Political actors
Foolproofing Putinism
Fabian Burkhardt on why Mikhail Mishustin might be one of the most ambitious Prime Ministers in recent Russian history
Alexei Navalny and his potential supporters
Stepan Goncharov investigates the levels of support and opposition to Alexei Navalny across Russia
Navalny’s return puts the spotlight back on Russia’s security services
Kirill Shamiev sees Alexei Navalny’s return to Russia — and subsequent arrest — as another reminder of why reform of Russia’s security services is long overdue
2020 in Russia: the year when politics became a crime
Ivan Davydov on key developments in Russia in 2020
The prospects for Putin’s ‘long state’
Alexander Morozov on why Putin has not become an Atatürk for post-Soviet Russia
The split in Putin’s regime
Tatiana Stanovaya on how dreams of greatness can in fact erode the Russian state
The fumbling return of Putin the Historian
Igor Gretskiy wonder why Putin has again decided to take on the role of historian
Putin the man, Putin the meme
Putin has become the key subject of Russian memes, writes Svetlana Shomova — once to his credit, but increasingly to his detriment
How does Putin justify resetting his term-limit clock?
Olesya Zakharova on the rhetoric of popular sovereignty used to maintain an authoritarian regime in Russia
2020: Russia’s historical watershed
Vladislav Inozemtsev on how the coronavirus will help citizens ‘swallow’ both the economic recession and constitutional reform