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The Politics of Exclusion: A necropolitical analysis of the Russian occupation in Ukraine
University College Stockholm, Department of Human Rights and Democracy.
2026 (English)Independent thesis Basic level (degree of Bachelor), 10 credits / 15 HE creditsStudent thesis
Sustainable development
SDG 16: Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels
Abstract [en]

This study examines Russian presidential decrees implemented in Ukrainian territories under Russian occupation, focusing on how these decrees are used to govern, administer, and restructure occupied territory. Although the decrees are officially framed as measures intended to promote stability, reconstruction, and the well-being of the population, this study argues that they primarily function to consolidate and normalize Russian control over the occupied territories. The analysis focuses on Russian Presidential decrees issued between 2023 and 2025 that regulate political, legal, economic, cultural, and educational life in the occupied oblasts of Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson. Methodologically, the study applies Carol Bacchi’s What is the problem Represented to be? (WPR) approach to examine how the decrees construct governance problems, define target populations, and legitimize specific interventions. This method allows for an analysis of underlying assumptions, silences, and policy effects embedded in the documents. To interpret the broader implications of these findings, the study draws on Achille Mbembe’s theory of necropolitics, which provides a framework for understanding how power operates over life, inclusion, and exclusion in contexts shaped by violence. The findings show that the decrees frame integrations into the Russian state as a legal and historical reunification, while excluding the role of military occupation, destruction, and displacement that produced the conditions they seek to govern. Access to residency, citizenship, social benefits, housing, and employment is made conditional upon compliance with Russian administrative and legal frameworks, creating a system of precarious inclusion. Educational, cultural, and informational policies further seek to reshape identity, knowledge, and political subjectivity in line with Russian state narratives. Overall, the study demonstrates that the decrees function as instruments of necropolitical governance rather than as natural administrative tools.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
2026. , p. 42
Keywords [en]
Necropolitics, Russia-Ukraine war, Human Rights, Conflict
National Category
Social Sciences War, Crisis, and Security Studies Political Science (Excluding Peace and Conflict Studies)
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:ths:diva-3036OAI: oai:DiVA.org:ths-3036DiVA, id: diva2:2031038
Subject / course
Human Rights
Educational program
Bachelor’s Programme in Human Rights
Supervisors
Examiners
Available from: 2026-01-23 Created: 2026-01-22 Last updated: 2026-02-11Bibliographically approved

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Department of Human Rights and Democracy
Social SciencesWar, Crisis, and Security StudiesPolitical Science (Excluding Peace and Conflict Studies)

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CiteExportLink to record
Permanent link

Direct link
Cite
Citation style
  • apa
  • harvard-theologisches-seminar-adelshofen
  • sodertorns-hogskola-harvard
  • oxford-university-press-humsoc
  • Other style
More styles
Language
  • de-DE
  • en-GB
  • en-US
  • fi-FI
  • nn-NO
  • nn-NB
  • sv-SE
  • Other locale
More languages
Output format
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  • asciidoc
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