In the first part of Russia's geopolitics we talked about the external objectives of the Kremlin, and how these objectives shape Russia's foreign policy. Equally important are Russia's internal dynamics, and the answer to this is connected with the historic decisions that transformed Russia into a centralized autocratic empire. As unpleasant that empire was, that is how Putin's administration is governing the country today. Even though a decentralized Russia which endorses freedom and liberty can theoretically exist, the last and only time Russia attempted to form a democratic and free society was during the Yeltsin era in the 1990s. That era is remembered for the great economic depression, massive urban migration and the nationalist religious secessionist movements in North Caucasus, which nearly broke Russia apart. For the Russians, this was evidence that Western values and principles could not work in Russia.