The Politics of Ethnic Separatism in Russia and Georgia

The Politics of Ethnic Separatism in Russia and Georgia PDF

Author: J. George

Publisher: Springer

Published: 2009-12-21

Total Pages: 252

ISBN-13: 0230102328

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This book investigates the roots of ethnic separatism in the Russian Federation and post-Soviet Georgia. It considers why regional leaders in both countries chose violent or non-violent strategies to achieve their political, economic, and personal goals.

Exploiting Ethnic Tensions for Political Gain?

Exploiting Ethnic Tensions for Political Gain? PDF

Author: Melissa Faris Gayan

Publisher:

Published: 2003

Total Pages: 260

ISBN-13:

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The Republic of Georgia struggled with the transition to a market economy and democratic political institutions following the collapse of the USSR in 1991. A legacy of centralized planning and socialist nationality policies rendered Georgia incapable of coping with mounting domestic concerns and its geopolitical environment. This thesis argues that in order to stabilize and manage the transition, Georgia was compelled to surrender some aspects of its sovereignty when it required Russian aid to resolve national separatist movements in Abkhazia and South Ossetia and a domestic political conflict that nearly resulted in civil war. For the Russians, the opportunity to intervene in a former Soviet republic was too tempting to avoid, particularly among many elites who lamented Russia's lost empire and international prestige. Intervention in Georgia was an opportunity to reassert a modicum of Russian control and influence, invoking the need for peace and stability along its border. The international community was wary of Russia's new regional role, but was unwilling to interfere in areas of former Soviet influence. Therefore, it neglected a festering conflict in Georgia in favor of developing stronger relations with the more powerful Russian government in a post-cold war environment. This thesis utilizes both secondary and primary sources, including memoirs, newspaper accounts, and documents published during the Soviet and post-Soviet eras.

Georgia After Rose Revolution

Georgia After Rose Revolution PDF

Author: Gabriel C. Monson

Publisher: Nova Science Publishers

Published: 2009

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9781606925768

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This book looks at Georgia, which since its independence, has been the most vocally independent-minded country in the former Soviet Union. Russia countered Georgia's independence by strong support for secessionist minorities such as those in Abkhazia and South Ossetia. Since President Vladimir Putin's coming to power, Russian pressure on Georgia to reverse its pro-Western course has grown measurably. Following the 2003 Rose Revolution in Georgia, relations with Russia turned sour as the new government proved both democratic and single-mindedly focused on rebuilding the Georgian state, resolving the secessionist conflicts, and seeking NATO membership -- all anathema to Moscow. This book discusses the present situation in Georgia and examines Georgia's efforts to democratise and bolster its free market economy, while surmounting separatism, Russian economic sanctions and other problems.

Engaging Eurasia's Separatist States

Engaging Eurasia's Separatist States PDF

Author: Dov Lynch

Publisher: US Institute of Peace Press

Published: 2004

Total Pages: 196

ISBN-13: 9781929223541

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In the wake of the dissolution of the Soviet Union, secessionist forces carved four de facto states from parts of Moldova, Georgia, and Azerbaijan. Ten years on, those states are mired in uncertainty. Beset by internal problems, fearful of a return to the violence that spawned them, and isolated and unrecognized internationally, they survive behind cease-fire lines that have temporarily frozen but not resolved their conflicts with the metropolitan powers. In this, the first in-depth comparative analysis of these self-proclaimed republics, Dov Lynch examines the logic that maintains this uneasy existence and explores ways out of their volatile predicament. Drawing on extensive travel within Eurasia and remarkable access to leading figures in the secessionist struggles, Lynch spotlights the political, military, and economic dynamics--both internal and external--that drive the existence of South Ossetia, Abkhazia, Transnistria, and Nagorno-Karabakh. He also evaluates a range of options for resolving the status of the de facto states before violence returns, and proposes a coordinated approach, spearheaded by the European Union, that balances de facto and de jure independence and sovereignty. Slim but packed with information and insight, this volume also offers instructive lessons about the dynamics of intrastate and ethnic conflict and the merits of autonomy and power sharing in places as diverse as Kosovo, Northern Cyprus, and Chechnya.

The Foundations of Ethnic Politics

The Foundations of Ethnic Politics PDF

Author: Henry E. Hale

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2008-06-30

Total Pages: 283

ISBN-13: 1139473077

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Despite implicating ethnicity in everything from civil war to economic failure, researchers seldom consult psychological research when addressing the most basic question: What is ethnicity? The result is a radical scholarly divide generating contradictory recommendations for solving ethnic conflict. Research into how the human brain actually works demands a revision of existing schools of thought. Hale argues ethnic identity is a cognitive uncertainty-reduction device with special capacity to exacerbate, but not cause, collective action problems. This produces a new general theory of ethnic conflict that can improve both understanding and practice. A deep study of separatism in the USSR and CIS demonstrates the theory's potential, mobilizing evidence from elite interviews, three local languages, and mass surveys. The outcome significantly reinterprets nationalism's role in CIS relations and the USSR's breakup, which turns out to have been a far more contingent event than commonly recognized.

Encyclopedia of Modern Ethnic Conflicts [2 volumes]

Encyclopedia of Modern Ethnic Conflicts [2 volumes] PDF

Author: Joseph R. Rudolph Jr.

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA

Published: 2015-12-07

Total Pages: 868

ISBN-13: 1610695534

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An indispensable reference that will help students understand the major ethnic conflicts that dominate the headlines and shape the modern world. Since World War II, significant conflicts have most often taken the form of acts of violence between ethnic or national communities inside individual states. This two-volume work uses case studies to explore some four dozen of those conflicts, making it an ideal first-stop reference for students and others who wish to quickly gain an understanding of ethnic struggles. Content from the first edition is updated and new entries on recent conflicts have been added. The set's geographical range, which encompasses nearly every continent, is matched by the diversity of the conflicts explored. These include internal conflicts such as those experienced by African Americans in the United States and Muslims in France, as well as separatist movements of groups like the Chechens in Russia and Bosnians in Yugoslavia. Headline-making conflicts—for example, those in Mali and Syria—are covered as well. The book is organized alphabetically by country and region. Each essay begins with a timeline and then explores the historical background, evolution, efforts to manage, and significance of the conflict. Suggestions for follow-up research and appendices of relevant, primary source materials are also included.

The Russian Military and the Georgia War

The Russian Military and the Georgia War PDF

Author: Ariel Cohen

Publisher: Strategic Studies Institute

Published: 2011

Total Pages: 114

ISBN-13: 1584874910

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In this monograph, the authors state that Russia planned the war against Georgia in August 2008 aiming for the annexation of Abkhazia, weakening the Saakashvili regime, and prevention of NATO enlargement. According to them, while Russia won the campaign, it also exposed its own military as badly needing reform. The war also demonstrated weaknesses of the NATO and the European Union security systems.