity politics in Russia and Ukraine. The first piece argues that the motives behind the insurgency in Eastern Ukraine (specifically in Donetsk and Lugansk) are more complex than advertised, and are responsible for the rise of a “resistance identity.” The second text then explains how recent Russian identity politics have been conditioned by two splits -- one between the country’s ‘imperial elites’ and the peasant masses, and the other between Russia and Europe. How the internal split is ultimately managed will dictate whether the Kremlin is able to consolidate its great power status or not.