Product Description: Like Shakespeare, J.S. Bach is known largely by his works. Peter Williams asks many questions in this examination of the man as well as the composer. What was Bach like as a youth, father, and, eventually, church elder? What music did he know and how did he compose and perform such an amazing amount? Ultimately, Williams questions the effects of unremitting acclaim on objective evaluations of J...read more

Product Description: This book focuses on four former Soviet sub-regions - the Baltic Sea region, the Slavic republics, the Black Sea region and Central Asia - to explore the degree to which 'democratic security' has been established. It discusses the idea of 'democratic security', which includes de-politicisation and civilian oversight of the military, resolution of conflicts by international co-operation and involvement in international organisations...read more

Product Description: Among the contentious issues that come into play in relations between Russia and the other post-Soviet states, security concerns are arguably at the top of the list. Ruth Deyermond explores the linkage between post-Soviet security politics and the development of state sovereignty in the region, focusing on Russia's interactions with Ukraine, Georgia, and Belarus...read more

Product Description: Limiting Institutions examines the security threats in Eurasia and the role of institutions in the post-Cold War international environment. It looks at both the crucial aspect of foreign policy as well as a theoretical area of security studies and its impact in the former Soviet States including Russia, Belarus, Armenia, the Ukraine and Moldova...read more (view table of contents, read Amazon.com's description)

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The relationship between the Russian Federation and the 14 non-Russian successor states is unequal, with Russia the dominant power. This power imbalance is a hold-over from the Soviet era in which the RSFSR was first among equals. Empires, like the Soviet one, are specific types of political systems that differed from modern states. The centralized, multi-ethnic and non-democratic character of empires explains the continued dominance of the Russian Federation. It also explains the absence of alternative economic arrangements and political contacts between the former republics. The Soviet system was structured so as to establish Russian control over non-Russian republics. The political structure was centralized so that all decisions, including investment, production, and distribution decisions were made in Moscow. Economic planning dictated a complex network of production and distribution that rendered the former republics dependent on Russia in a variety of ways.Soviet patterns of government administration and economic management are still evident in all the former republics. Continued dependency on Russia has compromised the state-building efforts of the former republics. Political rhetoric trumpeting new foreign investment, the expansion of diplomatic relations, the signing of trade agreements, and the imminent entrance into international organizations masks the fact that none of these new contacts have been able to replace the old Soviet production and distribution networks. Scholars and students involved with comparative politics and Russian (post-Communist) Studies will find the work of particular value. (view table of contents)

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Product Description: First Published in 2015. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an Informa company. (view table of contents, read Amazon.com's description)

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Product Description: This textbook examines the external relations of the 15 new states which emerged from the Soviet Union in 1991. Mark Webber examines the consequences of the Soviet collapse for the system of international relations within Eastern Europe and Central Asia...read more