New training on Understanding Russia: Insights into Contemporary Russian Culture and Politics

CEURUS will hold a training in Russian “Insights into Contemporary Russian Culture and Politics” for public and private sector employees in Tallinn, Estonia from 13-17 December, 2021. The language of instruction is Russian.

The Russian Federation may often be perceived as the reincarnation of the Soviet Union, a country of authoritarian political culture single-handedly ruled by Vladimir Putin that continues to pursue an expansionist foreign policy agenda and engage in a new Cold War against the West. Whilst there is undoubtedly a grain of truth in some of these stereotypes, they hardly advance our understanding of the social, cultural and political developments that underlie current crises, drive Russia’s domestic and foreign policy, and influence the daily lives and attitudes of millions of Russians.


This training programme invites you to go beyond clichés by looking at some of the key aspects of Russia’s political, social and cultural developments, both in their own right and as foreign policy drivers. As the programme will be held in Russian it will also help attendees to freshen up their Russian skills.

The programme in short:

Day 1: Developments in Russia’s Political System and Governance
Day 2: Historical memory, repression, corruption and social hierarchies in Russia
Day 3: COVID-19 in Russia: Crisis Management and Vaccine Diplomacy
Day 4: Relations with the West, post-Soviet world, and Estonia
Day 5: Russia’s economy, gender, and changing cultural landscapes

Click below for the following:

The course is organized by the Centre for Eurasian and Russian Studies (CEURUS) and Johan Skytte Institute of Political Studies at the University of Tartu.

For more information, please contact Mr Jaak Erik Laja, jaak.erik.laja@ut.ee

Forwarded by: Maili Vilson, Head of Communications, maili.vilson@ut.ee