Over ten years
we have been building, in Russia and CIS countries, an autonomous scholarly
community of individual political scientists and experts on international
policy and security. We are less focused on institutions and more concerned
with network-building among individuals – male and female, Russian and
non-Russian, younger and mature. Russia’s academic community now gradually
abandon their dependence on bureaucratic structures, as scholars learn
to rely upon each other instead of remaining tied up by their formal job
affiliations.
Our alumni
network now embraces over 200 younger scholars and university professors
from 50 cities of the Russian Federation and 7 CIS countries. We are making
clear progress in our publications program. In 2003, the long-awaited
four-volume
Systemic History of International Relations. 1918-2003
was published to become a basic textbook for Russian university students
majoring in world politics and international relations. It is a first
Russian book of the kind written on a non-institutional basis, in no direct
affiliation with a single research or educational center. More recently,
an extensive paper by one of the Forum’s fellows, addressing the evolution
of transatlantic relations over the last 15 years and its implications
for Russia, saw light and was distributed through Forum’s regional network
of scholars, faculty and library outlets in 50 cities of the Russian Federation
and CIS states. Two other collective monographs; presenting the results
of Forum’s network research projects, are to appear before the end of
2005. These and other publications are made available freely at the Forum’s
web site.
In 2003, we
embarked on a new ambitious project – the “International Trends” journal
which has become the first Russian periodical focused on international
relations theory and world politics. Directed by an international team
of academic advisors, it keeps its pages open for regional scholars, Western
and CIS contributors.
In 2002-2004,
we were lucky to obtain new interesting partners and supporters. We have
signed a protocol on cooperation with the School of International Relations
of Voronezh University while the London International Institute of Strategic
Studies became our partner in organizing conferences in Barnaul and Krasnodar.
The Open Society Institute (Soros Foundation), the ISE-Center and NATO
Information Office in Moscow joined the circle of our much-appreciated
sponsors, allowing us to widen the scope and increase the effectiveness
of a number of our programs.
Much has been
accomplished, even more remains to be done. Thinking of the future, we
fully acknowledge that none of our past successes would have been achieved
without attention and assistance we have always been receiving from the
MacArthur Foundation to which we owe our birth.
Alexei Bogaturov, President
