Russia’s Critical Infrastructure Policy: What do we Know About it?

Abstract

The article is an analytical state-of-the-art review of the Russian Federation’s critical infrastructure policy, starting from the 1990s but zooming in on the current situation. The article discusses what does critical infrastructure mean in the Russian context. It explores the country’s threat scenarios in this field, and asks what part is played by cyber security threats in this context. Further, the article elaborates the issue whether Russia’s policy is focused on critical infrastructure protection, or has the country adopted the more recent concept of resilience that puts emphasis on adaptive measures and recovery. Finally, it is considered who are the actors in Russian critical infrastructure policy and, in particular, how does Russia deal with the fact that the respective infrastructure operators even in Russia usually are not directly state-owned entities, but private companies.