Migrant Resettlement in the Russian Federation: Reconstructing Homes and Homelands

Following the collapse of the USSR in 1991, and the rapid political, social and economic change that ensued, widespread population movements took place across the former territory of the Soviet Union. Migrant Resettlement in the Russian Federation offers a new perspective on one of the most significant movements, that of the ethnic Russian and Russian-speaking populations moving from the other Soviet successor states to the Russian Federation.

While the substantial domestic and foreign policy implications of this migration movement have been recognized, there has to date been little exploration of another, crucial, aspect of this phenomenon: the micro-level socio-cultural experiences and implications of movement and resettlement, and the nature of migrant response.

Based on original empirical data collected by the author, this timely book offers a unique insight into the individual and collective experiences of movement and resettlement among Russian migrants 'returning' to the Russian Federation over the period 1991-2002. Moya Flynn uses different levels of analysis (local, regional, national and global) to open up fresh perspectives on the nature of the Russian migration regime and government migration policy. The book offers the first in-depth examination of non-governmental development in the area of migration in post-Soviet Russia and provides new understandings of the experience of migration and resettlement at the individual level, specifically through an exploration of understandings of 'home' and 'homeland' and a focus on the role of migrant networks. Migrant Resettlement in the Russian Federation is a major new contribution to current debates in migration studies. Its unique synthesis of original theoretical and empirical material will appeal to students of contemporary Russian politics, geography, culture and society, academics and policymakers alike.