A fascinating study of the root motivations behind the political activities and philosophies of Putin’s government in Russia Charles Clover; award-winning journalist and former Moscow bureau chief for the Financial Times; here analyses the idea of "Eurasianism;" a theory of Russian national identity based on ethnicity and geography. Clover traces Eurasianism’s origins in the writings of White Russian exiles in 1920s Europe; through Siberia’s Gulag archipelago in the 1950s; the dissolution of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s; and up to its steady infiltration of the governing elite around Vladimir Putin. This eye-opening analysis pieces together the evidence for Eurasianism’s place at the heart of Kremlin thinking today and explores its impact on recent events; the annexation of Crimea; the rise in Russia of anti-Western paranoia and imperialist rhetoric; as well as Putin’s sometimes perplexing political actions and ambitions. Based on extensive research and dozens of interviews with Putin’s close advisers; this quietly explosive story will be essential reading for anyone concerned with Russia’s past century; and its future.
#910975 in Books Yale University Press 2010-02-02Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 9.25 x .81 x 6.12l; .80 #File Name: 0300104073320 pagesYale University Press
Review
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Neo-Marxist; Postmodernism Masquerading as HistoryBy Mary WilburI threw it into the recycling bin.28 of 36 people found the following review helpful. Gives an exceptionally valuable insight into Stalin's purgesBy David LjunggrenThis book is tremendously useful because it gives a hitherto unknown insight into exactly how Stalin and his closest cronies set in motion the purges of the 1930s. The heart of the book consists of around 200 secret Communist Party documents interspersed with commentary from the authors. The archival material suggests very strongly that the path to the terror was not planned meticulously from the start but consisted of a series of false starts and zigzags until Stalin decided in 1937 to crush all resistance to the party's rule. Of particular interest are a couple of documents which show how many members of the inner Politburo demanded stricter punishments for alleged wrong-doers than Stalin did himself. Barring the discovery of Stalin's diary many of the dictator's motives will remain unknown forever but the documents in this book do paint a largely convincing portrait of an unpopular regime in Moscow lurching from crisis to crisis; trying both to stablise the internal situation and also to eliminate the possibility of serious internal resistance. What does come through very clearly is how arbitrary the terror was and how many of those charged with repressing alleged foreign spies and saboteurs were almost guaranteed to be shot themselves. First the Politburo lashed out at the secret police for not doing enough to stamp out centres of Trotskyite resistance and then issued orders demanding the execution and arrest of millions of people across the country. Later the secret police came under fire for allegedly indulging in indiscriminate terror and repressing too many people. I can understand the point of the Kirkus Reviews contributor who doubted the authors' explanation that the Politburo pushed ahead with the purges because they were indeed convinced enemies lay behind every corner and a coup was always possible. A sense of self-preservation and the need to show Stalin they were onside surely did partly explain their enthusiasm for spilling blood. But this is a minor quibble about an otherwise excellent book.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. A TRUE EXPERTBy PATRICKI bought it while taking Professor Gettys class on Soviet Russia at UCLA. His knowledge of the subject is among the highest and most well regarded in the world.
