Post-Soviet Territorial Autonomy – Why So Resilient? An overview of cases and interpretations
Journal: Journal of Autonomy and Security Studies
Year: 2025

The article considers the reasons why most territorial autonomies in Northern Eurasia have survived to date after the Soviet Union’s collapse despite authoritarian rule, homogenizing policies, and national elites’ sceptical attitudes towards ethnic and regional particularism. The author highlights the insufficiency of the existing explanatory frameworks resting on the notions of path dependence, contentious politics, sham arrangements, and political informality. The article seeks to offer a new