Economic Developments and Institutional Obstacles to the Eurasian Project

Abstract

The idea of Eurasian integration has deep roots in Russian history and culture. It was conditioned by the semiperipheral relation of Russia to Western Europe.¹ The idea that Russia is neither East nor West but a peculiar East-West (Vostok-Zapad) area was one of the cherished ideas of Russian philosophy of history.² The Russian ruling classes always experienced some pressure from expansion of the Western countries which were more developed economically and stronger militarily. The fear of falling behind its European competitors haunted the Russian state and prompted regular attempts at modernization. These attempts required great efforts to concentrate resources in the hands of the state. From this followed the need to organize the population of the vast territories that constituted the Russian Empire or the Soviet state. Modernization, in response to pressures from the core, has thus been the major reason for Eurasian integration, but its effectiveness has depended on the inner properties of the social system of the region. This chapter is mainly focused on the major institutional obstacles to integration of the former Soviet Union republics, with some attention being paid to the international circumstances of that process.