The End Of Globalization For Russia And Russians: What It Means

The End Of Globalization For Russia And Russians: What It Means

People line up at the entrance to IKEA Rostokino in Moscow on March 3, 2022, after the Swedish ... [+] company announced plans to close its shops in Russia. (Photo by Vlad Karkov/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images) The invasion of Ukraine has brought sanctions and economic isolation to Russia, halting the era of globalization Russians enjoyed after the end of the Soviet Union. Countries have gone from little integration with the global economy to becoming closely integrated. However, this might be the first time a country's inhabitants have experienced an abrupt end to globalization after enjoying it for many years. To better understand the impact of this monumental change, I interviewed Brian D. Taylor, a professor of political science at Syracuse University and the author of the highly acclaimed book The Code of Putinism. Stuart Anderson: Can you explain what Russia's participation in the global economy looked like prior to the breakup of the Soviet Union? Brian D. Taylor: During the Soviet period the country's economy was peripheral to the global capitalist economy, despite being one of the two superpowers. Soviet-style centralized planning was premised more on autarky, or economic self-sufficiency, than on participation in global trade and financial flows.