Nationalism and the drive for sovereignty in Tatarstan, 1988-92

"Sergei Kondrashov provides a detailed analysis of the origins and rise of Tatar nationalism in one of the most populous and economically developed republics of the Russian Federation."--BOOK JACKET. "This study explores the nature of Tatar grievances and examines why and how nationalism grew so strong in Tatarstan. A dominant theme is that the sudden rise of nationalism was precipitated by the collapse of the legitimacy of the Soviet system. The study demonstrates that Tatar nationalism received powerful impetus from an alliance with the republican ruling elite, which (in an attempt to restore the legitimacy of its rule) pursued the strategy of obtaining greater autonomy from Moscow. The study is based on extensive use of primary sources in Russian and Tatar."--BOOK JACKET.