ABSTRACT
This thesis examines how Russian political elites and intellectuals have approached
the issues of Russian nation and diaspora since 1991. This thesis observes that while
Boris Yeltsin and Vladimir Putin claim to advocate a civic definition of a nation in
the boundaries of Russia / they extend the definition of Russian nation to cover the
&lsquo / Russian diaspora&rsquo / as well. This thesis argues that the inclusion of the term Russian
diaspora in Russian discourse of nationalism has paved the way for developing a
consensus about Russia&rsquo / s new identity among its political elites and intellectuals.
Accordingly, Russia which is defined as a homeland of ethnic Russians identifies
itself as the protector of the rights of Russians in ex-Soviet republics. Moreover, this
diasporic politics has been used to legitimate the Russian engagement in the internal
and external affairs of post-Soviet states. Nevertheless, as this thesis demonstrates,
ethnic Russians residing in the post-Soviet states have significant diversity in terms
of their political orientations towards Russia.
There are five parts in this thesis. After the introduction, the first chapter explains the
role of Russian diaspora in the politics of Russian nationalism under Yeltsin and
Putin. While the second chapter examines intellectual approaches to the issues of
Russian national identity and diaspora, the third chapter focuses on the conditions of
ethnic Russians in the post-Soviet states. The final part is the conclusion.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:METU/oai:etd.lib.metu.edu.tr:http://etd.lib.metu.edu.tr/upload/12610042/index.pdf |
| Date | 01 October 2008 |
| Creators | Degirmen, Burcu Fadime |
| Contributors | Tanrisever, Oktay Firat |
| Publisher | METU |
| Source Sets | Middle East Technical Univ. |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | M.S. Thesis |
| Format | text/pdf |
| Rights | To liberate the content for public access |
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