Abstract

The panel will discuss the political practices of empires as synthetic states in the Caucasus, Western Asia, and Central Asia.

The first paper, "Administrative Constants of the Russian Empire's Policy in the Caucasus and Central Asia" (by D. Vasilyev, Moscow City University, Russia), examines the typological unity of the system of military-and-people’s governance for the Caucasus and Central Asian regions of the Russian Empire, or its local specificity for each administrative-territorial unit.

The second paper, "When the Periphery is Temporal: Local Russian Administrative Practices in Kuldja in the 19th Century" (by S. Asanova, The Herzen State Pedagogical University of Russia, Branch in Tashkent, Uzbekistan), examines the political practices of the Russian Empire in the temporarily occupied territory of the Qing Empire. It demonstrates how the Russian Empire balanced its own goals with the specific context of Kuldja, creating a flexible system of influence.

The third paper, "Cotton Growing in Central Asia and the Caucasus: Colonial Economy or Simple Business" (by N. Mazaev, Moscow City University, Russia), examines the state of cotton production in two regions of the Russian Empire in the 19th century: the relationship between the authorities and Russian business, and the role of local representatives and Russian industrialists. Based on an analysis of legal documents and statistics, a conclusion is drawn about the nature of a monocrop economy.

The fourth paper, "The Nationalization of Political Discourse in Iran in the Late 20th – Early 21st Centuries" (by S. Vasilyev, Institute for African Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Russia), examines the strengthening of anti-colonialist sentiment in Iran in the last quarter of the 20th century. The example of Iran shows how the people that has long been in the sphere of colonial interests (Great Britain, Russia, the USA) forms its national discourse and what forms statehood takes.

The final report, "The Imperial Orientalist at the Service of Russia and China" (by S. Uderbaeva, Al-Farabi Kazakh National University, Kazakhstan), examines the work of N. Pantusov as an official in the Semirechye Provincial Administration and the head of the Kuldja Chancery. It describes the activities of the scientist, who was charged with implementing a policy in Xinjiang that was controversial within the Russian administration.

A discussion of the papers presented suggests the applicability of a postcolonial approach to the study of former national borderlands and dependent countries.