What makes Moscow so different from Russia's other regions? By Vladimir Mironov The process of forming a new Russian state has had a brief history -- a little over six years. Over this period, the weak parliamentary-presidential constitutional federation which emerged from the rubble of... MORE

The Ulyanovsk Phenomenon moves from the "Chinese path" to the "North Korean path" By Arbakhan Magomedov One of the defining characteristics of post-Communist Russia is that many of the powers traditionally vested in the central government have devolved to the regions. Russia calls itself a... MORE

Presidential elections in Chuvashia - Martial arts, Eastern-style By Rashid Akhmetov When Nikolai Fedorov was first elected president of Russia's Republic of Chuvashia in January 1994, he personified the hopes of Chuvash democrats and was supported by the "Democratic Chuvashia" movement. Now, four years later,... MORE

The Fortnight in Review The past fortnight saw Moscow fight to maintain its role as a key player in the latest Persian Gulf crisis, while, at home, Russian President Boris Yeltsin moved at last to shore up the authority of the government's leading reformers. The... MORE

The Soviet propaganda machine is alive and well in Ukraine By Alexander Tkachenko As Ukraine's parliamentary elections, scheduled for March 29, approach, the situation of the mass media has deteriorated sharply. You won't hear a single voice against the government or the president or the... MORE

Will Yulia Tymoshenko be Ukraine's first woman prime minister? By Oleg Varfolomeyev Ukraine, a country until recently governed exclusively by men, now has a female premier, albeit only a "shadow" one. Yulia Tymoshenko, one of the leaders of the Hromada party headed by former premier... MORE

Ukraine's elections: "A war of compromising information"? By Volodymyr Zviglyanich Visiting the U.S. in October 1997, former Ukrainian prime minister Pavlo Lazarenko made two striking remarks. First, he claimed there was no democracy in Ukraine and that officials at the Ukrainian embassy in the U.S.... MORE

The role of clans in Kazakhstan today By Nurbulat E. Masanov Traditional Kazakh society was divided into three zhuz or "hordes" -- the Greater, Middle, and Small. Underlying this division is the principle of genealogical seniority -- elder, middle, and younger brothers. According to this... MORE

The "Greater Volga" economic association By Ilya Malyakin An article entitled "New Blood is Flowing into Moscow Like the 'Great Volga'" appeared in the influential Moscow newspaper Segodnya in March 1997. In it, Andrei Kolesnikov examined the promotions to the federal government of Nizhny Novgorod... MORE

A portrait of Tatyana Dyachenko, the Kremlin "liaison officer" By Yelena Dikun Public opinion ascribes a special role in the governing of the Russian state to Boris Yeltsin's younger daughter, Tatyana Dyachenko: she is said to be not only Boris Nikolaevich's chief image-maker, but also... MORE