An old-fashioned, modern look
Strong, elected local leaders are shaping the fortunes of Russia’s regions. Novgorod, in the north-west, offers a promising model for local government. Rebellious Primorsky Krai, in the far east, embodies the worst
NO MATTER that 500 years have passed since the Hanseatic League's presence in Novgorod was suppressed by Ivan III, prince of Moscow. Residents of the city still refer to the east bank of the Volkhov river, where the merchants gathered, as the “trade side” of town. They speak, too, of “Novgorod the Great”, when they want to distinguish their city from the upstart Nizhny Novgorod (“Lower Newtown”) 800 kilometres (500 miles) to the south-east—though, with a population of 1.2m, the newer place has grown to six times the size of its venerable namesake.
This article appeared in the Europe section of the print edition under the headline “An old-fashioned, modern look”
From the June 14th 1997 edition
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