multinational state. Multinational countries of the world

Thinking about ways to overcome the crisis in the national question of modern Russia, it is necessary to remember not only the Soviet, but also the Russian experience.

1. Formation of a multinational state

Russia was formed as a multinational state, and there is only one answer to the question of how this happened: Russia became a multinational state as a result of the continuous expansion of its borders.

Since the time of the Moscow Principality, Russia has been expanding its territory all the time. There were small exceptions (well, for example, they lost lands, including Smolensk, during the Time of Troubles; there was a Japanese war when they lost some territories in the Far East). But in general, the territory of pre-revolutionary Russia was continuously expanding.

Thus, the multinationality of Russia was the result of Russian expansion.

What are the reasons for this expansion? There were several theories on this question.

One of the theories was developed during the Soviet era. According to this theory, Russia acted as a benefactor and benefactor. She always protected someone, saved. She was approached with requests, and those who did not want to join were either enemies, or spies, or someone else.

Indeed, in the history of Russia there have been times when it was addressed with requests to protect and help. But in general, this theory contradicts a lot of known facts.

More weighty explanations of the expansion were put forward by the historian Klyuchevsky. Klyuchevsky believed that Russia was formed in the conditions of continuous raids of nomads. I had to defend myself. And she had an inner need to have boundaries that would be natural boundaries. The Caucasus would become Russia's frontier in the south. Exit to the Baltic Sea. Go to the Pacific Ocean. Exit to the Black Sea. There was a certain logic in his theory.

But in general, it must be said that these explanations only partially reflect the essence of the matter.

One thing is certain: in the formation of Russia, the issue of takeovers was one of the fundamental ones.

And yet the main thing (and this question is most relevant to us) is that it is not difficult to pick up. In history, more than once or twice, huge multinational empires arose. But these empires disappeared very quickly. And Russia held on and grew. Why?

2. Why did Russia manage to survive as a multinational state?

First of all - Orthodoxy and baptism. A lot of peoples were baptized and became Orthodox.

And in the Russian multinational state there was a very clear order: if someone became Orthodox, he became Russian. There were no other criteria in tsarist times for becoming Russian. This approach to the definition of nationality contributed to the preservation of multinational Russia.

But in addition to Orthodoxy, a very reasonable policy towards other religions also played a role. Peter I ordered to translate the Koran into Russian. Under Catherine II, the Spiritual Administration for Muslim Affairs appeared.

Before that, there was already a line towards integration: well-born Tatars became Russian nobles. Dozens of nobles, whose names are well known to us: Turgenev, Timiryazev, Yusupov (the killer of Rasputin), Anna Akhmatova and her husband Gumilyov - they were all from the Tatar nobility.

In unification with Ukraine, the fact that Russia accepted the list of registered Cossacks, equated the registered Cossacks with the Russian nobility, that is, they automatically became nobles, played a huge role.

And there was another process that was not very fond of remembering in Soviet times. Russia pursued a certain policy of granting autonomous rights. In essence, Poland was an autonomy. Finland was autonomous. Autonomies, quite complete, were in Bukhara, and in Kokand, and in Khorezm.

Approximately fifty years before the Russian peasants were liberated, peasants were already being liberated in the Baltics. And when we talk, for example, about Stolypin, we must keep in mind that he is connected with Lithuania: his estate is there.

Therefore, summing up, it must be said that a gigantic mechanism was created in Russia that allowed this state to work quite effectively as a multinational state. In any case, the popular slogan "Russia is a prison of peoples" requires serious clarification.

3. Aggravation of national problems in Russia

Nevertheless, in the nineteenth century and at the beginning of the twentieth century, there was a sharp aggravation of national problems in Russia, and national oppression intensified.

After the death of Alexander II, for the first time, the Russian government and the Russian autocracy openly switched to the positions of Russian nationalism, or, simply speaking, chauvinism.

There were many reasons. After the victory over Napoleon, the anti-Russian forces in Europe managed to stop the movement of Russia towards the Slavic lands. Russia received a part of Poland, but from Europe it was put up and pushed to conquer the Caucasus.

The reason for the fight against foreigners was also the fact that Jewish capitalists played an important role in the formation of capitalism.

The reason was that all opposition parties to the tsar largely consisted of Poles, Jews, and Caucasians. Lenin wrote: "The Russian Social-Democratic Party, approximately, includes one hundred thousand people. Of these one hundred thousand people, twenty-five thousand Russians, thirty thousand Jews, fifteen thousand Poles, sixteen thousand Latvians." The Socialist-Revolutionaries differed little from the Social Democrats, and the Cadets and the Octobrists differed little from each other.

Well, the reason for the rejection of foreigners was that there were three places where the tsarist policy found "on a stone."

The first place is Poland. Poland, despite the fraternal, Slavic blood, was nevertheless a constant hotbed of uprisings in Russia.

The second place where Russia encountered national resistance was the North Caucasus: Chechnya and Dagestan, Shamil's movement.

And the third place where Russia encountered resistance was Alaska. In Alaska, the Aleuts accepted Orthodoxy very easily, but the Indians of Alaska declared war on Russia and waged this war continuously. Therefore, in the arguments why they sold Alaska, this factor played a significant role.

Of course, at the beginning of the 20th century, the autocracy tried to do something nationally.

The war of 1914 sharply exacerbated the problem of recruiting into the army. But both the tsarist authorities and the State Duma cared about the unity of the army units and could not even imagine that a multinational company - or, as recently a first year at the FSB border school in Golitsyn - was sprinkled with holy water by an Orthodox priest (apparently not understanding that he not only violates the provision of the Russian Constitution on the secular nature of state power, but also offends the feelings of cadets of other faiths and atheists). Russia took a different path. Latvian regiments appeared (subsequently, almost entirely sided with the Bolsheviks). A Muslim division was created from the North Caucasian mountaineers of General Erdeli, nicknamed the "wild division".

At the end of the war, it was decided to form an almost half a million army of auxiliary front-line units from the conscripts of the peoples of the Asian part of Russia. But the idea of ​​the authorities - as usually happened in Russia - was "drowned" by the officials. Due to their complete unpreparedness for the task entrusted to them, they managed to schedule the call for the weeks of the Muslim holiday and brought everything to the point of clashes.

The national crisis was also reflected in the elections and in the work of the first, second, third and fourth State Dumas (1905-1917).

The book "The National Question in the State Duma of Russia", published in 1999, contains many interesting facts. At the beginning of the century, non-Russian nationalities made up almost 60% of the population in Russia. But in the first Duma, among the deputies there were 265 Russians, 62 Ukrainians, 12 Belarusians, 51 Poles, 13 Jews, 10 Lithuanians, 8 Tatars, 4 Bashkirs, 2 Mordvins and one each Chechen, Kazakh, Votyak, Bulgarian, Chuvash, Moldavian and Kalmyk. At the meeting of the Duma, the statement of deputy F.I.

The First Duma was soon dissolved. In the second Duma there were 54 Ukrainians, 46 Poles, 14 Tatars, 8 Lithuanians, 7 Armenians, 6 Belarusians, 6 Cossacks, 6 Georgians, 6 Jews, 5 Latvians, 5 Estonians, 3 Azerbaijanis and 3 Uzbeks. A Muslim faction was created.

But the second Duma was also dissolved. In the Third Duma of European Russia, 403 seats were given. And from others - due to "insufficient development of citizenship" - the number of deputies was sharply limited: from Poland - 14, from the Caucasus - 10, from all of Asia - 15 deputies. 4.5 million Kazakhs were deprived of voting rights, and their leader, Bukeikhanov, wrote bitterly: "... in the Duma, only 40 or 50 people represent Russian peasants. Who cares about some illiterate, ruined Kazakh people, when such disregard for the Russian muzhik, on whom the Kingdom of Russia rests?!"

All four Dumas discussed and tried to resolve issues important for national Russia. On the autonomy of Poland. The fact that the Stolypin resettlement is organized in such a way that the peoples who lived in those parts before are deprived of their land. About the rights of the Jews.

Many questions sounded as if everything is happening today: about the "execution squads" in the Khasavyurt region. About the conflict between the Ingush and the Cossacks. About the attack of a gang of Chechens on Grozny. On the large-scale eviction of persons of Jewish nationality from the frontline areas. The fact that a significant part of the rich among small nationalities, as a result of bribery of Russian officials, "pays off mobilization", etc.

When discussing the national conflict in Kazakhstan, Deputy A.F. Kerensky, the future prime minister, who visited there with the commission, said: "... there were no other reasons for the war, except for the decree itself and the form and method of its execution ... And we, representatives Russian statehood, Russian culture, all parties without distinction, one should be painfully ashamed of the reproach, the insult, the desecration of Russian culture, which was carried out by Russian officials, when our culture was thrown into the mud in front of this local native mass ... The fact that takes place in the mountains of Semirechye, perhaps the world has not yet seen.

One of the leaders of the opposition in the Duma, P. N. Milyukov, tried to explain: “There is no stronger bond of human society than the consciousness of national kinship, and there is no more courage and despair that develop when the very existence of this national bond is in danger.” But in the Duma the supporters of the idea "Russia for the Russians" set the tone. They led the way to the national collapse of Russia in 1917.

1) adoption of Declarations on the sovereignty of Georgia, Estonia, Lithuania

2) "Novogarevsky process"

3) The signing of the Belovezhskaya agreements on the creation by Russia, Ukraine and Belarus of the Commonwealth of Independent States.

4) interethnic conflict among Uzbeks and Meskhetian Turks in Fergana (Uzbekistan)

In June 1990, in Moscow, at the First Congress of People's Deputies of Russia,

1) USSRformation of the CIS

2) abolished the post of President

3) adoption of the Declaration on State Sovereignty of the RSFSR

4) signing of the Declaration of Independence of the Latvian SSR

What was the name of the popular front created in Lithuania?

1) "Solidarity"

2) "Zalgiris"

3) "Sajudis"

4) Democratic platform

Which event falls out of the logical series

1) formation of the CIS

2) signing of the Declaration of Independence of the Latvian SSR

3) The dissolution of the Warsaw Pact.

4) adoption of the Declaration on State Sovereignty of the RSFSR

The USSR as a state was liquidated by a decision

1) Referendum

2) Supreme Council

3) Belovezhskaya troika (B.N. Yeltsin, L.M. Kravchuk, S.S. Shushkevich)

4) V Congress of People's Deputies of the USSR

The Belovezhskaya agreement of the leaders of the three republics (Russia, Ukraine, Belarus) on the creation of the Commonwealth of Independent States was concluded

The first countries to form the CIS were

1) Russia, Ukraine, Belarus

2) Russia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan

3) Russia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan

4) Ukraine, Belarus, Kazakhstan

Part C (for options 1 and 2)

Fill the table. The results of the existence of the multinational USSR

Practical work No. 6

Political crisis of the early 90s

Target: generalize knowledge on the topic, repeat concepts and facts related to the topic, apply knowledge on the topic in the course of solving practical tasks.

Option number 1

Part A

1. How, with the help of reforms, in the USSR were they supposed to move to a regulated market economy?

2. Restore the chronology of the events that took place in Russia in the second half of 1991. Insert blanks.

“The election of B.N. Yeltsin President of Russia 1) …… finally formalized the situation of "two-center" power in the face of the allied and Russian bodies. When 7 of the 15 Union Republics refused to take part in the signing of the new Union Treaty, scheduled 2) …….. , the conservative part of the party apparatus decided on an open speech. 3)…….., in the absence of the President of the USSR, a group of leaders of the party and state, including the vice president, prime minister and all power ministers, announced a change in the political course in the country in order to prevent the collapse of the USSR, protect the ideals of socialism and save the country from economic disaster. Educated by them 4)……… announced that in connection with the "illness" of M.S. Gorbachev and the impossibility of him fulfilling the duties of the President of the USSR, the committee takes full power into its own hands.

The main events unfolded 5) …….... when a state of emergency was declared, and troops and armored vehicles appeared on the streets of the capital.

However, the new leaders of Russia vigorously opposed the formed GKChP: 6) ……….. (at least 3 names).

The "White House", where the Supreme Soviet of Russia met, was surrounded by barricades and a human ring of thousands of people, ready to repel an attack by government troops. Relying on the mass support of the population, B. Yeltsin declared the "junta" deposed, and the activities of the CPSU suspended throughout the country. The indecisiveness of the GKChP members, the inconsistency of their actions, and most importantly, the active democratic position of the population marked the complete failure of the coup two days later. Returned from isolation in Crimea 7) ……… was forced to confirm the decrees of the President of Russia.

The forceful action of supporters of communist statehood pushed most of the republics away from the union center. The union was falling apart right before our eyes. After 8)………. Ukraine declared its state independence, the process of disintegration became irreversible.

9) …….. the leaders of Russia, Ukraine and Belarus announced the termination of the Union Treaty of 1922 on the formation of the USSR and proclaimed the creation 10)………….. from the three Slavic republics. Soon most of the former republics of the Union joined the Commonwealth.

Introduction

Federal structure and history of a multinational state

Russia is a multinational state

Conclusion

Introduction

The logic of political science, its content, and, consequently, its specificity in comparison with other social sciences are largely due to the understanding of politics as a social phenomenon.

The term "politics" (from the Greek word "polis") refers to essentially contested concepts that still cause heated debate. And it's natural. Appearing more than two millennia ago, politics has evolved along with the development of society. Having given citizenship rights to the new term, Aristotle understood it as a civilized form of community, serving to achieve the "common good" and "happy life". Since then, the content of the term has received various interpretations, in which, depending on the circumstances, certain properties of politics as a social phenomenon came to the fore. However, despite all the differences in approaches to its definition, politics has essential features that distinguish it from all forms of social interactions.

The totalitarian past and long years of lack of demand for political science in Russia did not allow wide sections of society to competently and meaningfully participate in the formation of democratic institutions of power, revealed their political underdevelopment and naivety. However, as Nobel Prize winner M. Friedman rightly noted, “... society is the way we make it ourselves... It depends only on us to create such a society that protects and expands the freedom of the human person, does not allow excessive expansion of the power of the state and is following. so that the government always remains the servant of the people and does not turn into its master.

The solution of such a large-scale task largely depends on the maturity of a civilly mature and politically active person, capable of living in conditions of freedom and democracy. The creative potential of this type of personality is due to its orientation towards such values ​​of civil culture as rights, freedoms and dignity of the individual; respect for democratic institutions of power, political tolerance, respect for opposition and dissent; the desire for agreement, the prevention and civilized resolution of conflicts, etc. The assimilation of the norms of democratic culture allows the individual to really and competently participate in social transformations. And here political science can and should play an invaluable help.

1. Federal structure and history of a multinational state

multinational Russian state

The Russian Federation is a historically multinational country, and, therefore, one of the main tasks of the state structure of Russia has been and remains the arrangement of its peoples as part of a single state. This problem covers both federalology and ethno-political science, as well as a number of other scientific and academic disciplines. It is important for us to justify the advantages of a federal state in the arrangement of various peoples, capable of preserving their originality and at the same time ensuring state unity.

About 200 peoples and ethnic groups live in modern Russia, differing in language, features of their material and spiritual culture, and confessional affiliation. Russia is a communal state that has developed over many centuries, consisting of a union of peoples and is the result of the evolution of peoples with a common history, on the basis of which solidarity socio-political, spiritual and moral qualities of a community that was formerly called the Soviet people, and now the multinational Russian people. At the same time, invariably emphasize the fundamental role of the Russian people in the ethnic, ethno-cultural and political development of the Russian statehood, which today is the result of a historical solidarity community of various peoples on the basis of Russian culture while maintaining its originality.

Historical trends in the formation of a multinational Russian state. The process of uniting people and peoples was carried out in several ways: on the one hand, Russia, becoming an empire, expanded, annexing new lands and peoples, and, of course, like other colonial empires, sought to assimilate them. However, thanks to the spiritual features, especially the Russian and other peoples of the country, it was still possible to preserve the unique diversity of cultures, religions and languages. And most importantly, move forward along the path of building a solidarity community - the multinational people of the Russian Federation. At the same time, the management of the “national outskirts”, even under the conditions of the tsarist autocracy, to one degree or another was carried out taking into account their local and national-ethnic specifics. For example, the Grand Duchy of Finland had a special legal status within Russia and enjoyed broad autonomy. It had its own constitution, approved by the emperor. On the Polish territories that became part of Russia, the Kingdom of Poland was formed, which also had a special status. The Baltic States had the usual administrative-territorial division into provinces without much interference in socio-ethnic and ethno-cultural affairs. At the end of the XVIII century. they were united in the Ostsee region, which had a special legal status. The Bessarabian region had the status of autonomy. In Central Asia, the Turkestan Territory was formed, headed by a governor-general. The Emir of Bukhara and the Khanate of Khiva retained the attributes of independent states that were under the protectorate of Russia.

Another trend - a hard conquest - was partially realized in the North Caucasus, although even here one cannot reduce everything to a Caucasian war, as many still do. And long before the war, the peoples of the Caucasus were drawn to Russia and got along quite peacefully with the Russians. Look at the agreement with the Avar Khan of 1588 or with the Chechen communities of 1708. I'm not talking about Kabarda and Ossetia, Georgia and Armenia. For many Russian people, the Caucasus has become a homeland, a source of inspiration, creativity and knowledge of friendship. The generous spiritual beauty of the peoples of the Caucasus did not leave indifferent the great Russian people, just as the openness of the Russian soul was attractive to the Caucasians. Although the laws and traditions of the time were very strict. And there are plenty of tragedies that have happened under various political regimes. And conflicts are still flaring up, which are provoked by all sorts of political provocateurs during the transition period. But over the years, oddly enough, due to the archaism of the tsarist political regime, both the level of consideration of ethno-national characteristics and adaptation to each other began to decline, national separatism and national chauvinism began to destroy the unity of Russia with their aggressive manifestations.

Unitarization of state building and administration as a factor in creating a revolutionary situation at the beginning of the 20th century. The national-chauvinist course of tsarism gradually increased. The independence and special status of Finland and Poland were reduced to a minimum, although under the pressure of circumstances some concessions were made on the national question. “The Russification of the natives was called the first task of the new Caucasian administration, and the school was the best tool” - these were the guidelines of the tsarist administration. Even Georgian and Armenian parochial schools were banned as developing the “spirit of national isolation”1, although they had previously existed. In this regard, tsarism fully prepared the peoples of Russia for a revolutionary uprising, often leaving no other forms of defense of their national identity to the possibilities of its development. The vaunted excessive centralization of the state did not strengthen the Russian state, but prepared it for collapse, although the attitude of ordinary Russian people and part of the progressive intelligentsia to other peoples of the empire, as well as to the Russian people, was historically generally friendly, benevolent, and solidary. As a result, in the struggle against tsarism, as well as in defense of tsarism, representatives of all the nationalities of Russia stood up. Together with the Russian people, which once again confirms the historical closeness of our peoples, the commonality of their fate.

Two trends in the state structure of Russia. In the sphere of the settlement of peoples in the Russian state, the dictates of two tendencies will have to be overcome: aggressive national chauvinism, national unitarism, on the one hand, and national separatism, on the other. These are objective tendencies, however, they are dangerous in their extremes, and not in themselves. The greatest threat to the integrity of the country is posed by national separatism, which boils down to political demands for the withdrawal from the Federation of individual peoples and subjects of the Federation. Let's conditionally call it attempts to destroy the integrity of the Federation from its outskirts. This was vividly demonstrated by the tragic experience of legitimizing (primarily by Russia) the collapse of the Soviet Union. But often this trend is activated against the background of the tightening of unitarism, where the possibilities for independent development of territories and peoples are reduced to a minimum. It should be noted that such attempts to destroy the integrity of the Federation come from the center.

To secede from the USSR, as is known, the RSFSR used in the early 90s. experience of "legal aggression". This was a very dangerous period for Russian statehood, because it marked a break in historical continuity in the state structure of a multinational country, not to mention the violation of the constitutional norm of maintaining integrity, and not just the collapse of a particular political system. All this should be taken into account when analyzing the processes of the 1990s, and not reduced to the ethnic factor. It is also important to realize that the ethno-national factor was to a greater extent a cover for specific political projects of struggle and collapse.

In Russia there will be a completely viable Federation, provided that the Constitution of the country is strictly followed from Moscow and further to every village. However, this viability was already adversely affected by the weakening of state power as a whole, as well as the bipolarity of public opinion, closed in its extremes, and, in addition, a huge number of socio-political organizations (more than 3 thousand), which in their program documents declare the most controversial and approaches to solving the problems of the state system, and especially the national question, that are opposite to the Constitution of the country. The relationship between the ethnic group and the state for Russian politicians is the most incomprehensible and debatable problem with a mass of theses that are offensive to a single people. Our ethno-national problems are historically overloaded with false prejudices and stereotypes. Steps towards the practical realization of the potential of the Federation in strengthening the integrity of the state are being taken by the new President of Russia, V. V. Putin, who is going to reform federal relations, up to local self-government. However, instead of democratic, legal mechanisms for the implementation of this reform, in practice, there is often again a bias towards bare administration, unitarism and unification.

The position of modern parties and movements in the state building of modern Russia. Parties and movements of national-patriotic orientation see the federal structure of Russia as a rigidly unitary state, emphasizing that only on such a basis can Russia be consolidated as a “great power” (Congress of Russian Communities, LDPR). They believe that the issue of developing and adopting forms of self-determination by the peoples of Russia should be excluded altogether, including from the Constitution. This is the previous attempt to build everyone along the line of rigid unitarism, preventing the principles of democracy from entering the state system, which indicates a lack of understanding that it is about self-determination and identity, first of all, of the Russian people. In addition, the fate of the Russian nation, concentrated throughout the country in the territories and regions, largely depends on the possibilities of both independent and integral development in a single country in alliance with all the peoples of the Russian Federation. The main prospects for the development of the Russian state and the peoples of Russia depend primarily on the state and prospects for the development of the Russian people.

2. Russia is a multinational state

Recently, life itself has been pushing us to comprehend many urgent issues of national policy. It is not easy to raise and discuss them, but to avoid this means to drive problems deeper and give rise to relapses of what we have already received in Kondopoga and on Manezhnaya Square in Moscow. Among the priority problems of today, I consider the need for special attention to the development of the Russian people, Russian culture and the Russian language. I am impressed that this topic was clearly stated by the President of Russia D.A. Medvedev during a recent meeting with leaders of parliamentary parties. This is an important signal. I would like to believe that he will reverse the strange tendencies in our political life, in particular, the ridiculous "shyness" in the use of the concepts "Russian", "Russian people", "Russian identity", etc., reaching almost to the point of ousting them from political vocabulary. Such a misunderstood tolerance leads to the fact that extremists begin to interpret the “Russian question” in their own way, speculating on it and poisoning the minds of young people. And no, this is not tolerance! This is stupidity and misunderstanding of the soul of multinational Russia, its history and modern realities.

It can be rightly said that the words “We, a multinational people”, with which our Constitution begins, were written by History itself. In the same way, the principle of federalism underlying our statehood, the principles of equality of nations and the inadmissibility of interethnic hatred, are historically conditioned. Russia arose and developed as a multinational state. Otherwise, it could not develop with the scale of the Eurasian space from the Baltic to the Pacific Ocean, with the unique ethnic, geographical and natural-climatic diversity that it had to master and unite. It is appropriate to recall the vivid formula of Russian identity, which belongs to Catherine II: “Russia is not a state, Russia is a universe. How many climates there are, how many peoples, how many languages, customs and beliefs!”

Due to such features, the strategies and methods of the "melting pot", which are known to us from the history of other countries, were completely unsuitable for Russia. We had nothing like what, for example, white settlers did with the Indians in the era of the development of North America or what happened during other colonial epics, when entire ethnic groups disappeared without a trace, assimilated by a stronger nation. Being part of Russia, not a single nation has lost its native language. Moreover, about a hundred peoples and nationalities that did not have a written language acquired it along with national textbooks and schools. Under the hand of Russian statehood, many peoples received such a state-legal status that they could hardly have had under other options for historical development.

Looking back at history and comprehending the realities of today, we have the right to formulate three important theses.

The first. It is the Russians who have always been and are now the core and unifying force of the multinational Russian people. It was on them that the mission of the land collector and the main supplier of human resources to fulfill this mission lay and lies. The fact that today more than 80% of the population of Russia are Russians, of course, must be adequately taken into account in the state national policy.

Second. Russian culture should be considered as the foundation of the Russian nation. Any nation entering the space of the Russian "universe" freely develops its national traditions. But at the same time, he has at his full disposal the achievements of Russian culture, which he can also consider his own. In this sense, the backbone role of Russian culture is quite obvious.

And, finally, the third. The Russian language is the most important bond of the peoples of Russia, a factor that ensures their unity. And not only because it has the status of a state, but because of the vital needs of the citizens themselves. After all, it is in Russian that the daily communication of millions of Russians of different nationalities takes place. And besides, for many, he is still a guide to world culture. One can recall the capacious aphorism of the poet Rasul Gamzatov: "I am without the Russian language, as without wings." The great Avar knew what he was talking about: he, who wrote poetry in his native language, it was the translations into Russian that brought the widest fame and glory.

All of the above does not mean at all that we should be talking about some kind of national superiority of the Russian people over others or special privileges for him. Moreover, this is not a reason for manifestations of narrow-minded, radical nationalism. “Nationalism is a manifestation of the nation's weakness, not its strength,” said Academician D.S. Likhachev. That is the greatness of the Russian people, that their national character has always been dominated by a respectful, noble attitude towards other peoples, friendliness and a desire to live in harmony with neighbors, communicating with them on an equal footing. Here much comes from the nature of "Russianness", which itself had a huge variety of sources. It is enough to read the ancient chronicles to be amazed at the diversity of Rus' crystallized out of it. Well, if we take our entire history as a whole, then we will find an infinite amount of evidence that the “Russian idea”, about which the philosopher N.A. Berdyaev, has been inextricably linked for centuries with the idea of ​​intercultural integration with the peoples of the Caucasus, the Volga region, the North, Siberia and many others. And it is no coincidence that the great Volga River has become one of the symbols of the Russian soul, absorbing many other rivers and streams and at the same time giving life-giving moisture to everything that is in its area. The historical self-realization of the Russian ethnos, its civilizational power became possible precisely because of this openness and generosity, and by no means because of the desire to withdraw into itself, to get rid of "alien" influences.

This truth is completely not understood by those figures who throw into society the slogan "Russia is only for Russians." This is not just politicking and provocation. There is dense ignorance and immorality. The slogan, presented as defensive, in fact, humiliates the Russian people. Because they are trying to replace the broad Russian consciousness with a narrow ethnic one. The complexes of some downtrodden tribe are being imposed on a great people. If "Russia is only for Russians", then what are we to do with Pushkin and his African blood? What to do with Akhmatova, who, by birth, Gorenko, took a pseudonym after the name of a distant Golden Horde ancestor? What to do with the great Orthodox philosopher Florensky if he is Armenian by mother?

Once an outstanding scientist Vladimir Dal, who created the Explanatory Dictionary of the Living Great Russian Language, in response to the proposal of the Baltic Germans to identify themselves in their community, replied: “I think and speak Russian, which means I belong to Russian culture and the Russian world.” This is a truly high understanding of "Russianness", which is based not so much on the "call of blood" as on spiritual and civil principles. But if we define “Russianness” only by anthropological signs, “racial purity”, then we are depriving ourselves of Gogol, Lermontov, Kuprin, Blok, the artists Levitan and Aivazovsky, the commander Bagration, the navigator Bellingshausen. What is there to say! Entire noble families with Caucasian or Tatar roots, entire strata of the Russian intelligentsia, according to this flawed logic, would have fallen out of Russian history. And after all, unfortunately, such a primitive consciousness manages to be imposed on that part of the youth, which, apparently, is not strong in the knowledge of Russian history and culture.

A traditional Russian question arises: what to do? Any national problem requires exceptional balance not only in decisions, but even in the tone of discussions. Therefore, when some politicians reduce everything to cries about the "genocide of the Russian people" or, even worse, to rude attacks on specific national republics, similar to those that Mr. V.V. Zhirinovsky, this can only inflame passions and bring the situation to a standstill.

One can disagree with those who believe that the root of evil is allegedly in some "flaws" in our Constitution. Say, all the troubles come from the fact that the Russian people are not called state-forming people in it. It is not forbidden, of course, to discuss: is there any sense in such clarifications or not? But this is hardly the point. Does the very name of the state - "Russian Federation" say little? Here, the whole dialectic of our statehood is already expressed: the concept of "Federation" reflects its multinational character, and the definition of "Russian" clearly indicates the fundamental, unifying role of the Russian people.

In general, the search for simple and quick solutions to the national question is an unpromising occupation. One can be critical, for example, of the outrageous calls by the Chokh to abolish national autonomies and replace them with pre-revolutionary provinces. Such rude intrusions into the delicate fabric of the national-state system can break a lot of firewood, but the peoples themselves will not go anywhere, and therefore, the problems of interethnic relations will not go anywhere, and what gives rise to them.

It is important to understand that the very inter-ethnic contradictions and conflicts that we face today are only the tip of the iceberg. And their main, underlying causes lie in the unresolved socio-economic problems, huge social stratification, mass poverty, unemployment, and the lack of life prospects for many people. When a person is humiliated and offended by the fact of his miserable existence, it is very easy to push him to the idea that someone with a different hair color, eye shape, etc. is allegedly to blame. Who mainly went on a rampage at Manezhnaya and during subsequent unauthorized actions? Some hardened, "ideological" xenophobes? Far from it. They were mostly 14-15-year-old teenagers from the outskirts of Moscow and from small towns near Moscow, guys from not very well-to-do families, whose fate, apparently, is not seriously dealt with by their parents, or the school, or local authorities, or the relevant state structures for work with youth. To see in this only a surge of extremism is wrong. This was undoubtedly a social protest, although expressed in a completely inadequate form. Well, such factors as unprofessionalism and corruption of law enforcement agencies, uncontrolled migration processes, etc. also worked as detonators of interethnic hatred.

That is why, speaking of national politics, we should not reduce everything to just some narrow circle of issues. We need a broad, large-scale view of it. What is needed is not a search for some miraculous panacea, but systematic, comprehensive and coordinated work. Unfortunately, so far what we pass off as national politics is more like an imitation. For a long time there was not even a corresponding line in the budget. With difficulty we managed to have it finally appear in the 2011 budget. But those 80 million rubles that appear in the column "national policy" are a drop in the ocean. They can be used to support national cultural centers a little, to hold a certain number of events. But it is unrealistic to solve the large-scale and complex tasks that arise in the sphere of interethnic relations with such a frail swing. Moreover, all this is entrusted to the Ministry of Regional Development of the Russian Federation, which already has many major concerns related to the country's construction complex, housing and communal services, etc. National policy, it turns out, was initially relegated to some secondary, “optional” position.

Meanwhile, the underestimation of national policy has a negative impact on all the peoples and nationalities of Russia - both small and large. Everyone feels it to one degree or another, everyone feels dissatisfaction. For Russians, too, this gives rise to misunderstanding, and even a sense of some kind of systemic injustice. Moreover, there are a number of factors that add poignant sharpness and anxiety. Let's not forget that the collapse of the USSR hit the Russian people the hardest: millions of compatriots at one moment found themselves separated by borders from their historical homeland. We should not forget about the consequences of the "parade of sovereignty" of the 90s, when a mass exodus of Russians from a number of national republics, and about the demographic "Russian cross" - a bitter symbol, indicating that since the beginning of the 90s the mortality curve among the Russian population intersected with the fertility curve and rushed up from it. Not every nation is able to withstand such blows of fate. The state should really take up the healing of all these severe social and psychological traumas, but so far it is evading and avoiding.

To our great regret, a fairly significant part of our political and business elite, many officials at the federal and regional levels do not understand the acuteness of national problems. These figures call Russia not Russia, but "this country". They are terribly divorced from the pressing concerns of ordinary Russians, they think exclusively in terms of macroeconomic indicators, profits, and efficiency. But the concepts of “spirit of the people”, “national traditions”, “cultural development” turn up their noses, considering them as something secondary, or even completely unnecessary.

“Great is the ignorance of Russia in the middle of Russia!” - N.V. once exclaimed woefully. Gogol. It seems that if he were alive, he would repeat the same thing, looking at some of the realities of modern life. For example, how indifferent officials are to the Russian countryside, seeing it as just one of many sectors of the economy. Hence the cynical views that the rural population is allegedly excessive in our country. Hence the chronic stinginess in measures of state support for agricultural producers, thoughtless cuts in the social sphere, mass closures of rural schools under the brand name of "optimization". There is no understanding that the village is a unique way of life for millions of people, which to this day is the custodian of many primordially Russian traditions and customs. That this is a reserved place from which the springs of our national character spring. If all this is not protected from degradation, then in the end the roots of our national consciousness will be cut down and we will all begin to turn into Ivans who do not remember kinship.

Let's take our education system. One wonders why the public is forced to fight with officials so that the number of hours for teaching Russian literature and the Russian language is not cut, so that our younger generation leaves the school literate and spiritual, and not stupidly memorized the answers to the USE tests. The latest story with the draft educational standards generally looks like the apotheosis of bureaucratic insanity. How could one think of not including the Russian language (which is the state language!) in the number of compulsory subjects? This, in my opinion, can only be offered by those who have completely forgotten what country they live in.

An absolutely anti-national and anti-cultural model has lined up today on our television. Here, too, everything is determined by utilitarian logic, narrow economic interest, ratings, and advertising revenue. Do you want to join the famous Russian ballet and opera, film adaptations of Russian classics? Go to the channel "Culture" - a kind of reservation for the intelligent public. All other channels are busy with other things - incessant "soap operas", crime series, smut, fun, "strawberries". Please note: even the Russian folk song has practically disappeared from the mass television and radio air. The nationless, rootless pop music rules everywhere.

But in all this there is a double danger. On the one hand, aggressive, corrupting mass culture, replacing the true culture, hurts the moral health of Russians. But on the other hand, it also hits those age-old ties that bind them with other peoples of Russia. After all, what has the Russian language always carried to non-Russian peoples? Light, goodness, enlightenment. And it was received with gratitude. And what could be the reaction of representatives of, for example, Islamic culture to the streams of dirt and immorality pouring from television screens, from the pages of the "yellow press", from the Internet? At the very least, this reaction will be the desire to fence off the evil broadcast in Russian. But another thing is not ruled out - reciprocal aggression towards everything Russian. In this sense, a showman who swears from the TV screen, or a "star" who publicly demonstrates his naked charms, are the same provocateurs as a skinhead trying to beat foreigners. Everything is interconnected here, and this vicious circle must eventually be broken.

The country needs a law “On the Fundamentals of National Policy”. The Federation Council is actively working on a relevant bill. But the problem is so complex and multifaceted that it is hardly possible to immediately issue an absolutely finished product. Given the special importance of the issue, a broad public discussion will be required, as was the case with the bills “On Police” and “On Education”.

We need not only to formulate the right ideas and principles, but also to lay down effective mechanisms to ensure that the national factor is taken into account in solving any socio-economic and other problems. And also to create regulators of interethnic relations that would effectively ensure the prevention and resolution of conflict situations, the establishment of a system of intercultural communications and education of citizens about the traditions and customs of different nationalities living in Russia. In our country, after all, there should be a special state body that would be responsible for all these issues. Of course, we do not mean the creation of yet another bureaucratic monster, which only breeds circulars and develops budgetary funds. No, we need a truly lively, operationally functioning structure that, firstly, would coordinate the activities of all other ministries and departments in terms of national policy, and secondly, would be engaged in the development of this very national policy and its implementation.

There is no getting away from the reality that in a market economy, with democratic freedom of movement, the number of contacts between people of different nationalities is increasing dramatically. In this case, we are not talking about powerful flows of labor migration coming to Russia from abroad: this is a separate topic that requires special discussion. However, internal migration is also on the rise. And here you cannot create rigid barriers that would force people to sit in “national apartments”. Yes, we must strive to reduce unemployment in the same North Caucasus, in other regions, so that people have more opportunities to realize themselves in places of traditional residence. But the market is a market, it will inevitably stimulate internal migration, which means that it is time to learn how to extract from it not only minuses, but also pluses.

In the meantime, too much is happening spontaneously with us. In traditionally Russian areas, enclaves of newcomers of a different nationality arise, who, not integrating into local communities, begin to compete for a “place in the sun”, create powerful clan ties from fellow countrymen, finding patrons among local corrupt officials. As a result, this causes acute rejection and irritable “Come in large numbers here!” in the Russian population. No one really takes into account who, from where, where and why “came in large numbers”, no analysis of these processes is carried out, no forecasts are made. There is no systematic work with national diasporas, and the authorities, politicians and the public often undertake to establish a constructive interethnic dialogue only on a case-by-case basis, from one emergency to another. In order to avoid a vacuum in all these issues, we need a kind of “headquarters” that develops a national policy and is daily responsible for its implementation.

Conclusion

Today, many often recall the Soviet experience in solving interethnic problems. Some talk with nostalgia about the former "friendship of peoples", while others, on the contrary, sneer about it. It’s not worth mocking: friendship, unity of peoples were not a myth. It is enough to recall the history of the Great Patriotic War, to look at least at the list of Heroes of the Soviet Union, consisting of representatives of various nationalities. We must study and use all the best from the Soviet experience. But here, let's say, the experience of creating a "community of a new type - the Soviet people" is hardly suitable. Because it was mainly an ideological project. What was ultimately meant? First you are a communist (Komsomol member, pioneer), and then a Russian, Bashkir, Ossetian, Chuvash, Yakut, etc.

We live in a democratic state, so we should not invent artificial ideological constructs. But it is, of course, necessary to fill the concept of “multinational Russian people” with real meaning. But this can be done only by finding a balanced balance between two equal, interdependent principles - national and civil. There is nothing wrong with the growth and manifestation of national self-consciousness in people. "I am Russian! What a delight! - once said the commander Alexander Suvorov. How can such a sincere feeling harm if it is addressed primarily to oneself and does not aim to offend or humiliate anyone? Let a Russian be proud that he is Russian, a Tatar - that he is a Tatar, a Chechen - that he is a Chechen. Another thing is important: that along with this self-awareness, another equally significant and strong one should live and grow in the souls of people - pride in Russia, for belonging to a unique family of peoples, for a common history, for the values ​​formulated in our Constitution, etc. And it is in this field that the efforts of state bodies, parties, public organizations, schools, families, scientists and cultural workers should be concentrated as much as possible.

List of sources used

1. Mukhaev R.T. Political science: textbook for students of law and humanities faculties. - M.: PRIOR Publishing House, 2000

National interests: essence, structure, political mechanisms of formation [Electronic resource]. - Access mode: #"justify">. Modern Russia: the problem of tolerance in a multinational state [Electronic resource]. - Access mode: #"justify">. Tavadov G.T. Political science: textbook. - M.: Publishing house "Omega-L", 2011

Shtanko M.A. Regional conflicts in the modern world: a study guide. - Tomsk: TPU Publishing House, 2006

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18. Work with the press of the specified period. Make a chronicle of the events of ethnic clashes.

1689. Refute or confirm the proposed point of view. Justify your answer. Express your opinion.

At the turn of the 80-90s. the disintegration of the USSR began. The Union Center headed by Gorbachev did not have a clear program of action and was losing control. In many union republics, the separatists took over. The last attempt to save the Union was the preparation of a new Union Treaty. Its signing was scheduled for August 20.

1920. Offer your version of the draft Union Treaty.

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The countries of Europe are freeing themselves from the legacy of the past associated with the era of confrontation and division of the continent. The Charter of Paris proclaimed a new era of democracy, peace and unity in Europe. Gosu

From the Agreement Establishing the Commonwealth of Independent States. December 8, 1991
We, the Republic of Belarus, the Russian Federation (RSFSR), Ukraine as the founding states of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, who signed the Union Treaty of 1922, hereinafter referred to as the High Contracting Hundred

The parties will respect each other's aspirations to achieve the status of a nuclear-free zone and a neutral state
The member states of the Commonwealth will preserve and maintain under joint command a common military-strategic space, including unified control over nuclear weapons, in order

The High Contracting Parties recognize that the scope of their joint activities, implemented on an equal footing through common coordinating institutions of the Commonwealth, includes:

Default 1998
By 1998, the debt of the Russian Federation to international credit organizations and domestic creditors had become too large. The situation was aggravated by the unfavorable international

Internal political crisis of 1999
In the summer of 1998, the second half of B.N.'s second and last presidential term began. Yeltsin. The search for a successor began, which could not but aggravate the struggle of the factions. 1993 constitution

A New Stage of the Military-Political Crisis in Chechnya
This moment seemed extremely favorable for the adventurers, who did not give up plans to change the situation in the North Caucasus. The terrorist international, entrenched in Chechnya, has begun

1999 election campaign
In parallel with the events in the North Caucasus, an election campaign was unfolding in the Russian Federation. While the anti-terrorist operation was taking place, Russian citizens supported the actions

1. Describe the economic development of Russia in the late 90s. 2. What is "oligarchic capitalism"? Why do you think "oligarchic capitalism" developed in Russia?

Foreign policy of the Russian Federation in the second half of the 1990s
16.1. Russia's position in the world. With the collapse of the USSR, Russia's position and role in the world have changed. First of all, the world has changed: the Cold War has ended, the world system of socialism has become a thing of the past,

Balkan crisis
The Balkan crisis became a turning point in the development of relations between Russia and the West. The Kosovo crisis erupted in 1998. The Yugoslav government began a fight against Albanian separatists in the province of Koso

Deterioration of Russia's relations with the West
All these events stimulated the process of NATO enlargement. In 1999 Poland, Czech Republic, Hungary joined NATO. And such countries as Albania, Bulgaria, Latvia, Lithuania, Macedonia, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia

Questions for self-study
1. What priorities in the country's foreign policy can you single out in the early 1990s? What explains this choice of the Russian leadership? 12. Describe the main directions of foreign policy

Formation of a new social stratification
A natural consequence of the implementation of market reforms in Russia was a profound transformation of the former Soviet social structure. The process of social stratification proceeded quite quickly, but unevenly,

Development of private business in Russia
Private entrepreneurship in Russia originated long before the liberal reforms, back in the years of Brezhnev's "stagnation". During the years of “perestroika”, the first semi-legal commercial structures appeared in the country.

Science, education and culture in a market environment
In the period from 1985 to 1995, R&D costs in comparable prices decreased, according to various estimates, by almost 15 times. Appropriations from the federal budget for fundamental research and assistance

Historical conditions for the development of culture
The ideas and images of Russian culture, the peculiarities of the spiritual life of the people reflected the era - the collapse of the USSR and the movement towards democracy, the change in models of social development and the severance of traditional ties with

Cinema
In the 90s. world cinema has entered a new century. The positions of French and Italian cinematography were pushed back by low-budget auteur cinema. The new direction abandoned clear genre f

Music
The contradictions of social development also had an impact on the musical life of Russia. An alarming phenomenon in the early 1990s. was the departure abroad of major figures of domestic musical art. FROM

art
In Russian painting of the 90s. developed in various directions. Pictures of social problems inherent in the Soviet era have given way to both abstract and realistic paintings.

Mass media
Radical changes took place in the 1990s in the media. Hundreds of new newspapers and magazines appeared. Domestic radio stations broadcasting until the 90s. only in the VHF band, higher

Traditional religions in modern Russia
The crisis of communist ideology at the turn of the 1980s and 1990s caused a violent outburst of religious sentiments in Russian society. By the mid-90s, according to surveys, up to 34% of the adult population of countries

Questions for extracurricular independent work. Questions for self-training
1. What factors influenced the development of culture in the 90s? 2. Name the features in the development of musical culture in the 90s. Which of them do you consider the most important? 3. Give a har

Political globalization at the turn of the 20th and 21st centuries
18.1 Definition of globalization. Globalization is a process of ever-increasing influence of various factors of international importance (for example, close economic and political

Crucial moment
At noon on December 31, 1999, the first President of Russia B.N. Yeltsin, in an address to the citizens of the country, announced his decision to retire ahead of schedule. In his speech, he summed up his presidency

tax reform

Judicial reform
In 2001-2004 judicial reform. The institution of magistrates was introduced, the jury trial actually started working (although not in all regions), the institution of bailiffs was introduced, the

Clashes with oligarchs

Chechnya. Fight against terrorism

Governance reform

Russia and CIS republics

Russia's relations with international organizations are built on a constructive basis. Russia is a consistent supporter of strengthening the role of the UN in international affairs. Designated new

Russian-Chinese relations

Questions for extracurricular independent work
1. What tasks were announced by President V.V. Putin in 2000 priority for the state? Why these particular tasks? 2. What reforms needed to be carried out in Russia to improve the political

Questions for self-study
1. Describe the economic situation in Russia at the beginning of V.V. Putin. 2. Explain why B.N. Yeltsin resigned his presidency ahead of schedule.

tax reform
In 2000, a tax reform began to be carried out, aimed at stimulating the development of the Russian economy. The main objectives of the reform were to reduce the tax burden on enterprises, strengthen

Judicial reform
In 2001-2004 judicial reform. In Russia, the institution of justices of the peace was introduced, the jury trial was actually launched (although not in all regions), the institution of bailiffs was introduced,

Clashes with oligarchs
The very first actions of V.V. Putin as prime minister, and then as acting president, caused discontent among a number of oligarchs. February 28, 2000 at a meeting with confidants of the Way

Chechnya. Fight against terrorism
After the end of the active phase of hostilities in 2000 and the appointment in June 2000 of the Mufti of Chechnya A. Kadyrov as head of the provisional administration, the resistance of the militants passed into the phase of terrorist

Questions for self-study
1. What changes at the beginning of the XXI century. occurred in the structure of public administration in Russia? 2. Explain how the formation of seven federal districts was supposed to increase management

Economic development
As early as 2000, the Russian economy began to get rid of the lingering consequences of the 1998 crisis. In 2001, the increase in household income for the first time outstripped the increase in the cost of living. This ensured the growth of real

Governance reform
The seizure of a school in Beslan by terrorists in September 2004 demonstrated the unpreparedness of the executive branch to act effectively in crisis situations. The President of Russia spoke on September 13, 200

National projects and structural transformations in the economy
September 5, 2005 President V.V. Putin spoke at a joint meeting of the government, parliament and regional leaders, where he formulated the concept of national projects: “Today’s opportunities

Questions for extracurricular independent work. Questions for self-training
1. What changes have occurred in the economic development of Russia at the beginning of the XXI century. compared to the 90s. 20th century? 2. What measures do you think allowed to bring the Russian economy out of the crisis and

Public debt of the Russian Federation in 2000 - 2007 (before non-residents)
(billion US dollars) 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006

Goals and objectives of labor legislation
The objectives of labor legislation are to establish state guarantees of labor rights and freedoms of citizens, create favorable working conditions, protect the rights and interests of workers and

Solving the problem of external debt
The default of August 17, 1998 dealt a blow to Russia's foreign policy positions. As of January 1, 2000, the state external debt of Russia amounted to about 60% of GDP (132.8 billion dollars), and the total external

Russian-American relations
The main problem of Russian-American relations in 2000-2001. was Washington's desire to withdraw from the ABM (missile defense) treaty of 1972 and create a national P

Russia and international organizations
Russia's relations with the countries of the so-called near abroad are not easy to develop. Moscow has the most conflicting relations with the countries of the post-Soviet space with Georgia, as well as with

Russia and the Russian Diaspora Abroad
The Russian diaspora abroad is one of the largest in the world. Especially it increased after the collapse of the USSR. In total, up to 30 million people currently live outside the Russian Federation

Russia and international organizations
All these efforts of Russia in the post-Soviet space have made it possible to work more fruitfully with the former republics of the USSR. After the uprising in Andijan (Uzbekistan) in May 2005, inspired by Islami

Russian-Chinese relations
Cooperation between Russia and China is fruitfully developing. On July 16, 2001, the Treaty of Good Neighborliness, Friendship and Cooperation between the Russian Federation and the People's Republic of China was signed

Russia's place in the international arena
"Energy diplomacy" began to play an important role in Russian politics. Energy resources are finite, while humanity's energy needs are increasing. Therefore, questions of access to e

Questions for self-study
1. Describe the foreign policy position of Russia at the time of the beginning of V.V. Putin. 2. What changes took place in Russia's foreign policy position at the beginning of the 21st century?

From the Message of President V.V. Putin to the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation. 2001
The future of our relations directly depends on how accurately the fundamental principles and norms of international law are observed, primarily in matters of the non-use of force and threats.

Changes in the early 1990s
The last decade of the XX century. was marked by radical changes in the spiritual life of the country and new processes in the development of culture. The most important conditions for economic and political transformation

Commercialization of art and popular culture
Mass culture in the first post-perestroika years focused almost exclusively on borrowed samples. In the box office, mostly box office American films were successful. bookstore leaders

New aesthetic. Postmodernism and Information Technology
There are new forms of communication with the audience. The performances were staged in real historical scenery (for example, M.P. Mussorgsky’s opera Boris Godunov performed by the Mariinsky Theater troupe was performed at

Historical and cultural heritage
The self-organization of cultural life has assumed ever more diverse forms since the beginning of the new millennium, when the material base for the implementation of cultural initiatives began to expand. Magis

religious life
The most important process in the development of the spiritual life of the new Russia was the growth of people's religious consciousness. The religious revival touched all traditional confessions - Orthodoxy, Islam, Judaism, Bud

Questions for self-study
1. What changes took place in the spiritual life of Russia at the end of the 20th - beginning of the 21st century? What are these changes connected with? 2. How did the processes taking place in the country and abroad affect

Sociologist M.V. Konkin on the problems of Russian youth
At present, in Russia one often encounters a deliberate opposition of young people as the bearer of advanced ideas, values ​​and forms of activity to the older generation, embodying

Socio-economic development
In 2007, economic growth continued in the Russian Federation. In just a year, it amounted to 8.1%. The volume of industrial production increased by 6.3%, while growth in construction approached 20%. And

Domestic politics
On the night after the election of the President of Russia in 2004, V.V. Putin, answering a question about his possible successor, said: “I have an idea of ​​what this person should be like. This should b

The results of the board of V.V. Putin
Answering a question about his assessment of his own work as President of Russia, V.V. Putin said: “I don't see any serious failures... all the goals set have been achieved, the tasks have been completed. Can

Results of the election of the President of the Russian Federation (data from the protocol of the Central Election Commission on the results of the elections, signed on March 7, 2008)
The total number of voters on the lists is 107,222,016. Those who took part in the elections (determined by the number of ballots issued to voters) - 74,849,264 (69.81%). Participated in the voice

Results of the reign of D. Medvedev
V. Putin was recently re-elected President of Russia, but for four years the country was at least formally led by D. Medvedev. Therefore, it is worth remembering what his presidency was like.

Glossary of terms
Voucher - privatization check. Voluntarism is a political activity carried out without taking into account objective conditions. Glasnost -

Tolerance
1964, October 12-14 - Presidium and Plenum of the Central Committee of the CPSU on the issue of the resignation of N.S. Khrushchev. Election of L.I. Brezhnev First Secretary of the Central Committee of the CPSU, appointment of A.N. Kosygin Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the SS

Important dates and events
history of Russia in the second half of the twentieth - early. XXI century. 1964, October 12-14 - Presidium and Plenum of the Central Committee of the CPSU on the issue of the resignation of N.S. Khrushchev. Election of L.I. Brezhnev First secret

The most important dates in the history of Russia 1945-2008
May 8, 1945 - surrender of Germany May 9, 1945 - end of the Great Patriotic War June 26, 1945 - signing of the Charter of the O

Recently, there have been very active discussions in Russia about how the country should respond to the global problems and challenges that our state is facing both in its national capacity and as a world power. The collapse of the USSR, the expansion of the European Union and the inclusion of Eastern European countries into it, the color revolutions in the post-Soviet space that Russia is trying to keep in its sphere of influence, the multinational character of Russia, where, according to the latest census, 160 nationalities, nationalities and ethnic groups live, require an answer to the question about the place and role of Russia in a changing and globalizing world.

On the one hand, we see how global trade and financial flows, transnational enterprises are growing, tourism and the Internet are developing, migration and contact of different cultures is growing, there is a need to solve such global problems as environmental pollution and international terrorism, which require deepening interstate and intersocietal relations. On the other hand, in the world, and especially in the post-Soviet space, there is also a reverse process, characterized by an aggravation of national identification, resistance of cultures to the idea of ​​universal peace and standardization. This was most clearly manifested during the war in Iraq, the elections in Ukraine, the results of elections in some European countries and the growing popularity of nationalist forces, voting on the European Constitution.

The process of globalization destroys not only the barriers that separated countries and peoples, but also has an increasing impact on all areas of human activity. The main ones are the erasure of national, informational and cultural boundaries between states and the growing dependence of the development of any country on global and interregional problems. The most developed form of union of nation-states today is the European Union. It is obvious that the process of unification and reduction of the role of nation-states will determine world development for the coming decades.

Among other global trends, one should also highlight the desire for a unipolar world under the leadership of the United States, the growing contradictions between the "rich North" and the "poor South", accompanied by increased racial hostility and the strengthening of extreme right, nationalist parties in Europe, the growth of nationalism in Russia itself, the expansion of terrorism, armed conflicts and religious strife. These problems capture Russia to the greatest extent and form a "global arc of crisis" on its southern borders.

National question in Russia.

Multinational Russia is in a very difficult situation. Not a single country in the world experienced such events in one century: in 1917, the collapse of the Russian Empire and the establishment of a communist dictatorship, and in 1991, the Soviet Union collapsed, which resulted in the creation of independent states in the post-Soviet space. A new question appeared in Russia, which practically did not exist either in Tsarist Russia or in the Soviet Union, namely, the Russian question. It turned out that in the 21st century the process of identifying Russia as a state, as a nation has not yet been completed.

In Russia, a formula for uniting peoples in a new Russian federation has not yet been found. In the Soviet Union, they tried to unite everyone under one communist ideology. In 1977 with the adoption of the next Soviet constitution, it was even announced the formation of a new single community - the Soviet people. Currently, this is not even at the concept level. Many politicians in Russia do not actually recognize multinationality; moreover, they reject it, seeing in ethnicity only a conflicting principle. Thus, the concept of Russia's national security says nothing about the peoples of Russia as a development potential. Islam and the ethnic factor are mentioned only in the section "Threat to national security", and in fact almost 20 million Muslims live in Russia. In a multinational country, in fact, there is no chamber in the parliament that represents the interests of the regions and titular nations: most of the seats in the Federation Council, the upper house of the Russian parliament, are actually “bought out” by various kinds of oligarchs.

One of the main problems is the constantly smoldering war in Chechnya. This problem could be solved with the participation of all the leaders of the North Caucasus, but for some reason they are not allowed to participate in this process. Many influential forces in Russia believe that only a renewed empire is capable of establishing inter-ethnic harmony in Russia. With such approaches it is extremely difficult to build a solidary society - the multinational people of the Russian Federation.

Russia is yearning more and more for its imperial past. A small example: in Poland, hooligans beat the children of Russian diplomats in a park. Instead of asking to deal with the hooligans, the mayor of Moscow renames the street where the Polish Embassy in Russia is located to the street of General Mikhail Muravyov, known for his cruel actions during the suppression of the uprising in Poland in 1863.

There is a growing threat of real Russian ethnic nationalism and even Russian fascism. It is no coincidence that in the last elections to the State Duma one of the most popular slogans was “We are for the poor, we are for the Russians!”. In total, the nationalist parties won 20% of the seats in the Russian parliament. Almost half of Russians, according to one of the latest polls, believe that national minorities in the country have too much power and influence. The combination of social and nationalist slogans creates an explosive mixture similar to the one that brought Hitler to power in Germany in 1933.

Putin's policy aimed at reducing the independence of the regions, suppressing national and regional elites and enlarging the regions, forgetting the principles of federalism, maintaining poverty and uncertainty also contribute to the growth of imperial consciousness. By building a vertical of power, Russia is increasingly losing horizontal ties within the country, which threatens it as a multinational state.

Russia and CIS.

If we see unification processes in Europe, then, unfortunately, Russia has not yet taken advantage of the unique opportunity to integrate with the countries of the former Soviet Union. Almost 25 million people live in these countries. Russians who involuntarily became national minorities. On the other hand, there are a lot of Ukrainians, Kazakhs, Georgians, Azerbaijanis, Armenians and others living in Russia, who are also interested in preserving historical, cultural and economic ties. However, while declaring a desire for integration, almost no practical steps are being taken for this in Russia. The Union of Russia and Belarus did not work, Ukraine is trying to break out of the Common Economic Space in the EU.

Because of the disintegration, not only Russia suffers, but also other independent states of the Commonwealth. So, if the share of the Soviet Union in world trade was 9%, now the share of all CIS countries has decreased to 2%. Russia has 35% of its trade turnover with the EU countries and only 17% with the CIS countries. In fact, the Commonwealth is following the scenario of disintegration. Ukraine's national problems have not been resolved either, which, as shown by the last elections, is actually divided into Western and Eastern Ukraine, the problems of Abkhazia, South Ossetia, and Adzharia remain in Georgia, and the conflict in the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic is aggravated. The peoples of these countries are also going through a difficult period of self-identification, and the nations are only at the beginning of the path of building full-fledged nation-states.

Unfortunately, Russia does not always take into account the factor of the desire of peoples for self-determination, the true state, weight and influence of the country in the post-Soviet space. The events in Ukraine, for example, are very often presented in the official media as a conspiracy, a special operation of the West against Russia to change the pro-Russian regime of Kuchma-Yanukovych. Meanwhile, the absence of clear goals and guidelines for national development, the poor quality of the administrative elite and the quality of the state as a whole (87th place in the world), low political and legal culture of the population and lack of practice of self-government, experience of personal responsibility, the shadow nature of economic and political relations, the raw material factor of the Russian economy and the lack of sufficient investment to ensure new modernization. With such problems, it is difficult to claim the role of a center of attraction for the CIS countries, in which we have dominated for many centuries. That is why, despite the presence of many prerequisites, a process is observed in the CIS that is directly opposite to the European one: the aggravation of traditionalism, national and religious patriotism. The political elites of the CIS countries continue their course towards further sovereignization of the states of the region. So it is still too early to talk about the idea of ​​the withering away of nation-states.

In conclusion, a little optimism.

14 years after Russia's democratic revolution, Russia is still at a crossroads. It faces at least three choices: build a new empire, continue integration in the post-Soviet space, or give preference to accelerated integration - joining the WTO and the EU.

In Russian society, there is a growing understanding of how outdated the principle of individual protection of national selfish interests is, that it is impossible to slide into self-isolation, leading to instability and reduced security, that it is necessary to develop an honest competitive economy, achieve internal interethnic unity, reform society and the political system in such a way that to meet the changing requirements of the modern world, which requires a serious study of the experience of Europe, where common spiritual values, democratic traditions are being established, economic space and opportunities are expanding. Russian President Vladimir Putin acknowledges that no country, no matter how rich in natural and other resources, can develop successfully if it is isolated from the rest of the world.

It is obvious that Russia has exhausted the path of autocratic power, the country's closeness from the outside world, the dominance of the interests of the state over the interests of the individual, great-power foreign policy ambitions - what I sometimes call the "Russian system". The Russian people, and they are often considered incapable of modernization, nevertheless outgrew this system, refusing to trust communism. Today, 73% of Russians, according to the Levada Center poll, have a good or very good attitude towards the European Union. This suggests that there are still a lot of Russian people with modern attitudes, advocating the priority of the individual, the openness of the country, independence and responsibility for one's life. The question remains to the elite: is it ready and able to govern free people?

Gennady Sheida,

Head of the Altai Branch of the Fund

"Russian socio-political center"