Written in the spirit of comparative and historical analysis, this book addresses the relationship between the center and its provinces?an important issue in any society?using Russia as a case study.

* Introduction * The Major Theoretical Perspective: Regionalism as Past and Contemporary World Development The Era Of The Centers Dominance Before 1985 * Prerevolutionary Russia: The Center Unchallenged Since the Sixteenth Century * The Center and Regions in the Soviet Period: The Provinces Without a Voice * The Krushchev Era: The First Move Toward Decentralization * The Brezhnev Era: Stability of Regional Cadres The Center And Regions In Conflict Since 1985 * The Gorbachev Era: Destabilization of Center-Periphery Relations * Developments in Post-Communist Russia: First Moves Toward Autonomy, 19911992 * The Growth of Regionalism and the Centers Counterattack, 19931996 The Center And Regions In Confrontation * The Center and Regions in Political Struggle * Regions on the Offensive * The Regional Elite as Advocate of Regionalization * The Ideological Struggle Surrounding Regionalization * The Center and Regions in the Period of Marketization of the Economy * Differentiation Between Regions in the Struggle for Autonomy * The Regionalization and Political Fragmentation of Russia * Regions in Coalition Against the Center The Effect Of Regionalism On Russian Society * The Contradictory Consequences of Regionalization * Conclusion

Vladimir Shlapentokh, Mikhail Loiberg