Region.Expert Wants Closer Ties between Non-Russian Republics and Predominantly Ethnic Russian Regions

Paul Goble

            Staunton, June 12 – Moscow has historically adopted a divide-and-rule strategy in its approach to regions outside the capital, playing up tensions between and among non-Russian republics and between and among predominantly ethnic Russian oblasts and krays and the non-Russian republics.

            This tactic has allowed Moscow to block the kind of unity from below that is needed to create a genuine federal system; and consequently, regionalist writers grouped around the Tallinn-based Region.Expert portal are calling for expanding contacts between the Russian and non-Russian civil societies (region.expert/conference/).

            Thirty years ago, in its declaration of state sovereignty, the RSFSR committed itself to the expansion of the rights of autonomous republics, autonomous oblasts, autonomous districts as well as the krays and oblasts of that republic. Unfortunately, especially since 2000, Moscow has deprived all of these of their rights and transformed the federation into a unitary state.

            Now, Moscow is carrying out “an anti-constitutional and anti-federalist revolution” by means of amendments dividing the population into first and second class citizens and allowing the current Kremlin ruler to remain in office for the rest of his life.

            According to Region.Expert, “the civil communities of various regions of the Russian Federation are not in agreement with this imperial restoration. Practically in each region there exists its own sovereignty political consciousness – but it is suppressed by the powers and often ignored by ‘the Russian opposition’ which thinks in equally centralist terms.”

            To that end, the portal and its authors are appealing to “all regionalist forces” to come together this summer for an online conference to assess how they should act to oppose “the demolition of the remains of federalism and to come up with “a platform for inter-regional cooperation.”

            The authors say they are not committed to any one particular approach. Russia could become a federation or a confederation or “perhaps, in place of ‘a single Russia,’ there will appear new independent states.”  Those are possibilities that need to be discussed and that establishing “direct inter-regional dialogue of civil forces” is the best alternative to the vertical.

            They write that they do consider “especially important dialogue between representatives of Russian oblasts and those of national republics.” Moscow wants to keep them apart with its amendment about Russians having primacy as the state-forming people.  But everyone can see that this is simply the latest manifestation of its “divide and rule” approach.

            And they add that they are committed to only one principle – “all the subjects of the Russian Federation must become equal sovereign republics.”

            The authors of the portal are forming a working group to make plans for the online conference and urge those interested in participating to contact them via their Facebook address (facebook.com/groups/region.expert/#_=_) or to write directly by email to the portal at admin@region.expert.