Post-Soviet Affairs Journal

Some papers have excellent data and careful analysis but never explain why readers outside a specialist niche should care - and never get published. Associate Editor Ian Garner on getting the conclusion right in a submission to Post-Soviet Affairs 👇🧵

Don't just use the conclusion to summarize. Explain: What changes because we know this? What bigger debate does it speak to? How could another scholar build on or test what you've found?

For example, don't end at "This article traced changes in one region’s policy." Explain what those changes might reveal about other regions—and which other settings or methods could test your interpretation. Be ambitious, but don't overclaim.

What makes a journal article worth reading for a non-specialist audience? Associate Editor Mariya Omelicheva shares what she looks for in manuscripts submitted to Post-Soviet Affairs 👇🧵

Second, distinguish explanation from prescription. Establish what happened and why, using theory and evidence, before turning to what governments or others ought to do. Policy recommendations should follow from analysis, not substitute for it.

Last, remember that when revising, you may need to rework your framing or argument, not just add citations and paragraphs. Respond to reviewers by making the paper more coherent, not just longer.

What makes a journal article worth reading for a non-specialist audience? Associate Editor Mariya Omelicheva shares what she looks for in manuscripts submitted to Post-Soviet Affairs 👇🧵

First, show what your case teaches us beyond itself. If you trace the changing meaning of a slogan in one country, what does it reveal about legitimacy, identity, political communication or state–society relations? One sentence in the introduction won't do.

How do you get published in a journal like Post-Soviet Affairs? Over the next 4 days, our team is sharing advice based on the many submissions we read! First, Editor Tomila Lankina on originality, evidence, and the abstract. 👇🧵

New, author-gathered evidence can make a real difference: interviews, archives, fieldwork or original survey data. Existing datasets aren't off-limits, but your evidence needs to let you say something distinctive—and support it convincingly.

Your abstract is your first chance to make the case. State the question, central argument, evidence and wider theoretical debate. If your most original material or finding is buried deep in the paper, bring it to the surface here.

Originality is not simply applying a familiar theory to another country. Editors see many papers built around the same canonical authors and well-worn questions. Tell us what has not been asked—or what existing scholarship cannot yet explain.

ceecon.deceecon | Publishing on Eastern Europe and Eurasia in (Un)Certain Times: An Editors' Roundtable

Attending CEECON in Berlin next week? Hear from our Editor, Tomila Lankina, at a panel on publishing in uncertain times on October 8 @ 12:00 @freieuniversitaet.bsky.social @zois.bsky.social

Post-Soviet Affairs Journal reposted

Tomila Lankina

@t-vl.bsky.social

Great lineup of papers in latest issue of @postsovietaffairs.bsky.social already getting a lot of attention! Spread the word

Post-Soviet Affairs Journal@postsovietaffairs.bsky.social

Welcome to the new Post-Soviet Affairs feed! Post-Soviet Affairs is the home for cutting-edge research on Russia, Eurasia, and the wider post-Soviet space. Follow us for fresh research, analysis, articles, special issues, calls for papers, and updates from our authors.

How does democracy function in wartime Ukraine? What constrains Zelensky's administration? Is there democratic accountability? Discover all in Pavlo Otamas' new article in Post-Soviet Affairs ⬇️

tandfonline.comDemocracy under fire: rhetorical accountability and wartime governance in UkraineRussia’s full-scale invasion has made Ukraine a critical case for examining democratic governance under conditions of protracted war. This article analyzes how accountability can persist despite ce...

The full article, "Democracy under fire: rhetorical accountability and wartime governance in Ukraine"

tandfonline.comWhen society, identity, and security align: repatriation strategies in Central AsiaThousands of nationals, referred to as foreign terrorist fighters and their families, who travelled to Syria and Iraq with the Islamic State and other groups, had remained in detention sites in nor...

14 Sept

Why did Central Asian states bring home citizens linked to ISIS when so many other governments refused? Elena Zhirukhina's brand new article has the answer ⬇️❗️

tandfonline.comRussia, Ukraine, and the Imperial LegacyPublished in Post-Soviet Affairs (Vol. 9, No. 4, 1993)

25 Aug

One from our archives, from 1993: "Russia, Ukraine, and the Imperial Legacy"

Post-Soviet Affairs Journal reposted

Dr Frank Maracchione - 马峰澜

@frankmaracchione.bsky.social

11 Aug

New OA article in @postsovietaffairs.bsky.social with @jneafie.bsky.social, C.McGarry, A.Aibassova. Developing our 2024 CAB report, we move beyond accounts of Central Asia’s Sinophobia to ask what drives support for & opposition to China’s presence in the region. www.tandfonline.com/doi/epdf/10....

tandfonline.comAudiences, contexts, and cues: explaining divergent public perceptions of China in Central AsiaReader environment loaded

tandfonline.comRussia’s failed “muscular mediation” in Nagorno-KarabakhFrom 2015 to 2023, Russia engaged in coercive diplomacy seeking to avert and then truncate war between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh. This article explores if the rece...

12 Aug

Why did Russia's "muscular mediation" in Nagorno-Karabakh fall flat? Check out this new article from Post-Soviet Affairs to find out ⬇️

29 July

An amazing 44,660 articles were downloaded from Post-Soviet Affairs in the last 3 months 🤩

26 June

Turns out we're the 3rd ranked area studies journal out there. Thanks to everyone who writes for, reviews for, and reads Post-Soviet Affairs!

Want to understand Ukrainian memory and identity better? Browse this selection of 5 articles from the last 10 years in the journal Post-Soviet Affairs ⬇️

4. "Understandings of democracy and “good citizenship” in Ukraine: utopia for the people, participation in politics not required" www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

5. "Citizenship as a cornerstone of civic national identity in Ukraine" www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

Want to understand Ukrainian memory and identity better? Browse this selection of 5 articles from the last 10 years in the journal Post-Soviet Affairs ⬇️

2. "Shedding Russianness, recasting Ukrainianness: the post-Euromaidan dynamics of ethnonational identifications in Ukraine" www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

3. "War and identity: the case of the Donbas in Ukraine" www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

Want to understand Ukrainian memory and identity better? Browse this selection of 5 articles from the last 10 years in the journal Post-Soviet Affairs ⬇️

1. "Rethinking language shifts in Ukraine: methodological challenges in the context of war and displacement" www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

tandfonline.comSelling Russia to the Global South(s): how Russia adapts strategic narratives to audiences in Latin America and AfricaAlthough Russia’s pivot to the Global South is widely acknowledged, little is known about how it tailors messaging to different audiences covered by this geographical label. More generally, despite...

20 June

How does Russia adapt its propaganda narratives for audiences in the Global South? Find out in this new article in Post-Soviet Affairs ⬇️

Post-Soviet Affairs Journal reposted

Andreas Umland

@umland.eurosky.social

18 June

According to Altmetric's attention score, #MartinKragh's and my paper on #Patrushev / #Naryshkin is currently on position 6 among the 407 papers from @postsovietaffairs.bsky.social registered with @altmetric.com: www.altmetric.com/details/1490... @sceeus-ui.bsky.social @epik-ukraine.bsky.social

tandfonline.comPost-Soviet AffairsRussian Migrants’ Transnational Activism in Wartime. Volume 42, Issue 3 of Post-Soviet Affairs

19 June

Check out our latest special issue, Russian Migrants’ Transnational Activism in Wartime 👇 Articles cover diaspora protest, violence, and political disengagement. Vital reading for scholars across disciplines.

1) A new editorial team took over at Post-Soviet Affairs earlier this year. We’re excited to guide the journal into its next era. We’re thinking carefully about PSA’s place as an esteemed journal with a proud tradition, while embracing new methods, perspectives, and debates.

4) Meet our new Associate Editor, Ian Garner: “I’m delighted to have joined PSA, which I hope will continue to be a leading academic journal. As Associate Editor, I get to read so much great new research from all over the world!”

5) Together, the new team is committed to publishing rigorous, original, and field-shaping research. We look forward to working with authors, reviewers, readers, and Editorial Board members as Post-Soviet Affairs enters this new chapter.

2) Meet our new Editor, Tomila Lankina: “I’m excited about working with an outstanding team of Associate Editors and Editorial Board members to shape the field of Eastern European studies by editing the flagship journal.”

3) Meet our new Associate Editor, Mariya Omelicheva: “Working on PSA allows me to discover new scholars and ideas, stay connected to the field’s most innovative research, and give back to the academic community.”

9 May