Fearing the ghosts of State Officialdom Past? Russia’s archives as a tool for constructing historical memories on its Persia policy practices

The overarching task of this article is to directly present the main crucial venues – a prototype road map of Russia’s study of Persia in the context of foreign policy – to the students of Russia and its relations with Persia, as well as, more specifically, to researchers of Russia’s late Imperial and early Soviet policy towards iddle !ast and "riental studies therein# Simultaneously, taking into consideration the e$uivocal and $uite often controversial nature of conducting archival research in Russia, it is worth knowing that a scholarly activity, seemingly conventional and rather straightforward in the %est, can turn into an adventurous $uest in present&day Russia, hampered 'y various factors# So the article also touches upon the current condition of the archival industry in present&day Russia, with the emphasis on the traditionally most 'urning issue in this field, namely the un(ustifia'ly excessive secrecy, underpinned 'y the discourse of protecting Russian state interests, which can turn out to 'e an unexpected o'stacle to research into a period even dating 'ack a hundred years#