The story of Russia's historic opening to the West (1992-2022), where it succeeded and why it has failed, the impact of war and sanctions, and the prospects for Russia's future. Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022 brought a tragic close to a thirty-year period of history that began with the collapse of the Soviet Union and the reopening of Russia to the West after six decades of Soviet isolation. The opening lasted for three tumultuous decades and ended with a new closing...

A discerning analysis of the future effects of climate change on Russia, the major power most dependent on the fossil fuel economy.Russia will be one of the countries most affected by climate change. No major power is more economically dependent on the export of hydrocarbons; at the same time, two-thirds of Russia’s territory lies in the arctic north, where melting permafrost is already imposing growing damage. Climate change also brings drought and floods to Russi...

A Marginal Revolution Best Book of the YearWinner of the Shulman Book PrizeA noted expert on Russian energy argues that despite Europe’s geopolitical rivalries, natural gas and deals based on it unite Europe’s nations in mutual self-interest.Three decades after the fall of the Berlin Wall and the breakup of the Soviet empire, the West faces a new era of East–West tensions. Any vision of a modern Russia integrated into the wo...

The Russian oil industry—which vies with Saudi Arabia as the world’s largest producer and exporter of oil, providing nearly 12 percent of the global supply—is facing mounting problems that could send shock waves through the Russian economy and worldwide. Wheel of Fortune provides an authoritative account of this vital industry from the last years of communism to its uncertain future. Tracking the interdependence among Russia’s oil industry, politics, and economy, Thane Gustafson s...

Three decades after the fall of the Berlin Wall and the breakup of the Soviet empire, the West faces a new era of East-West tensions. Any vision of a modern Russia integrated into the world economy and aligned in peaceful partnership with a reunited Europe has abruptly vanished.Two opposing narratives vie to explain the strategic future of Europe, one geopolitical and one economic, and both center on the same resource: natural gas. In The Bridge, Thane Gustafson, an expert...

In this saga of brilliant triumphs and magnificent failures, David E. Hoffman, the former Moscow bureau chief for the Washington Post, sheds light on the hidden lives of Russia's most feared power brokers: the oligarchs. Focusing on six of these ruthless men- Alexander Smolensky, Yuri Luzhkov, Anatoly Chubais, Mikhail Khodorkovsky, Boris Berezovsky, and Vladimir Gusinsky-Hoffman shows how a rapacious, unruly capitalism was born out of the ashes of Soviet communism.

Featuring extensive revisions to the text as well as a new introduction and epilogue--bringing the book completely up to date on the tumultuous politics of the previous decade and the long-term implications of the Soviet collapse--this compact, original, and engaging book offers the definitive account of one of the great historical events of the last fifty years. Combining historical and geopolitical analysis with an absorbing narrative, Kotkin draws upon extensive research, including memo...

The first edition of The New Cold War was published to great critical acclaim. Edward Lucas has established himself as a top expert in the field, appearing on numerous programs, including Lou Dobbs, MSNBC, NBC Nightly News, CNN, and NPR.Since The New Cold War was first published in February 2008, Russia has become more authoritarian and corrupt, its institutions are weaker, and reforms have fizzled. In this revised and updated third edition, Lucas includes...

Now thoroughly updated, this widely praised book provides a thoughtful and balanced examination of the development of Russian foreign policy since the end of the Cold War. This edition also places developments of the past two decades into the broader sweep of Russian history. Jeffrey Mankoff argues that Russia's more assertive behavior since Vladimir Putin became president in 2000 has resulted from both a deep-seated consensus among its elite about Russia's identity and interests as well a...

This is a rather old-fashioned book of essays. Its sole objective is to describe the character of Putin's political order as accurately as possible, and to spell out why and how Putinism is worrisome. The main essay, while providing a summary account of how Putin came to power and consolidated his position as Russia's virtual dictator, evaluates Putinism in terms of the main models or metaphors that have been summoned up to explain it: gangsterism, patrimonialism, reversion to Communism or...

During the Soviet era, blat—the use of personal networks for obtaining goods and services in short supply and for circumventing formal procedures—was necessary to compensate for the inefficiencies of socialism. The collapse of the Soviet Union produced a new generation of informal practices. In How Russia Really Works, Alena V. Ledeneva explores practices in politics, business, media, and the legal sphere in Russia in the 1990s—from the hiring of firms to create negative publicity about on...

The Romanian revolution was motivated by a desire for greater political and intellectual freedom and economic prosperity. It was the bloodiest of the eastern European transitions due to Ceausescu's cult of personality. However, many of the goals of the revolution are still unfulfilled. The lack of civil society, charges of political corruption, the failure to transform the economy, and concerns over the protection of ethnic minority rights are all factors in Romania's failure to become a f...