image of the USSR Keywords:, image of Russia, A frick

The image of Russia in different countries of the world varies markedly both depending on the regional affiliation of the state and within regions ¹. According to the international "47-Nation Pew Global Attitudes Survey", a positive attitude towards Russia prevails in the African region, although in two countries, namely Ethiopia and Senegal, a negative attitude prevails ² (see table).

The image of Russia in African countries is very much determined by the image of the USSR. First of all, the USSR was perceived as a superpower, a great country, and this image was generally transferred to Russia.³

In the early 1990s, Russia's interaction with African countries became noticeably less intense. The collapse of the Soviet Union negatively affected the state of Russian-African relations in all spheres, which resulted in a reduction in the volume of political, economic, scientific and cultural ties. Some intensification of relations began in the late 1990s, but it mainly concerned relations with North African countries.

The Concept of Foreign Policy of the Russian Federation (2008) states:: "Russia will expand its diverse cooperation with African states on a bilateral and multilateral basis, including dialogue and cooperation within the Group of Eight, and promote an early settlement of regional conflicts and crisis situations in Africa. Political dialogue with the African Union and sub-regional organizations will be developed, and their opportunities will be used to connect Russia to economic projects on the continent" (Chapter IV. Regional priorities)⁴.

Thus, strengthening relations between the Russian Federation and African countries is a priority issue. In this regard, the study of the image of Russia in African countries becomes not only an interesting scientific, but also an important practical task.

* * *

In 2009, the Institute of Africa of the Russian Academy of Sciences organized another expedition to East Africa. The subject of the study was the image of Russia in such countries of the East African region as Kenya and Tanzania.

During the expedition, several dozen intellectuals from the above-mentioned countries were interviewed about their perception of Russia. The choice of this social stratum is due to the fact that it is intellectuals who have a decisive influence on the formation of public opinion about Russia and thus on the foreign policy of their countries.

One of the most predictable scientific results of the project was to provide clear evidence that the Kenyan and Tanzanian populations ' knowledge of Russia is extremely limited.

Table

Attitudes towards Russia in African countries

Источник: Kohut A., Wike R., Horowitz J.M. Global Unease with Major World Powers. 47-Nation Pew Global Attitudes Survey. Washington DC, 2007. P. 73.

The study was supported by RGNF, project N 09-03-00767a/R.

they are scarce. Some respondents admitted that the only source of data about Russia for them was the school geography course, or rather, its country studies section, which provides only the most general information about Russia in a number of other countries of the world.

However, the Kenyan and Tanzanian intelligentsia in most cases had a certain understanding of the USSR and Russia. Nevertheless, even they admit that they are not well informed about Russian culture and the life of modern Russians.

IMAGE DYNAMICS: FROM THE USSR TO RUSSIA

The image of the USSR for most of the surveyed African intellectuals in Kenya and Tanzania has quite pronounced features. Almost all respondents were able to easily name one or more Soviet state leaders. A significant number of associations were associated with Lenin and Stalin, and the latter was often described positively as a strong, great leader. Interestingly, some respondents named Karl Marx as one of the prominent Soviet political figures.⁵ However, the most famous Soviet politician among African intellectuals is undoubtedly Mikhail Gorbachev. For all Africans who have mentioned him in connection with the political image of the USSR, the figure of Gorbachev is brought to the fore.⁶

Soviet investments in the development of African countries, modernization projects, and especially cooperation in the field of education were of great importance for the formation of a positive image of the Soviet Union. Many of the surveyed African intellectuals themselves received higher or postgraduate education in the Soviet Union, or personally know citizens of their country who studied in the USSR. For example, Ali Ideru Saadnani, a resident of Zanzibar and an associate of the Swahili and Foreign Languages Institute, who received a master's degree in Russian, described Zanzibar-Soviet relations as follows: "The government established in our country after the 1964 revolution received support from the USSR. Relations between the Soviet Union and Zanzibar were very, very good."⁷

A great influence on the formation of the image of Soviet culture was exerted by the activities of Soviet cultural centers in African countries, which organized the recruitment of students and postgraduates to study in Russia, held cultural events, alumni meetings, and conducted additional education programs.

POLITICAL IMAGE OF RUSSIA

The political image of modern Russia in African countries largely echoes the image of the Soviet Union. This is quite natural, because the USSR made significant efforts to purposefully form its political image in many countries of the African continent (just as the United States purposefully worked to create a negative image of the USSR). As a result, the image of modern Russia for many Africans is formed in a contrastive comparison with the image of the USSR.

Most of the interviewed African intellectuals note that after the collapse of the Soviet Union, Russia's political activity on the African continent sharply decreased (in the opinion of some, it was actually reduced to zero). Regarding the current state of affairs, opinions are divided. Some respondents believe that Russia is currently playing too passive a role on the world stage. For example, Isa Muhammad, assistant imam of the student mosque at the University of Dar es Salaam, notes:"There is currently no political cooperation between Tanzania and Russia."⁸. Other respondents, on the contrary, note that at present "Russia does not live in isolation, as during the Cold War. It is integrated into the world community, participates in world politics, and is very democratic" (Rosa Chaillot, Professor at the Development Institute, Dar es Salaam) ⁹.

It is important to note that all respondents, describing the political image of modern Russia that is developing in their countries, summed up their opinion in the same way. According to them, Russia is an extremely important country on the world political stage. Most of the surveyed Africans have a negative attitude to the fact that after the destruction of the bipolar world, Russia actually abandoned its foreign policy aspirations for a certain period of time. For example, Dr. Ali, coordinator of the business integration program at the Ministry of Commerce of Zanzibar, expressed a positive attitude towards Russia's actions in the conflict between Georgia and South Ossetia. : "Russia has finally woken up. Before that, America did what it wanted, and everyone was silent, because America is stronger than all of us. The only one who can stand up to America is Russia. " ¹⁰ Africans consider Russia's return to the world stage to be a very important step in global politics; this is stated, for example, by Abilla Omari, a respected Tanzanian political scientist.¹¹

The majority of respondents associate the modern political history of Russia with the figure of Vladimir Putin. Ali Ideru Saadnani, a Zanzibari, said that "Putin is an impressive politician, and his activities are known all over the world." ¹²

A similar point of view was expressed by one of the graduate students of the Center for International Relations in Tanzania. In his opinion, Russia is currently too closed on its own problems: "This country looks as if it is not very eager to communicate with the outside world."

In order to restore its authority in African countries, Russia needs to resume active cooperation with them-not necessarily in the form of economic assistance, but it can be political support for certain decisions or exchange of experience in certain areas that are important for African development.-

in particular, in the field of modernization.

ECONOMIC IMAGE OF RUSSIA

Most of the interviewees had an idea of Russia as a country with great economic potential, but experiencing significant economic difficulties. Some of them believe that Russia is now liberalizing its economy and that the overall economic situation of Russians is gradually improving.¹³ Regarding the economic development of modern Russia, Africans quite often mentioned the powerful scientific and technical base created in the USSR. It is likely that the importance of this area for the image of Russia is due to the fact that it was in this area that a significant number of Soviet projects were carried out to promote African development. Moreover, many Africans who were educated in the USSR were trained in technical specialties. Thus, Ali Ideru Saadnani notes that Russia has significantly contributed to the development of world science and technology, and it is precisely such achievements that have determined the importance of Russia's role on the world stage. ¹⁴

Many respondents were aware that oil and gas production is of key importance for the Russian economy.¹⁵

Some respondents note that after the collapse of the Soviet Union, Russia experienced serious economic problems caused by the lack of quality economic management and a high level of corruption. ¹⁶ It should be noted that the corruption of Russian society is also noted as a problem by many Africans living in Russia. They emphasize that this phenomenon is a serious obstacle to the development of Russian-African business relations, as corruption makes our country unattractive for African businessmen.

The overwhelming majority of respondents note that the role of modern Russia in the economy of African countries is minimal, in contrast to the role of, for example, China, India, the United States, Great Britain, and Canada ¹⁷. According to Africans, Russia not only practically does not invest capital in the African economy, but also shows no interest in sharing economic experience with African countries. Dr. Ali of the Zanzibar Ministry of Commerce notes: "What is Russia doing in Africa now? I don't hear anything about its activities in my country, I don't see Russia here."¹⁸

The majority of respondents identified increased Russian investment in their countries ' economies as potential areas of economic cooperation.¹⁹ However, there were other suggestions. For example, Isa Muhammad, Assistant Imam of the student mosque, University of Dar es Salaam, invited Russian specialists to share their experience in the field of construction and agricultural technologies with Tanzania.²⁰ According to Professor Adolf Mkenda, Head of the Department of Economics at the University of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania has a lot to learn from modern Russia in terms of a national strategy for the development of natural resources, especially oil and gas. In his opinion, the modernization of science and technology "can become an area of long-term Russian-Tanzanian cooperation" ²¹.

INFORMATIONAL COVERAGE

Almost all respondents noted that there is a huge information gap in the coverage of Russian news by African media.

For Africans who have visited Russia as part of various internships, educational programs, work projects, or as participants in scientific events (conferences, seminars, etc.), the main source of forming an impression about Russia was undoubtedly personal observations.

As for African intellectuals who have not visited Russia, they note that earlier information about the USSR was included in the curriculum of certain higher education specialties (including due to the fact that many university teachers received their education in the Soviet Union). However, most Africans currently have very limited access to information about events taking place in Russia. According to Abilla Omari, "those who were born in the 50s and 70s have some knowledge about Russia, but the generation of the 80s knows practically nothing about it" ²².

As for the coverage of Russia in various media outlets available to the African population, most of the interviewees note that the African media pay only minor attention to Russian news. Moreover, the African media itself usually draws information about Russia from the news feeds of leading Western agencies (BBC, CNN, Sky News, etc.).²³. These information sources, according to some respondents, cover mainly problematic Russian realities, which contributes to the formation of a negative image of Russia in Africa. Thus, respondents indicate that the conflicts in Chechnya, human rights violations in Russia, drug problems, etc. were actively covered. ²⁴ According to Muhammad Mbwana, a graduate student at the University of Dar es Salaam, "sometimes other countries try to present Russia as a problem state" ²⁵.

Among a number of African intellectuals, the English-language Russian channel Russia Today is gaining popularity (however, the broadcast does not apply to West Africa yet). However, this channel, as many of our respondents noted, lacks an "African orientation" in the presentation of information.

Thus, the lack of effectiveness of the Russian information policy, the lack of systematic tools and the basis for its implementation do not allow our country to carry out a systematic formation of a positive image of Russia, Russian politics and economy on the African continent.

POTENTIAL AREAS COOPERATION WITH RUSSIA

Representatives of the intelligentsia of various African countries had different views on the most promising ways to improve the image of Russia in their countries. However, the absolute majority of respondents named the education sector as a priority area of cooperation. It should be borne in mind that during the Soviet period, our country had accumulated considerable experience of cooperation with various African states in this area, and this experience had a huge impact on the formation of a positive image of the Soviet Union in the framework of its African policy.

In particular, Lawrence Ikamari, director of the Institute for Demographic Research at the University of Nairobi, acknowledged that one of the first associations with Russia and the USSR for him is due to the fact that "this is a country that has trained many Kenyans since Kenya's independence." ²⁶ His colleague Murungaru Kimani also emphasizes that " in Kenyan society, Russia it is well known in terms of education", and Kenyans who studied in Russia speak positively about the quality of teaching ²⁷.

Accordingly, further development of cooperation in this area, according to respondents from different African countries, will be a decisive factor for improving the image of modern Russia in African countries.

Thus, Kubingwa Simba, a representative of the Zanzibar business community, argued that it is necessary to establish a link between the University of Zanzibar and Russian universities by launching exchange programs at various levels28. Isaac Meroka Mbeche, Dean of the College of Humanities and Social Sciences at the University of Nairobi, said:: "Russia has educated many of our scientists in the past. They had a very high professional level, but due to a number of political problems, at one time there was a reorientation from Russia to the West. However, at present, our university policy is to look not only to the West, but also to the East. ...In this context, we are very interested in cooperation with Russia. " ²⁹

This point of view is shared by intellectuals from other African countries. Kelechi Nwogu, a researcher at the Nigerian Institute of International Relations, noted that the root of many of Nigeria's problems is the low level of education of the population as a whole. It is this area that seems to be the most promising for Russian-African cooperation in terms of justifying investments and improving Russia's image in Africa. "In Russia, the level of education is much higher," Nwogu said, "you could help countries like Nigeria raise the overall level of education." ³⁰

Ali Ideru Saadnani complained about the lack of quality free education in Zanzibar and suggested that Russia could help Zanzibar in this area.³¹

A similar opinion was expressed by Lawrence Ikamari regarding Kenya - Kenyans, according to him, should learn from the positive experience of Russia in eliminating illiteracy, "because already in the 60s Russia was a developed country, including in terms of education"³².

The analysis of the main trends in the modernization of African societies coincides with the conclusions of African intellectuals. Education in the medium term is a key aspect of development in Africa, which can become the engine of other modernization processes. Investment in education, especially in basic education, can become the engine of economic growth and prevent catastrophic development scenarios ³³.

In 2008, Russia announced its readiness to allocate $ 42.9 million for the project. on the development of basic education in developing countries, including Africa ³⁴. This initiative, we hope, can become a promising one for the development of Russian-African relations and thereby strengthen the positive image of Russia on the African continent.

^{Khalturina D. A., Korotaev A. Z., Kobzeva S. V., Kachkov D. M.} 1 Image of Russia in the world: quantitative and qualitative analysis. 2009, No. 5, pp. 128-140.

^{Kohut A., Wike R., Horowitz J.M.} 2 Global Unease with Major World Powers. 47-Nation Pew Global Attitudes Survey. Washington DC, 2007 .( Although these figures appear to be correct for Senegal, they are questionable for Ethiopia and require rechecking.)

³ Bondarenko D. M. Afrika: "sovetskoe nasledie" v obraze Rossii [Africa: the "Soviet Heritage" in the Image of Russia] / / Aziya i Afrika segodnya, 2007, No. 7, pp. 37-43; Bondarenko D. M. Sovetskiy Soyuz i sovremennaya Rossiya: preeminence of images in the consciousness of Africans / / Novye rossiiskie gumanitarnye issledovaniya. 06.07.2007 http://www.nrgumis.rU/articles/article_full.p hp?aid=48

⁴ The Concept of Foreign Policy of the Russian Federation - http://archive.kremlin.ru/text/docs/2008/07/204108.shtml

⁵ Interview N 07-1.1. Assistant Imam of the Student Mosque, University of Dar es Salaam.

⁶ Ibid.

⁷ Interview N 03-2.1.

⁸ Interview N 08-1.1.

⁹ Interview N 06-1.2.

¹⁰ Interview N 08-2.1.

¹¹ Interview N 12-1.1.

¹² Interview N 03-2.1.

¹³ Interview No. 12-1.1. Abilla Omari, political scientist, Tanzania.

¹⁴ Interview N 03-2.1.

¹⁵ Interview N 08-1.1. Isa Muhammad, Assistant Imam of the Student Mosque, University of Dar es Salaam.

¹⁶ Interview N 07-1.1.

¹⁷ Interview N 08-2.1.

¹⁸ Interview N 08-2.1.

¹⁹ Interview N 07-1.1.

²⁰ Interview N 08-1.1.

²¹ Interview N07-1.2.

²² Interview N 12-1.1.

²³ Interview N 06-1.1. Faussiya, Imam of the Student Mosque, University of Dar es Salaam.

²⁴ Interview N 07-1.1.

²⁵ Interview N 09-1.1.

²⁶ Interview N 01-3.1.

²⁷ Interview N 03-3.1.

²⁸ Interview N01-2.2.

²⁹ Interview N 02-3.1.

³⁰ Interview N 02N.

³¹ Interview N 01-2.1.

³² Interview N 01-3.1.

^{33. Korotaev A.V., Khalturina D. A.} 33 Investitsii v bazovoe obrazovanie kak mera po preventaniyu sotsial'no-demograficheskikh katastrof v razvitiushchikh stranakh [Investment in basic education as a measure to prevent socio-demographic disasters in developing countries]. Sistemny monitoring global'nykh i regional'nykh riskov [System Monitoring of Global and regional risks]. Moscow, URSS, 2010, pp. 301-313.

³⁴ Russia sponsors basic education in developing countries of the world / / Pravda, 11.10.2008.