Fletcher Russia and Eurasia Program Welcomes Visiting Scholar Maxim Krupskiy

By Alex Avaneszadeh, MALD 2023 Candidate, The Fletcher School

Maxim Krupskiy, a human rights defender and attorney, will be joining The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy for the Spring 2023 semester as a visiting scholar of the Russia and Eurasia Program. Krupskiy has 12 years of legal experience in Russia. Throughout his legal career, his work has primarily revolved around defending refugees, NGOs, and activists labeled as foreign agents by Russia. 

In addition to his work as an attorney, Krupskiy has also prepared over 40 expert opinion briefs on anti-corruption related to migration, state administration, the environment, and legislation in relation to non-profit organizations. Many of these opinions have been utilized by NGOs such as the Human Rights Centre Memorial, Greenpeace, and the World Wildlife Fund, among others. As a current Ph.D. candidate, his research focuses on the role of NGOs and civic activism in establishing social connections that are resistant to challenges arising from modernity.

At Fletcher, Krupskiy’s research as a visiting scholar will focus on comparative legal analysis of legislation on foreign agents in various countries, looking particularly at Russia’s foreign agent laws. He will also be examining the concept of “foreign agents”, and how foreign agent laws impact civil society and democracy as a whole.

“In my view, we have to pay increased attention to such mechanisms of control over society, especially in times of international conflicts when the use of such mechanisms become more tempting,” said Krupskiy.

“The example of Russia’s use of foreign agents legislation as a tool for the destruction of independent Russian media, the liquidation of NGOs, and the persecution of civil activists under the pretext of national security interests–against the background of Russia’s unjustified war against Ukraine–is a vivid illustration of these concerns,” he further stated.

Krupskiy will be joining the Russia and Eurasia Program’s current group of visiting scholars, which include Volodymyr Dubovyk, Pavel Luzin and Stanislav Stanskikh.