have grown increasingly concerned about Russia's future, the future of the region, and the future of Russia's foreign relations. The stagnation in democratic institutional development remains the most important factor in determining all of Russia's possible futures.
             Mendelson lists a few of the main elements of democratic institutional development, including the maintenance of competitive political parties and elections; an independent media; effective civil advocacy groups; free trade unions; and independent judiciaries (p. 68). However, Solnick notes that in most cases political and economic systems cannot be considered in total isolation from one another. Especially in
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