Synopses & Reviews
The Post-Soviet Wars is a comparative account of the organized violence in the Caucusus region, looking at four key areas: Chechnya, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Dagestan. Zürchers goal is to understand the origin and nature of the violence in these regions, the response and suppression from the post-Soviet regime and the resulting outcomes, all with an eye toward understanding why some conflicts turned violent, whereas others not. Notably, in Dagestan actual violent conflict has not erupted, an exception of political stability for the region. The book provides a brief history of the region, particularly the collapse of the Soviet Union and the resulting changes that took place in the wake of this toppling. Zürcher carefully looks at the conditions within each region — economic, ethnic, religious, and political — to make sense of why some turned to violent conflict and some did not and what the future of the region might portend.
This important volume provides both an overview of the region that is both up-to-date and comprehensive as well as an accessible understanding of the current scholarship on mobilization and violence.
Review
"This is an uncommonly well-argued and well-written explanation of the violent conflicts that erupted across the Caucasus during and after the collapse of the Soviet Union. With exceptional clarity of thought, Zürcher melds established statistical studies of internal wars with a carefully constructed comparison of the origins and courses of the Chechen, Georgian, and Nagorno-Karabakh wars."-Foreign Affairs,
Review
"This books develops into a first-class, original study of the Russian Caucasus during its first years of detachment from the Soviet Union." -Choice,
Review
"Democracy is commonly paired with order while ethnic violence is paired with strife and chaos. The Post-Soviet Wars painstakingly documents that both violence and stability have institutional reasons and must be organized politically by specific human agencies. This lesson is obviously relevant to the contemporary discussion of democratization as well as ‘failing states, let alone the effects wrought by the American war on terror." -Georgi Derlugyan,author of Bourdieu's Secret Admirer in the Caucasus: A World-System Biography
Review
“These well-written chapters provide plenty of detail and analysis, displaying the author's deep understanding of the realities of these extremely chaotic and uncertain times in the Caucasus. The Post-Soviet Wars is an interesting read and remains relevant for understanding the contemporary dynamic in the Caucasus.”
“This is an uncommonly well-argued and well-written explanation of the violent conflicts that erupted across the Caucasus during and after the collapse of the Soviet Union. With exceptional clarity of thought, Zürcher melds established statistical studies of internal wars with a carefully constructed comparison of the origins and courses of the Chechen, Georgian, and Nagorno-Karabakh wars.”
“This book's develops into a first-class, original study of the Russian Caucasus during its first years of detachment from the Soviet Union.”
“With his exciting narratives and compelling analysis of the twentieth century's ‘Caucasian Wars,’ Zürcher brings events on the periphery of Europe into the mainstream of social science and comparative politics. Disputing existing explanations of internal wars, he shows that rather than mountainous terrain or poverty, a more powerful causal explanation of civil bloodletting can be located in state capacities and the abilities of combatants to finance their struggles. This book is sure to stir debate.”
“Democracy is commonly paired with order while ethnic violence is paired with strife and chaos. The Post-Soviet Wars painstakingly documents that both violence and stability have institutional reasons and must be organized politically by specific human agencies. This lesson is obviously relevant to the contemporary discussion of democratization as well as 'failing' states, let alone the effects wrought by the American war on terror.”
Review
“Few issues facing todays world are as important as understanding the new global economic crises--in their unity and plurality. This penetrating collection of essays on the global economic crises of our times throws light into a dark tunnel and enables us to understand better the world we live in and how it needs to be transformed.”
-Seyla Benhabib,Another Cosmopolitanism
Review
“Remarkable in its geographic reach and analytical reach, this book offers timely food for thought to social scientists and policy makers interested in explaining the relative success and decline of societies in the age of neoliberalism.”
-Michele Lamont,author of How Professors Think: Inside the Curious World of Academic Judgment
Review
“Who won and who lost in the global economic crisis that has dominated the news in the last two years? Aftermath provides surprising and much-needed critical analyses of this question. Supposedly robust, rich democracies have floundered badly, while the growth rates of many developing nations -- from Brazil to Turkey -- have been impressive. Distinguished economists, sociologists, and political scientists take to this crucial task with insight based on new empirical investigations that should be read by anyone who wants to understand where we are headed in the future.”
-Katherine S. Newman,author of The Accordion Family: Globalization Reshapes the Private World
Review
"With his exciting narratives and compelling analysis of the twentieth century's ‘Caucasian Wars, Zürcher brings events on the periphery of Europe into the mainstream of social science and comparative politics. Disputing existing explanations of internal wars, he shows that rather than mountainous terrain or poverty, a more powerful causal explanation of civil bloodletting can be located in state capacities and the abilities of combatants to finance their struggles. This book is sure to stir debate." -Ronald Grigor Suny,University of Michigan
Review
"This is an uncommonly well-argued and well-written explanation of the violent conflicts that erupted across the Caucasus during and after the collapse of the Soviet Union. With exceptional clarity of thought, Zürcher melds established statistical studies of internal wars with a carefully constructed comparison of the origins and courses of the Chechen, Georgian, and Nagorno-Karabakh wars."-Foreign Affairs,
Review
"These well-written chapters provide plenty of detail and analysis, displaying the authors deep understanding of the realities of these extremely chaotic and uncertain times in the Caucasus. The Post-Soviet Wars is an interesting read and remains relevant for understanding the contemporary dynamic in the Caucasus."-The Russia and Eurasia Review,
Review
"This books develops into a first-class, original study of the Russian Caucasus during its first years of detachment from the Soviet Union." -Choice,
Review
"With his exciting narratives and compelling analysis of the twentieth century's ‘Caucasian Wars, Zürcher brings events on the periphery of Europe into the mainstream of social science and comparative politics. Disputing existing explanations of internal wars, he shows that rather than mountainous terrain or poverty, a more powerful causal explanation of civil bloodletting can be located in state capacities and the abilities of combatants to finance their struggles. This book is sure to stir debate." -Ronald Grigor Suny,University of Michigan
Review
"Democracy is commonly paired with order while ethnic violence is paired with strife and chaos. The Post-Soviet Wars painstakingly documents that both violence and stability have institutional reasons and must be organized politically by specific human agencies. This lesson is obviously relevant to the contemporary discussion of democratization as well as ‘failing states, let alone the effects wrought by the American war on terror." -Georgi Derlugyan,author of Bourdieu's Secret Admirer in the Caucasus: A World-System Biography
Synopsis
A brief history of the Caucusus region during and after the Post-Soviet Wars
The Post-Soviet Wars is a comparative account of the organized violence in the Caucusus region, looking at four key areas: Chechnya, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Dagestan. Z rcher's goal is to understand the origin and nature of the violence in these regions, the response and suppression from the post-Soviet regime and the resulting outcomes, all with an eye toward understanding why some conflicts turned violent, whereas others not. Notably, in Dagestan actual violent conflict has not erupted, an exception of political stability for the region. The book provides a brief history of the region, particularly the collapse of the Soviet Union and the resulting changes that took place in the wake of this toppling. Z rcher carefully looks at the conditions within each region--economic, ethnic, religious, and political--to make sense of why some turned to violent conflict and some did not and what the future of the region might portend.
This important volume provides both an overview of the region that is both up-to-date and comprehensive as well as an accessible understanding of the current scholarship on mobilization and violence.
Synopsis
The global financial crisis showed deep problems with mainstream economic predictions, as well as the vulnerability of the world's richest countries and the enormous potential of some poorer ones. China, India, Brazil, and other counties are growing faster than Europe or America and have weathered the crisis better. Is their growth due to following conventional economic guidelines or to strong state leadership and sometimes protectionism? These issues are basic to the question of which countries will grow in comind decades, as well as the likely conflicts over global trade policy, currency standards, and economic cooperation.
Contributors include: Ha-Joon Chang, Piotr Dutkiewicz, Alexis Habiyaremye, James K. Galbraith, Grzegorz Gorzelak, Jomo Kwame Sundaram, Manuel Montes, Vladimir Popov, Felice Noelle Rodriguez, Dani Rodrik, Saskia Sassen, Luc Soete, and R. Bin Wong.
Synopsis
The Post-Soviet Wars is a comparative account of the organized violence in the Caucusus region, looking at four key areas: Chechnya, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Dagestan. Zürchers goal is to understand the origin and nature of the violence in these regions, the response and suppression from the post-Soviet regime and the resulting outcomes, all with an eye toward understanding why some conflicts turned violent, whereas others not. Notably, in Dagestan actual violent conflict has not erupted, an exception of political stability for the region. The book provides a brief history of the region, particularly the collapse of the Soviet Union and the resulting changes that took place in the wake of this toppling. Zürcher carefully looks at the conditions within each region — economic, ethnic, religious, and political — to make sense of why some turned to violent conflict and some did not and what the future of the region might portend.
This important volume provides both an overview of the region that is both up-to-date and comprehensive as well as an accessible understanding of the current scholarship on mobilization and violence.
About the Author
Craig Calhoun is President of the Social Science Research Council and University Professor of the Social Sciences at New York University. His most recent book is
Nations Matter: Culture, History, and the Cosmopolitan Dream.
Georgi Derluguian is Associate Professor of International Studies and Sociology at Northwestern University and is the author of Bourdieu's Secret Admirer in the Caucasus: A World-System Biography.