푸틴 행정부 이후 러시아 연방관계에서 집권력은 계속 증대되어왔다. 메드베드프 행정부 하에서도 집권력은 지속적으로 증가되고 있으며, 이러한 현상은 멀지 않은 장래에 러시아 연방관계에 보다 근본적인 변화가 나타날 수 있음을 시사하고 있다. 최근 연구들은 러시아에서 진행된 일련의 급변을 예측하는데 실패했으며, 이는 장기적 변화보다는 단기적인 분석에 보다 많은 노력이 투여되었기 때문이다. 이에 따라 본 연구는 연방정부가 그동안 많은 정책적 변화에도 불구하고 지속적으로 추진해온 연방정책 목표를 도출해보고자 보다 긴 관점에서 연방관계 변화를 분석해보았다. 러시아 연방정부는 분리ㆍ독립 초기부터 연방관계를 통합의 기재로 이해해왔으며, 연방주체간의 평등과 연방주체 수의 감축을 위해 꾸준히 노력해왔다. 메드베데프 체제 하의 연방관계 변화는 연방구조와 연방관계라는 두 측면에서 분석될 수 있다. 메드베데프 러시아 대통령은 2010년 1월 북코카서스 연방구를 설치하였으며, 이는 장기적으로는 거대지역(mega-region)으로 발전할 수 있다. 연방과정의 측면에서도 국가두마는 연방주체들의 '대통령' 호칭사용을 금지하고, 연방주체의 정치지도부의 임명을 통한 교체, 그리고 인구조사과정에서의 명목민족 비율 감축 노력 등 다양한 집권노력을 병행하고 있다. 이러한 변화는 그 동안 연방정부의 집권화정책의 결과가 누적되어 새로운 변화를 위한 질적 전환단계에 이르고 있음을 시사해주고 있다.

Growing influence of centripetal forces features the federal relations in Russia, particularly since Putin's administration. Under the President Medvedev, centripetal forces seems ever-growing indicating imminent fundamental changes in the Russian federal relations. However, existing literature often failed to forecast such upheavals during a series of changes in the Russian politics in general, partly because literatures often paid their attention to a short-term changes. This study places focus on long-term changes aiming at identifying consistent goals or a model of federal relations shared at the centre. Since very the beginning of the separation, the centre has regarded federalism as a way to integration, not to separation; the centre has kept arguing the equality among federal subjects; the centre has also kept maintaining the reduction of numbers of federal subjects. Changes of federal relations under Medvedev's administration can be identified both in federal structure and federal process. Medvedev created North Caucasian Federal Okrug in January 2010, which can be developed into a mega-region in the long run. In terms of federal process, the state duma banned federal subjects from using the title of ‘president’ for the post of head of regional administration. In additions, he has successfully replaced head of federal subjects, significantly reducing possible challenges from below, which allows observers of Russian politics to forecast some fundamental changes are imminent. Such changes clearly shows that the centre has pursued consistent goals in federal relations and changes in balance of power between the centre and peripheries facilitated the development of federal relations that has been sought after by the centre.

Growing influence of centripetal forces features the federal relations in Russia, particularly since Putin's administration. Under the President Medvedev, centripetal forces seems ever-growing indicating imminent fundamental changes in the Russian federal relations. However, existing literature often failed to forecast such upheavals during a series of changes in the Russian politics in general, partly because literatures often paid their attention to a short-term changes. This study places focus on long-term changes aiming at identifying consistent goals or a model of federal relations shared at the centre. Since very the beginning of the separation, the centre has regarded federalism as a way to integration, not to separation; the centre has kept arguing the equality among federal subjects; the centre has also kept maintaining the reduction of numbers of federal subjects. Changes of federal relations under Medvedev's administration can be identified both in federal structure and federal process. Medvedev created North Caucasian Federal Okrug in January 2010, which can be developed into a mega-region in the long run. In terms of federal process, the state duma banned federal subjects from using the title of ‘president’ for the post of head of regional administration. In additions, he has successfully replaced head of federal subjects, significantly reducing possible challenges from below, which allows observers of Russian politics to forecast some fundamental changes are imminent. Such changes clearly shows that the centre has pursued consistent goals in federal relations and changes in balance of power between the centre and peripheries facilitated the development of federal relations that has been sought after by the centre.

Medvedev, federal relations in Russia, centripetal forces, federal structure, federal subjects