ABSTRACT
Introduction With the collapse of the Soviet Union in December 1991, fifteen newly independent states were thrust onto the international stage – some more ready and able than others. All had been part of the Soviet Union for most of the twentieth century (and many integrated during the Tsarist period in the nineteenth century). That is to say, all but one – Russia – had been subjugated to a Russian-dominated empire. Nonetheless, vast cultural, historical, and geographical differences existed, and the political and economic trajectories of these countries were anything but clear. Since independence, some states of the former Soviet Union embraced their newfound independence, while others were reluctant to step from the “shadow of the bear.”1 This book focuses primary attention on those states that decided to remain in the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), the loosely-associated political, military, and economic union that succeeded the Soviet Union.2
