M.Soc.Sc Suvi Kansikas defended her PhD thesis “Trade Blocs and the Cold War - The CMEA and the EC challenge, 1969- 1976” on 4 February 2012 at the University of Helsinki, Faculty of Social Sciences.

Suvi Kansikas, who has been studying in the Finnish Doctoral Programme for Russian and East European Studies, argues that the Soviet Union was not in a hegemonic position vis-à-vis its allies. In her research on the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance (CMEA), the socialist bloc adversary to the European Communities, she reveals the intra-bloc controversies that the socialist countries had over their relations with the EC.

A study on their behind-the-scenes negotiations highlights that – in an effort to secure their own national economic interests – many East European countries began independent manoeuvres against the wishes of their bloc leader, the Soviet Union.

Read the abstract of the thesis.

The Aleksanteri Institute’s Visiting Scholars Programme invites applications for Aleksanteri Visiting Fellowships for the 2012-2013 academic year from scholars holding a PhD degree and pursuing research that relates to the Institute's research agenda.

The Fellowship carries a monthly stipend to cover the expenses related to the research visit that can range from two to three months. The Visiting Fellowship scheme is intended for scholars who reside outside of Finland. The deadline for applications is 24 February 2012.

For further information please see the Visiting Scholars site.

The Russian presidential elections are getting close. The Aleksanteri Institute launches a seminar series on the Russian elections. The first one in series, Russian Duma Elections: Mapping the Political Landscape, was held on 30 November 2011 and analysed the political landscape behind the duma elections.

The second seminar, Do Elections Matter? Rallies, Reactions, Reforms, is scheduled to take place on 25 January 2012 at 09:00-11:00 at Helsinki University Museum Arppeanum.

For the seminar programme and further information visit here.

Welcome!

Picture from: Wikimedia Commons

The latest issue of Aleksanteri News wishes all readers welcome to the Annual Aleksanteri Conference, dedicated to analysing the strategic choices of China and Russia.

Our Face of the Month is researcher Hanna Smith (page 2) who takes a look at the meaning and legacy of Dmitry Medvedev's presidency.

Read the newsletter online >>

The latest issue of Aleksanteri News 3/2011 contains information about the Institute's upcoming seminars and the Visiting Scholars programme and Graduate School News.

The Face of the Month is Professor Linda Cook, the Aleksanteri Institutes visiting fellow from Brown University.

Read the newsletter online >>

One of the 15 new Centres of Excellence (CoE) in Research for 2012-2017 funded by the Academy of Finland is Aleksanteri Institute’s Choices of Russian Modernisation, led by Markku Kivinen. In the new Centre of Excellence, modernisation in Russia is understood as a set of choices made under structural conditions. As the traditional frameworks, theories and concepts of individual disciplines are clearly inadequate for analysing the contradictory developments in Russia, the CoE strives to redefine the agenda on Russian modernisation. This new multidisciplinary approach, the Finnish School, will result in a new paradigmatic approach in Russian studies. At the same time, it will also provide a new platform for policy implications at the most fundamental level of EU-Russia relations.

Besides researchers from the Aleksanteri Institute, the Centre of Excellence consists of researchers from the Department of Modern Languages (Russian Studies) at the University of Helsinki and the Department of Political Studies (University of Tampere). In addition, several distinguished scholars both from Finland and abroad are involved as associated partners, including those from CEMAT (Aalto University) and the European University at Saint Petersburg, Russia.