Publication

This bulletin looks at the Russian government's strategy to deal with the country's non-systemic opposition, which the author describes as the opposition that is not controlled by the Kremlin. In particular, the author discusses how the Kremlin has 1) moved to weaken the status of mayors in order to block the rise of opposition forces in urban areas; 2) assembled a movement to intimidate and quash public protests orchestrated by the opposition; and 3) cultivated patriotism to reduce the numbers of those who could support the opposition. He also contends that unless opposition forces consolidate, their prospects are bleak.