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REFERENDUMS IN THE POST-SOVIET SPACE

Coverage and Commentary from Russian Journals

The West was outraged last week when four separatist regions of Ukraine voted – reportedly under armed guard – to become part of the Russian Federation. Shocking as these events were, they have several precedents in recent history. 


Read on for details about earlier referendums in Russia and the CIS.

Legal Arguments on the ‘Ukrainian Question’

The most immediate comparison to the recent events in southern and eastern Ukraine is, of course, the Crimean referendum of 2014. The peninsula’s accession to Russia has never been recognized in either Europe or the US (e.g., the Brookings Institution called it an “illegal annexation”), but foreign policy law expert Alexei Moiseev brought forth plenty of technical arguments in an article in International Affairs at the time. For example, he invoked the 2010 International Court of Justice ruling on Kosovo’s separation from Albania. Moiseev combined this argument with Article 4.2 of the Russian Constitution, which permits the admission to the Russian Federation “of a foreign state or a part of it.”

About International Affairs

Offering unique, first-hand analysis of major foreign policy and security issues facing Russia and other former Soviet republics, the renowned journal International Affairs is the English translation of the Russian-language journal Mezhdunarodnaia zhizn, which is published by Russia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Learn More!

‘Counterterrorism’ in Chechnya

The first Putin-era referendum in the post-Soviet space occurred nearly 20 years ago – and, like the recent ones, it came in the midst of a raging conflict: the second Chechen war. Part of the peace settlement was the adoption of a new Constitution that enshrined the status of Chechnya as part of Russia. In an article in Military Thought, Col. V.V. Zelyony justifies the action as follows: “The Russian government authorities give much attention to ways of forestalling conflicts that might degenerate into acts of terrorism… This principle was given effect in the 2003 referendum… According to official returns, 96% of the voters who cast their ballots came out for the republic’s basic law in which Article 1 says that the Chechen Republic is a democratic law-governed state within the framework of the Russian Federation.”

About Military Thought

The elite military journal known in Russia as Voiennaia Mysl’ was founded in 1918 and was classified for nearly 70 years. Since 1992, East View Press has published the English translation of this journal, a unique source of information on the development of Russian military theory and policy, the strategy and tactics of modern combat, and counterterrorist and security operations. Learn More!

Constitutional Change in Kazakhstan

A referendum that came off with less fanfare than the Ukrainian ones happened in Kazakhstan in June 2022. Like the one in Chechnya, its purposes were to suppress “terrorism” – the label given to the civil protests that had erupted throughout the country in January – and to cement the authority of a fledgling national regime. According to Kazakh economist Pyotr Svoik, the referendum closes the door on the rule of longtime leader Nursultan Nazabayev. “With the renewal of the Constitution, the real power of second president Kasym-Zhomart Tokayev begins,” Svoik asserts.

About The Current Digest of the

Russian Press

Originally named The Current Digest of the Soviet Press, this journal has been presenting a selection of Russian-language press materials, translated into English, every week since 1949. A leading publication in the field of Soviet/Russian area studies, CDRP is used by scholars, teachers and students throughout the world. Learn More!.

Special Offers until December 2, 2022:

The Current Digest of the Russian Press

and International Affairs

With any major international crisis, libraries and scholars need access to information, which is the core of East View's mission. While the war in Ukraine may bring about complex, sometimes impenetrable, sometimes perhaps even offensive and divisive viewpoints, all of us at East View believe it has never been more important to bring all perspectives to light.


With that, we are offering a 20% discount on the 2022 institutional subscription (print, online, or print + online) of two of our most important publications on Russian current and international affairs until December 2, 2022. Subscribe to one or both. See information about these two publications below:

The Current Digest of

the Russian Press


The Current Digest of the Russian Press is a leading publication in the field of Soviet/Russian area studies.


Each week, it presents a selection of Russian-language press materials, carefully translated into English. Articles translated for The Current Digest include important news and information from the leading dailies and government reports of the day.


Intended for use in teaching and research, the translations are thus presented as documentary materials without elaboration or commentary, and state the opinions and views of the original authors, not the publishers of the journal.


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International Affairs


Offering unique, first-hand analysis of major foreign policy and security issues facing Russia and other former Soviet republics, this internationally renowned journal is the English translation of the Russian-language journal Mezhdunarodnaia zhizn (www.interaffairs.ru), which is published by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation.


The editorial board of this journal is traditionally headed by the minister himself, while the journal’s contributors are primarily experienced, high-ranking diplomats.


As such, International Affairs is an excellent primary source for anyone interested in the course of Russian policy in foreign affairs.


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