Russia-Tatarstan Relations: Dilemmas of National Self-Determination and Territorial Unity

Abstract

In February 1994, Tatarstan and Russia signed a treaty defining their political and economic relations within the Russian Federation. This was a big surprise, as well as disappointment, to the Tatar national movement which expected the treaty to bring about a well-defined independence. Also, it was an achievement for President Boris Yeltsin, who could use this treaty as a model to settle Russia’s relationships with the 20 other autonomous republics and some of the oblasts (regions) which were aspiring to become autonomous republics. Here, an attempt is made to analyze the nature and scope of this treaty in the light of current dynamics and historical perspectives which the Tatars and Russians have nurtured since the middle of the sixteenth century.