Weak Strongman - The Limits of Power in Putin's Russia

Looking beyond Putin to understand how today's Russia actually worksMedia and public discussion tends to understand Russian politics as a direct reflection of Vladimir Putin's seeming omnipotence or Russia's unique history and culture. Yet Russia is remarkably similar to other autocracies-and recognizing this illuminates the inherent limits to Putin's power. Weak Strongman challenges the conventional wisdom about Putin's Russia, highlighting the difficult trade-offs that confront the Kremlin on issues ranging from election fraud and repression to propaganda and foreign policy.Drawing on three decades of his own on-the-ground experience and research as well as insights from a new generation of social scientists that have received little attention outside academia, Timothy Frye reveals how much we overlook about today's Russia when we focus solely on Putin or Russian exceptionalism. Frye brings a new understanding to a host of crucial questions: How popular is Putin? Is Russian propaganda effective? Why are relations with the West so fraught? Can Russian cyber warriors really swing foreign elections? In answering these and other questions, Frye offers a highly accessible reassessment of Russian politics that highlights the challenges of governing Russia and the nature of modern autocracy.Rich in personal anecdotes and cutting-edge social science, Weak Strongman offers the best evidence available about how Russia actually works.

Product details

• Authors: Timothy Frye, Frye Timothy
• Publisher: Princeton University Press
• Languages: English
• Product format: Hardback
• Released: 30.04.2021
• EAN: 9780691212463
• ISBN: 978-0-691-21246-3
• No. of pages: 288
• Dimensions: 160 mm x 242 mm x 28 mm
• Subjects: Non-fiction book; Social sciences, law, business > Political science > Political science and political education; Russia, Political Ideologies, POLITICAL SCIENCE / Political Ideologies / General, POLITICAL SCIENCE / International Relations / General, POLITICAL SCIENCE / Comparative Politics, International Relations, Political science & theory, Regional Studies, Comparative Politics, Political science and theory, Former Soviet Union, USSR (Europe), USSR, Soviet Union, Political ideologies and movements, POLITICAL SCIENCE / World / Russian & Soviet