Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Economic stabilization – Russia (Federation)'

Significant and rapid social change has occurred in Russia in the recent decade. With the collapse of communism and the dissolution of the former socialist block, Russian society entered a new stage of development, a stage of transformation towards a capitalist society with a democratic political system. In the course of this transformation, a new social group of Russian private capital owners has emerged.
This research focuses on the political attitudes and political participation of Russian businessmen who own and manage their own capital. In particular, it examines the extent to which capital owners are willing to support the consolidation of the democratic regime in Russia. The analysis was based on interviews with 60 capital owners conducted in Moscow, the capital of Russia. I examine their attitudes towards democracy, democratic institutions and democratic procedures, along with their ways of political participation in correlation with the size and origin of the capital that the businessmen own, controlling for age, education and political past. The purpose of this analysis was to establish if structural conditions such as the size and origin of the capital might play a role in a capital owners' pro-liberal political orientation.
Three main conclusions emerge from this research: (1) Russian capital owners are not uniformly pro-liberal in their political orientation, some businessmen being hostile to democratic political rule, and others having only limited pro-liberal political attitudes; (2) those capital owners who have pro-liberal political attitudes, limited or not, are the least likely to participate politically; (3) owners of small and medium sized independent type capital constitute the most pro-democratic group among Russian businessmen.

This study examines U.S. exports and imports to/from its major 15 trading partners and Russia. To analyze U.S. export and import flows the gravity model approach is used. Factors affecting U.S. bilateral trade flows with its 16 trading countries are evaluated using Generalized Method of Moments (GMM). Annual data from 2000 to 2009 are used for this study. Goods traded between the U.S. and its trading partners are disaggregated into three groups based on the Standard International Trade Classification (SITC). Results show that major factors affecting both U.S. export and import flows are distance and change in polity score. Also U.S. exports are influenced by U.S. trading partner Gross Domestic Product (GDP) for agricultural (AGR) and middle sector (MID) groups. U.S. foreign direct investment is a complement for U.S. exports of final (FIN) group and at the same time it serves as substitute for U.S. exports of AGR. On the other hand, U.S. imports of AGR and foreign direct investment (FDI) from 16 trading partners to the U.S. are substitutes. This study also reveals that the U.S. and Russia bilateral trade could be improved through economic growth in both countries, improving political cooperation and increasing inward and outward FDI.

Thesis (M.A. in National Security Affirs)--Naval Postgraduate School, June 2003.
Thesis advisor(s): Robert McNab, Karen Guttieri, Robert Looney. Includes bibliographical references (p. 63-67). Also available online.

The aim of the master's thesis is to find out the position of the Russsian Federation in the Eurasian Economic Union. The first chapter focuses on theoretical definition of the integration process, history of the Eurasian Economic Union, and theoretical definition of analysis which is used in the second part of the thesis. The second chapter researches the position of the Russian Federation in the Eurasian Economic Union. The objective of the third chapter is point out chosen characteristics of the Russian economy.

La diplomatie énergétique russe qui est au cœur de ce travail diffère des politiques industrielles classiques adoptées régulièrement par les États afin de développer leur pays, relancer son économie ou certains secteurs industriels. Elle entend en effet utiliser les ressources naturelles de la Russie, et singulièrement son potentiel énergétique (sachant que la Russie est à la fois producteur, consommateur, pays de transit) afin de retrouver son statut de grande puissance. Ce retour de puissance devant permettre à la Russie de sortir de la période de transition pour redevenir un acteur de premier rang dans un monde global redessiné par la fin de la guerre froide. Il s’agit pour elle de faire entendre sa voix, de participer en qualité de partenaire égal aux décisions et à l’élaboration des nouvelles normes rendues nécessaires par le bouleversement engendré par la fin de la guerre froide.

La diplomatie énergétique russe s’affirme pendant les années 2003-2004, comme une démarche pragmatique, un moyen opportuniste de rencontrer un projet politique en utilisant un des rares leviers dont dispose ce pays appauvri et affaibli – sa puissance énergétique qu’il s’agit de transformer un outil de puissance politique, raison pour laquelle la politique étrangère russe va être mise au service de ce projet. Le travail fait donc référence aux spécificités internes de la Russie et au contexte international afin d’identifier les faiblesses et les forces de cette diplomatie spécifique.

Russian energy diplomacy, with which this work is uniquely concerned, differs from the classic industrial policies adopted by states in order to re-launch their economies or certain industrial sectors. It has consisted of putting Russia’s natural resources and particularly its energy potential (as a producer, a consumer, and a transit country) to the practical purpose of restoring its status as a great power. For Russia, the return to power would permit the country to emerge from its period of transition and become a leading actor in the world reshaped by the ending of the cold war. It is a matter of making its voice heard, as an equal partner in international decisions and the formulation of the new political norms necessitated by post-cold war upheaval.

In 2002-2004 Russia developed this energy diplomacy as a pragmatic and opportunistic means of attaining a political objective with one of the few levers at the disposal of an impoverished and enfeebled country – that is to say, its energy potential, which it turned into a political tool. To this effect, Russian foreign policy has been made to serve the same project. Consequently this work deals with internal specificities and the international energy context, in order to probe both the weakness and the strength of this particular form of diplomacy.
Doctorat en Sciences politiques et sociales
info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished

Thesis (Ph.D) - University of Glasgow, 2007.
Ph.D. thesis submitted to the Department of Central and East European Studies, Faculty of Law, Business and Social Sciences, 2007. Includes bibliographical references. Print version also available.

Defence date: 7 December 2007
Examining Board: Prof. Adrienne Héritier, (EUI/RSCAS) ; Prof. Olga Potemkina, (Russian Academy of Science, Moscow) ; Prof. Gerda Falkner, (Institute for Advanced Studies, Vienna) ; Prof. Marise Cremona, (EUI, Department of Law)
PDF of thesis uploaded from the Library digital archive of EUI PhD theses
The EU has engaged in the promotion of an unprecedented process of policy export which involves not only candidates to enlargement, but also a wide range of countries beyond the Union’s present and future expected (at least at the moment) borders. In this framework, Russia and Ukraine have been an important test-case for the European Union which asked them to 'endeavour to ensure' that their legislation will be 'gradually made compatible with that of the Community' already in the mid-90s. This dissertation is intended to explore the mechanisms which have allowed the EU to promote legislative approximation in these 2 countries across 3 policy areas which are at the core of the internal market and where I, thus, expected the pressure for Europeanisation to be higher: competition policy, company law and consumers’ protection. In particular, I tried to understand if and how far the EU has been able to induce Russia and Ukraine towards the desired outcome as a result of the engagement of the parties in strategic inter-action. Then, on the other hand, I tried to assess if and how far rule adoption has been motivated by internalized, socially constructed identities, values and norms. The analysis has shown that there are interesting cases of Europeanisation not only in Ukraine, but also in Russia, allowing me to highlight the limits deriving from the use of conditionality in the new neighborhood and the need to reconsider the mix between different Europeanisation strategies.

The main objective of this thesis is to evaluate the circumstances and transition of the socio-economic system of the Russian Federation. It is also focused on the regional economy of Sverdlovsk region as a socio-economic subsystem. Uralmash plant is presented here as an example of an economic player in a process of transition. The thesis is based on several specific theories: socio-economic system and its transition, evolution of the economic systems by J. Schumpeter, social choice between chaos and dictatorship based on the new comparative economics, regionalist theory and corporate finance. It is chosen comparative-historical and empirical-statistical methodology. The main finding of the thesis is the inability of the socio-economic system of the USSR to continue in development as a result of dictatorship. However, the new Russian economy fell into a structural shift. The contribution of the thesis is a comprehensive view on transition process in Russia both at national and at regional and local level. Both theoretical and practical sites of transition are reflected. Not only macroeconomic but also microeconomic point of view is taken into account.

Defence date: 23 September 2004
Examining board: Prof. Mike Artis, supervisor, EUI ; Prof. Giuseppe Bertola, Università di Torino ; Prof. Saul Estrin, London Business School ; Prof. Wojciech Charemza, University of Leicester
PDF of thesis uploaded from the Library digitised archive of EUI PhD theses completed between 2013 and 2017
-- Reform and governance in transition : a review of the issues -- Stabilization reform in Poland -- Stabilization reform in Russia -- Shadow economy, rent-seeking activities and the perils of reinforcement of the rule of law

Master’s Research Report
The purpose of this project is to analyse the accession process to the World Trade Organisation using Russia as the case study. It will be guided by the following hypothesis ‘Russia’s slow accession to the WTO can be explained in a two-level game context where administrative capacity, domestic lobbies, domestic political changes and relations with international actors are relevant’. The importance of such research lies at the heart of a debate in the literature which asks whether a country should liberalise its trade, integrate itself into the international system by limiting its freedom and increasing competition on domestic producers. In a thorough analysis of Russia’s accession this paper intends to investigate how this dilemma was affecting the country’s decision-making process. This paper attempts to deliver an original analysis of Russia’s accession process by embedding it in a consistent theoretical framework, as the relevant literature lacks the theory implication and mostly focuses on economic benefits of Russia liberalising its trade.

This study has explored the public diplomacy activity performed by the Russian government and other organizations to improve Russia’s image as an investment destination and to attract U.S. direct investment in January – December 2010. This period was marked with the increase in investment promotion activity of the Russian government and other interested institutions. The main method used in the work is an exploratory case study of Russia’s public diplomacy efforts aimed to establish a positive investment image of Russia among U.S. investors. The investigation was based on the case studies of 5 public diplomacy events: the Russia Forum 2010, the announcement of creating the Skolkovo innovation center, the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev’s visit to the United States, and the Global Innovation Partnerships Forum in honor of the visit of the U.S. trade delegation led by California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger to Russia. The study analyzed the major players in the Russian public diplomacy aimed at attracting U.S. investment such as the Russian government, private sector players (investment banks), business associations, American public officials and business climate evaluators. Major strategies employed by the public diplomacy players were identified as alliances, third-party endorsements, audience participation and media relations. The work also examined the effectiveness of Russian public diplomacy players’ media relations to improve Russia’s image as investment destination through the content analysis of the coverage of Russia in the U.S. media. Public diplomacy activities that received more media coverage among the analyzed events involved the participation of high-ranking Russian officials, participation of U.S. public officials and announcement of new investment policies as well as deals reached by Russia and U.S. investors
Department of Journalism

碩士
淡江大學
俄羅斯研究所
88
The main theme of this thesis is to describe the transformation of foreign trade system from Soviet Union to Russian Federation. This thesis discussed the Russian historical background of foreign trade development by looking at the policy, system, products, the amount of money, and partner of Russia foreign trade. The article has three parts, the first part, the author discussed the special features of foreign trade in the planning economic system and in the transitional economic system in Russia. After that the author discussed the foreign trade policy, system, products, volume of money, and trade partner in the Soviet Russia period. The last part, the author discusses the foreign trade policy, system, products, volume of money, and partner of Russian Federation. Finally, the author argued how the foreign trade policy, system, products, volume of money, and trade partner in the Soviet Union period affected the foreign trade development in the Russian Federation.

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI)
The collapse of communism and the fall of the Soviet Union offered an unprecedented opportunity for the international community to support transitions to democracy in a region that had long known only totalitarian rule. Among the key players engaged in supporting efforts were U.S. grantmaking institutions, including both non-state and quasi-state aid providers. This thesis explores the motivations and evolving strategies of three different types of grantmaking institutions in a single country, Russia, with a particular focus on democracy aid provision from 1988-2002. The three types of grantmaking organizations examined through case studies include: the Ford Foundation, a private foundation with a history of international grantmaking spanning several decades; the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, a private foundation known primarily for its domestic focus with a much shorter history of international grantmaking; and, finally, the National Endowment for Democracy, a U.S. government-created and heavily taxpayer-funded organization established as a private nonprofit organization to make grants specifically for democracy promotion. Motivating factors for initiating or expanding grantmaking in Russia in the late 1980s included a previous history of grantmaking in the region, a previously established institutional commitment to democracy promotion, international peace and security concerns, and interest from a top institutional leader. Over the course of the fourteen year period studied, five grantmaking features are identified as influencing the development of grantmaking strategies: professional grantmaking staff; organizational habit; global political, social, and economic environments; market and other funding source influences; and physical presence. Though subject to constraints, the non-state and quasi-state grantmaking institutions included in this study were able to avoid weaknesses identified with private philanthropy in other research and demonstrated a willingness to experiment and take risks, an ability to operate at the non-governmental level, and a commitment to long-term grantmaking, informed by expertise.

Who supports social policy in the developing world? Most of what we know about micro-level preferences for social policy comes from well-developed, wealthy countries of the OECD, where governments can credibly commit to policy enforcement and implementation. This dissertation explores preferences for social policy in post-communist countries, where weak constraints on the state challenge the welfare state. In doing so, it provides novel insights both into social policy debates in these countries and the coalitions which support (or oppose) social policy. I argue that support for social policy depends on how institutions shape the expectations of actors about the costs they pay into social policy programs versus future benefits. I draw on existing theories of political economy to propose four mechanisms -- misappropriation, contract enforcement, free-riding, and macro-economic risk -- that alter the distribution of winners and losers from social policy. Misappropriation stems from officials' ability to divert funding away from intended uses. While for most this imposes dead-weight costs on social policy, where institutions are poor. the politically well-connected can benefit from diverted funds to decrease social policy costs. The contract enforcement mechanism emerges due to the inability of weakly constrained states to enforce contracts. Predictions are similar to misappropriation, but actors also cannot trust other private actors with control of social policy. Free-riding emerges when bureaucrats are unwilling to expend effort to ensure tax compliance. Again, this imposes dead-weight costs on most, but garners support from tax evaders, who can free-ride. Finally, the macro-economic risk mechanism suggests that macro-economic volatility is heightened in settings with weak institutions, which increases both individual risk and support for social policy. The empirical portion of the dissertation tests the observable implications of each of these mechanisms. Chapter 2 provides a first-cut, cross-national test of part of the argument using micro-level data from a cross-national survey of 28 post-communist countries. I draw on work on informality in the post-communist world to identify individual characteristics associated with tax evasion to test the free-rider mechanism. Consistent with it, I show that those associated with evasion support social policy more where institutions are weaker. Chapter 3 posits that if the mechanisms I propose matter, actors will appeal to the logic of my theory during concrete reform debates. I test this using evidence from the 2001 pension reforms in Russia. I combine analysis of the legislative debates surrounding reform with in-depth content analysis of the Russian media, which draws on an original dataset of all mentions of reform in 352 Russian newspapers, journals, and trade magazines. I show that all four mechanisms were indeed major concerns. Chapter 4 tests the theory at the firm level, using a survey of 666 Russian firms to look at preferences where institutional quality is weak. I test whether firms that I predict support the welfare state in such settings -- those with political connections and a comparative advantage in hiding from the authorities -- actually do so. In addition to providing some support for the misappropriation and free-riding mechanisms, this chapter is a contribution in its own right: it is among the first to use surveys to study firms' preferences for social policy. Finally, chapter 5 uses a survey experiment conducted on 1600 respondents to attempt to understand the ceteris paribus effect of institutions on the average individual. Using a simple framing experiment, I provide three different treatment groups with information about bribery, tax evasion, and the extent to which private pension funds commit fraud to test the misappropriation, free-riding, and contract enforcement mechanisms, respectively. The chapter offers mixed evidence. The dissertation makes contributions to both the study of the welfare state and the political economy of institutions and investment. First, the dissertation explores preferences for social policy in the developing world and introduces institutional quality concerns to this literature. My work particularly focuses attention on the ways certain groups can abuse social policy to pass costs onto others, adding nuance to existing understandings of who benefits from social policy. Second, it advances our understanding of how institutional quality shapes economic decision making and provides evidence as to how different pathologies of poor institutions shape economic decisions.