No. 195: 2016 in Review, Looking Forward to 2017

Author(s): Hans-Henning Schröder, Aglaya Snetkov, Vladimir Gel’man, Philip Hanson
Editor(s): Stephen Aris, Matthias Neumann, Robert Orttung, Jeronim Perović, Heiko Pleines, Hans-Henning Schröder, Aglaya Snetkov
Series: Russian Analytical Digest (RAD)
Issue: 195
Publisher(s): Center for Security Studies (CSS), ETH Zurich; Research Centre for East European Studies, University of Bremen; Institute for European, Russian and Eurasian Studies, George Washington University
Publication Year: 2016

This edition looks back at developments in Russian government, foreign policy, domestic politics and economy during 2016, and considers what lies ahead in 2017. Firstly, Hans-Henning Schröder assesses the annual presidential “state-of-the-nation” address to the Federal Assembly in December, stating that it offered nothing new and neglected most of the main challenges facing Russia. Secondly, Aglaya Snetkov considers Russian foreign policy during 2016, noting that recent international developments seem to offer the Putin regime the prospect that their previous foreign policy gambles could actually pay off. Thirdly, Vladimir Gel’man reviews domestic politics in 2016, outlining that it was a rather routine year of authoritarian consolidation, based on the regime’s strategy of three “Ds”—disengagement, destruction, and disinformation. Fourthly, Philip Hanson provides an overview of the Russian economy, highlighting that year on year output declined in 2016, with a sluggish recovery the best case scenario in 2017.

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