The formula of Putin’s social contract suggesting “stability for political freedoms” that has been observed for the past five years can scarcely be renewed. A new hypothetical formula – “a just order in exchange for taxes and civil involvement” – may considerably increase the likelihood of an institutional modernization.
The formula of Putin’s social contract suggesting “stability for political freedoms” that has been observed for the past five years can scarcely be renewed. A new hypothetical formula – “a just order in exchange for taxes and civil involvement” – may considerably increase the likelihood of an institutional modernization.
When the Baltic countries entered NATO and the European Union a couple of years ago, many thought it was the end of the centuries-old "red line." Euro-Atlantic organizations had crossed into the former Russian and Soviet empires.
In September 2004, the Russian city of Novgorod hosted an international conference entitled Russia at the Turn of the Century: Hopes and Reality. Its organizers were the RIA Novosti news agency, the Council on Foreign and Defense Policy, Russia in Global Affairs, and The Moscow Times.