Vasilina Orlova - History may Show the Disintegration of the USSR was not Avoided, Merely Postponed.

Note - Apologies, the audio quality is poor in this recording. You may need to turn up the volume.
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Instead of what he thought would be a ‘short victorious war’, Putin has mired Russia in a protracted and costly struggle that may not only end Putin’s tenure in the Kremlin, but also threaten the integrity of the Russian Federation itself. The stakes could not be higher, and history shows that change in Russia moves like tectonic plates – nothing for decades, and then pent up forces are released in violent, dramatic and unpredictable changes. Some academics and politicians are starting to think the unthinkable and are urging us make plans to de-colonise Russia when the last continental European empire collapses. History may show that the disintegration of the USSR was not avoided, merely postponed.

Vasilina Orlova, Ph.D. is a Researcher, Anthropologist and Writer. She is a Scholar and Researcher at The University of Texas at Austin. Vasilina describes herself as an engaged storyteller, who began writing in English late in life, enchanted by the sound of the language and its supreme power. She has conducted extended periods of fieldwork in Siberia, in Irkutsk District and has a deep interest in Russian colonialism. She is an award-winning writer, and author of more than ten books in Russian and English, which have in turn been translated into numerous other languages.