Russia has had problems with leadership changes in the past and is likely to have similar troubles when President Vladimir Putin decides to step down, several professors said Tuesday in the School of Management’s Executive Leadership Center.

University Professors Program professor Uri Ra’Anan and three colleagues discussed past and present power changes in Russia with about 50 students, faculty and guests during a conference on Russia, entitled “Sic Transit … Power Transfer Moscow Style.” The program, which began with an opening statement by President ad interim Aram Chobanian, compiled the four speakers’ perspectives on Russia’s history with leadership changes and looked toward the inevitable post-Putin power shift.

Russia has had problems with changing leadership throughout history, and that may be the case when Putin is done with the presidency, Ra’Anan said.

“In the pre-Soviet and Soviet periods, and unfortunately since, Russia has lacked the factor that is essential for having a legitimate government: a power transfer mechanism,” Ra’Anan said.

George Washington University professor Carl Linden attributed coups in the country in 1957 and 1964 to the historical lack of an official power shift mechanism.

Ra’Anan said his conclusions were only possible because of the declassification of Soviet documents during the 1990s.

“It’s like a detective story because there is a 30-year rule for releasing documents. In 1992 and 1993, there was a window of opportunity where someone could look at certain documents which are now ‘classified,'” Ra’Anan said. “Their reign is not so much repressive as it is arbitrary.”

Hoover Institute Senior Fellow John Dunlop followed the history chronologically, speaking on the transition from Russian President Mikhail Gorbachev to President Boris Yeltsin. He argued the transition was unique because it involved the risk of a nuclear meltdown. Dunlop drew from the memoirs of Gorbachev and Yeltsin, analyzing reasons that led to future “political struggles.”

U.S. War College professor Stephen Blank closed the six-hour conference with remarks on the “lingering question” of the Yeltsin-to-Putin power change.

Looking at present day, Ra’Anan said, “It is wildly premature to speak of democracy without – as the Germans call it – ‘Rechtsstaat,’ a law-based state.”

Students and faculty at the event responded positively.

“Professor Ra’Anan is tackling a topic that is hard to quantify, and I felt he made pretty good sense,” College of Arts and Sciences senior Myles Smith said.

Aerospace Studies Department Chairman David Dellavolpe said it was interesting to hear about the subject from experts.

“I’ve been involved in military history over the years and it was interesting to hear the inter-weavings of Russian power changes from some experts,” he said.

Ra’Anan said the event was a precursor to the release of a book written by the four speakers.

“It’s like four books compiled into one, linked by a common denominator,” he said.