“Toward a More Perfect Union”: Dr. Pietro Shakarian on Anastas Mikoyan's nationality policy reform in the USSR

On December 2, Dr. Pietro Shakarian presented his paper “Toward a More Perfect Union? Anastas Mikoyan and Nationality Policy Reform in the USSR, 1954–1964” about the role of A. Mikoyan in the formation of Soviet national policy after the death of Stalin in the framework of the research seminar held by the Center for Historical Research and the Department of History.

In his report, Dr. Pietro Shakarian spoke about how Mikoyan became the first Soviet official to articulate a different approach to national politics. Mikoyan's speech in Yerevan on 11 March 1954 laid a foundation for a reform project to decentralize state administration, leaded by Mikoyan. By rejecting assimilationist approaches in favor of more inclusive ones, Mikoyan`s ideas reflected the general trend of Soviet politics towards a more liberal policy on the national question during the Thaw years. As chairman of the constitutional subcommittee on national policy and nation-state building, Mikoyan led efforts to implement a reformed union state and give more power to the union republics, autonomous republics and regions.

Link to the announcement