Between centre and regions

Federalism may be regarded as a bargained institutional outcome where the basic purpose is to reconcile unity and diversity. However, the balance between centralization and decentralization may stem from different sources. Power sharing between governmental levels may be spelt out in the letter of the Constitution, or continuously haggled by the elites where the locus of power may oscillate over time. Smith (1995) suggests that ‘federalism’ may be about formal guarantees for regional autonomy or an instrument for promoting democratic values and redistribution. Here we suggest a political culture approach arguing that the elite’s orientations to federal institutions constitute what type of federation Russia is and actually determine the balance between centralization and decentralization. Since the Russian Constitution is not very precise on the issue of power sharing between centre and regions, the equilibrium becomes largely an issue of how politicians define the relationship between ruling levels and are able to establish compromises about governing responsibilities.