FEDERAL EXECUTIVE AUTHORITIES AND THE PROBLEM OF COUNTERING POLITICAL EXTREMISM IN THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION IN THE SECOND HALF OF THE 1990S

Abstract

Aim. To identify the main problems and contradictions associated with the activities of federal executive bodies designed to counter political extremism in Russia in the second half of the 1990s in the absence of a special law.

Methodology. The main methods were problem-chronological, formal-legal, institutional, and systemic approaches. The main areas of activity of the Prosecutor General’s Office, the Ministry of Justice, as well as the Special Commission for Combating Political Extremism under the President of the Russian Federation are analyzed, and the legislative initiatives of these departments put forward in the context of the fight against political radicalism are considered.

Results. It was proven that, despite the absence of a special law, in Russia in the 1990s the legal framework necessary to combat extremist crimes was formed. However, in practice, certain legal provisions were applied selectively. At the same time, the new legislative initiatives of the federal executive authorities were not distinguished by their originality and effectiveness. The very counteraction to political extremism in the context of the current internal political situation in the Russian Federation was not a well-thought-out state strategy but was of a sporadic opportunistic nature.

Research implications. The results of the study can serve as the basis for further study of the theory and practice of countering political extremism in the Russian Federation in the 2000s.