Globalization and Post-Soviet Capitalism: Internalizing Neoliberalism in Russia

Abstract

Since its re-emergence as a sovereign state in 1991, Russia has been pursuing economic and political restructuring strategies. These processes have been strongly intertwined with changes at the global level. Like in many other countries across the globe, the ideology of market-driven globalization and a minimalist state predetermined Russia’s choice of a reform path. This chapter examines the role of such a decision for Russia’s attempts to build capitalism. It aims to provide an explanation for some of the key problems encountered by the country in the process of economic liberalization and reforming the state, and to outline a transformation of Russia’s neoliberal project. Specifically, this chapter suggests that the numerous crises during the 1990s have discredited the model of disembedded laissez-faire liberalism adopted by the Yeltsin regime. The early years of the millennium have witnessed a reformulation of the neoliberal agenda in Russia. Under Putin, the Russian state is seeking to re-establish its centrality in setting the trajectory of the country’s neoliberal agenda. One of the greatest challenges to this process is the political legacy of oligarchic groupings and the deeply entrenched social polarization brought about by the Yeltsin era of laissez-faire restructuring.