Global City and Authoritarian Urbanism
Moscow in the Focus of Urban Studies
Deutsche Fassung
Abstract
Moscow’s urban development since 1991 initially reflected the transition from the center of world communism to an internationally competitive metropolis within globalised capitalism. In terms of functional differentiation and socio-spatial structure, Moscow resembled global cities such as New York and London. Yet under the aegis of Mayor Sergei Sobianin, who enjoys close ties with the Kremlin, these apparent similarities have taken on a different quality: urban development and city life in Moscow have become a resource for power, serving to legitimise authoritarian rule.
(Osteuropa 7/2026, pp. 95–120)