Russia a country study Federal Research Division Library of Congress Edited by Glenn E. Curtis Research Completed July 1996
Contents Foreword Acknowledgments Preface Table A. Chronology of Important Events Country Profile Introduction Page v vii xix xxi xliii Chapter 1. Historical Setting: Early History to 1917 1 Zenon E. Kohut and David M. Goldfrank EARLY HISTORY 5 The Inhabitants of the East European Plain 5 The East Slavs and the Varangians 6 The Golden Age of Kiev 6 The Rise of Regional Centers 8 The Mongol Invasion 10 MUSCOVY 11 The Rise of Muscovy 11 The Evolution of the Russian Aristocracy 12 Ivan IV \ 13 The Time of Troubles 14 The Romanovs 17 Expansion and Westernization 18 EARLY IMPERIAL RUSSIA. 20 Peter the Great and the Russian Empire 20 The Era of Palace Revolutions 23 Imperial Expansion and Maturation: Catherine II.. 24 RULING THE EMPIRE 28 War and Peace, 1796-1825 28 Reaction under Nicholas I 31 TRANSFORMATION OF RUSSIA IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY 33 Economic Developments 33 liii
Reforms and Their Limits, 1855-92 34 Foreign Affairs after the Crimean War 37 The Rise of Revolutionary Movements 40 Witte and Accelerated Industrialization 41 Radical Political Parties Develop 42 Imperialism in Asia and the Russo-Japanese War 43 THE LAST YEARS OF THE AUTOCRACY. 44 Revolution and Counterrevolution, 1905-07 45 The Stolypin and Kokovtsov Governments 46 Active Balkan Policy, 1906-13 48 Russia at War, 1914-16 49 The Fatal Weakening of Tsarism 51 Chapter 2. Historical Setting: 1917 to 1991... 53 Thomas Skallerup and James P. Nichdl REVOLUTIONS AND CIVIL WAR. 57 The February Revolution 57 The Period of Dual Power 58 The Bolshevik Revolution 60 Civil War and War Communism 62 THE ERA OF THE NEW ECONOMIC POLICY. 65 Lenin's Leadership 66 Stalin's Rise to Power. 68 Foreign Policy, 19.21-28 69 Society and Culture in the 1920s 70 TRANSFORMATION AND TERROR.'...- 70 Industrialization and Collectivization 71 The Purges 72 Mobilization of Society 74 Foreign Policy, 1928-39 75 THE WAR YEARS 76 Prelude to War, 77 The Great Patriotic War 78 RECONSTRUCTION AND COLD WAR 81 Reconstruction Years 81 Onset of the Cold War 82 The Death of Stalin... 85 THE KHRUSHCHEV ERA 85 Collective Leadership and the Rise of Khrushchev. 86
Foreign Policy under Khrushchev 88 Khrushchev's Reforms and Fall 90 THE BREZHNEV ERA.'. 91 Collective Leadership and the Rise of Brezhnev... 92 Foreign Policy of a Superpower 93 The Economy under Brezhnev 95 Culture and the Arts in the 1960s and 1970s 97 The Death of Brezhnev 98 THE LEADERSHIP TRANSITION PERIOD 99 The Andropov Interregnum 99 The Chernenko Interregnum 100 THE GORBACHEV ERA 101 Gorbachev's First Year 101 New Thinking: Foreign Policy under Gorbachev.. 102 Gorbachev's Reform Dilemma 109 Nationality Ferment 112 The August Coup and Its Aftermath 117 Chapter 3. Physical Environment and Population 121 Glenn E. Curtis and David McClave PHYSICAL ENVIRONMENT 125 Global Position and Boundaries 125 Administrative and Territorial Divisions 126 Topography and Drainage 126 Climate 134 ENVIRONMENTAL PROBLEMS 136 Environmental Conditions 136 The Response to Environmental Problems 148 POPULATION 153 Demographic Conditions 154 Migration 161 FUTURE PROSPECTS 167 Chapter 4. Ethnic, Religious, and Cultural Setting 169 Glenn E. Curtis and Marian Leighton ETHNIC COMPOSITION 172 The Russians 173 Minority Peoples and Their Territories 174 Other Ethnic Groups 191 Movements Toward Sovereignty 194 RELIGION 202 XI
The Russian Orthodox Church 203 Other Religions 210 Religion and Foreign Policy 220 THE RUSSIAN LANGUAGE 220 LITERATURE AND THE ARTS 222 Literature 222 Music 228 Ballet 230 Architecture and Painting 232 OUTLOOK 234 Chapter 5. The Society and Its Environment 237 Glenn E. Curtis and Marian Leighton SOCIAL STRUCTURE 239 Social Stratification 240 Wages and Work 245 Rural Life 247 Social Organizations 248 The Family 250 The Role of Women 251 Sexual Attitudes 255 EDUCATION 258 The Soviet Heritage 258 The Post-Soviet Education Structure 259. Higher Education 264 Education and Society 266 HEALTH 267 Health Conditions 267 The Health System 274 HOUSING. 280 The Soviet Era 280 Post-Soviet Conditions 281 Land Reform and Private Enterprise, 284 SOCIAL WELFARE 285 Pensions 286 Worker Protection and Benefits 288 The Homeless 292 Chapter 6. The Economy 295 William Cooper HISTORICAL BACKGROUND 299 XII
The Eras of Lenin and Stalin 300 The Postwar Growth Period., 301 Reform and Resistance 302 The Perestroika Program 304 Unforeseen Results of Reform 306 ECONOMIC REFORM IN THE 1990s 307 The Yeltsin Economic Program 308 Monetary and Fiscal Policies 309 Privatization 314 Economic Conditions in Mid-1996 318 NATURAL RESOURCES 321 AGRICULTURE 323 Crops 325 Agricultural Policy 325 Agricultural Production 330 ENERGY. 331 Exploitation and Consumption 331 Oil 332 Natural Gas 335 Coal 336 Nuclear Energy 337 Conventional Power Generation 338 Foreign Investment in Oil and Gas 338 BANKING AND FINANCE 340 The Soviet Financial System 340 The Financial Sector in the 1990s. 341 Taxation \ 345 THE LABOR FORCE 347 Unemployment 348 Wages 349 MANUFACTURING 350 Ferrous Metallurgy 351 Nonferrous Metallurgy 352 The Automotive Industry 352 Machine Building 354 Light Industry 354 Chemicals 355 TRANSPORTATION AND TELECOMMUNICATIONS... 356 Transportation 356 Telecommunications 367 FOREIGN ECONOMIC RELATIONS 372 Xlll
Foreign Trade 373 Foreign Investment 377 Foreign Debt 379 THE ECONOMIC OUTLOOK 380 Chapter 7. Government and Politics 383 James P. Nichol HISTORICAL BACKGROUND 385 THE CONSTITUTION AND GOVERNMENT STRUC- TURE 391 The Executive Branch 391 The Parliament 400 The Judiciary 406 LOCAL AND REGIONAL GOVERNMENT 408 The Federation Treaty and Regional Power 409 The Separatism Question 413 POLITICAL PARTIES AND LEGISLATIVE ELECTIONS... 415 The Elections of 1993 415 The Elections of 1995 417 CIVIL RIGHTS 419 General Civil Rights Guarantees 420 Criminal Justice Protections 421 THE MEDIA 422 The Print Media. 423 The Broadcast Media 424 THE POLITICAL OUTLOOK 426 Chapter 8. Foreign Relations 429 James P. Nichol THE EMERGENCE OF RUSSIAN FOREIGN POUCY 433 The Search for Objectives 434 The State of the Federation Speeches 436 THE FOREIGN POLICY MECHANISM 438 The President ''. 439 The Security Council 440 The Parliament 442 The Government (Cabinet) 444 REGIONAL POLICIES 447 The Near Abroad 447 The United States 454 Western Europe 461 xiv
NATO ; 463 Central Europe 465 China 469 Japan 471 Other Asian States 473 The Third World 477 The Middle East 478 Latin America 481 FOREIGN POLICY PROSPECTS. '. 483 Chapter 9. The Armed Forces... ; 487 William Baxter HISTORICAL BACKGROUND 490 MILITARY DOCTRINE. 494 Soviet Doctrine...: 495 The Doctrine of 1993 496 THE GEOPOLITICAL CONTEXT 501 Chechnya... 502 The Commonwealth of Independent States 504 Kaliningrad 509 China 510 The NATO Issue...:...; 512 Nuclear Arms Issues 513 THE DEFENSE INDUSTRY 515 Structure and Conditions 516 The Defense Budget. 518 New Weaponry Acquisitions 518 Foreign Arms Sales 520 Prospects for the Defense Industry 523 FORCE STRUCTURE 524 Command Structure 525 Ground Forces 527 Naval Forces 531 Air Forces f.-.. 535 Air Defense Forces 537 Strategic Rocket Forces 538 Airborne Troops 539 PERFORMANCE 541 Troop Support Elements 542 Crime in the Military 545 Training 547 xv
Reform Plans 548 PROSPECTS FOR THE MILITARY 551 Chapter 10. Internal Security 553 Amy W. Knight INTERNAL SECURITY BEFORE 1991 555 SUCCESSOR AGENCIES TO THE KGB 559 Ministry of Security (MB) 560 Federal Counterintelligence Service (FSK) 562 Federal Security Service (FSB) 563 Federal Agency for Government Communications and Information (FAPSI) 564 Main Guard Directorate (GUO) 566 Federal Border Service and Border Security 567 SECURITY OPERATIONS IN CHECHNYA 570 CRIME 571 Crime in the Soviet Era 571 The Crime Wave of the 1990s 572 THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM 577 Ministry of Internal Affairs (MVD) 578 The Procuracy 582 Criminal Law Reform in the 1990s 583 Secrecy Laws 585 How the System Works 586 PRISONS, 588 OUTLOOK 591 Appendix. Tables 593 Bibliography 621 Glossary 667 Index 681 Contributors 725 List of Figures 1 Administrative Divisions of Russia, 1996 lii 2 The Principalities of Kievan Rus', 1136 8 3 Territorial Expansion of Muscovy and the Russian Empire, 1550-1917 16 4 Red Army Line, March 1920 64 xvi
5 Military Operations Against Germany, 1941-45 80 6 Topography and Drainage 128 7 Economic Regions, 1996 '.'. 322 8 Major Mineral Deposits, 1996 V 324 9 Energy Facilities, 1996 334 10 Major Roads, 1996 358 11 Major Railroads, 1996 362 12 Major Maritime Ports, Airports, and Sea Routes, 1996 366 13 Organization of the Ministry of Defense, 1996 526 14 Military Districts and Fleets, 1996 528 15 Organization of the Ground Forces, 1996 530 16 Organization of the Naval Forces, 1996 534 17 Organization of the Air Forces, 1996 536 18 Organization of the Air Defense Forces, 1996 540 xvii