Uri Ra'anan, originally named Heinz Felix Frischwasser-Ra’anan (born June 10, 1926, in Vienna; died August 10, 2020), was an American expert in the politics of

communist Communism () is a sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology within the socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a socioeconomic order centered on common ownership of the means of production, di ...

countries, particularly the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

and

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

, and in the resurgence of post-Soviet Russia. He taught at

Boston University Boston University (BU) is a Private university, private research university in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. BU was founded in 1839 by a group of Boston Methodism, Methodists with its original campus in Newbury (town), Vermont, Newbur ...

where he was involved in the

University Professors Program The University Professors Program (UNI) was a program within Boston University that granted degrees in fields that combined, bridged, or fell between established intellectual disciplines. Consulting closely with faculty, students designed their o ...

, and also at the

International Security Studies Program (Fletcher School) The Fletcher School's International Security Studies Program (ISSP or ISS) is a center for the study of international security studies and security policy development. It was established in 1971 at The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, Tufts ...

. He spoke at the

Ford Hall Forum The Ford Hall Forum is the oldest free public lecture series in the United States. Founded in 1908, it continues to host open lectures and discussions in the Greater Boston area. Some of the more well-known past speakers include Maya Angelou, Isa ...

twice, in 1978 and again in 2007.

Early life and education

He received an M.A. and M.Litt. from

Wadham College, Oxford Wadham College ( ) is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. It is located in the centre of Oxford, at the intersection of Broad Street, Oxford, Broad Street and Parks Road ...

.Uri Ra’anan; Boston University

Academic career

Uri Ra’anan was on the faculty of the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University for over two decades, holding the titles of Professor of International Politics and Director of the International Security Studies Program. He has also taught at the

Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a Private university, private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of moder ...

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

, and the

City University of New York The City University of New York (CUNY, pronounced , ) is the Public university, public university system of Education in New York City, New York City. It is the largest urban university system in the United States, comprising 25 campuses: eleven ...

. In addition, he has been an associate of the Davis Center at

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

. At Boston University, he served as director of the Institute for the Study of Conflict, Ideology and Policy, teaching there from 1988 until his retirement in 2009.

Books and other writings

He has written, co-written, edited, or co-edited over two dozen books and contributed to 19 others. They include: * ''The USSR arms the third world; case studies in Soviet foreign policy.'' Cambridge, Mass.,

MIT Press The MIT Press is the university press of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The MIT Press publishes a number of academic journals and has been a pioneer in the Open Ac ...

, 1969. According to

WorldCat WorldCat is a union catalog that itemizes the collections of tens of thousands of institutions (mostly libraries), in many countries, that are current or past members of the OCLC global cooperative. It is operated by OCLC, Inc. Many of the O ...

, the book is held in 823 libraries * ''Arms transfers to the third world: the military buildup in less industrial countries.'' (ed. with RL Pfaltzgraff, G Kemp) -

Westview Press Westview Press was an American publishing company headquartered in Boulder, Colorado founded in 1975. Field of work Westview primarily publishes textbooks. History Westview Press was founded by Frederick A. Praeger in 1975. Praeger sold ...

, 1978 * ''Intelligence policy and national security.'' (ed. with RL Pfaltzgraff, U Ra'anan, W Milberg) -

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

: Macmillan, 1981 * ''Projection of power: perspectives, perceptions, and problems.'' (ed. with RL Pfaltzgraff, G Kemp) - Archon Books, 1982 * ''International security dimensions of space.'' (ed. with R Pfaltzgraff) - Archon Books, 1984 * ''Security commitments and capabilities : elements of an American global strategy'' (ed. with R Pfaltzgraff) - Archon Books, 1985 * ''Hydra of Carnage: The International Linkages of Terrorism and Other Low-intensity Operations: the Witnesses Speak'' (ed with RH Shultz, R Pfaltzgraff Jr, E Halperin)

Lexington Books Bloomsbury Publishing plc is a British worldwide publishing house of fiction and non-fiction. Bloomsbury's head office is located on Bedford Square in Bloomsbury, an area of the London Borough of Camden. It has a US publishing office located in ...

, 1986. * ''Gorbachev's USSR: a system in crisis'' (ed. with Igor Lukes) : Macmillan, 1990. * ''The Soviet empire: the challenge of national and democratic movements'' (ed.): Macmillan, 1990. * ''Inside the Apparat: Perspectives on the Soviet Union'' (ed. with Igor Lukes) Lexington Books, 1990. * Book chapter: "The nation-state fallacy" (p5-20), in: ''Conflict and Peacemaking in Multiethnic Societies'', by Joseph V. Montville (ed.),

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

. * ''State and nation in multi-ethnic societies: The breakup of multinational states.'' (ed.) :

Manchester University The University of Manchester is a public university, public research university in Manchester, England. The main campus is south of Manchester city centre, Manchester City Centre on Wilmslow Road, Oxford Road. The University of Manchester is c ...

Press, 1991 :: German translation: ''Staat und Nation in multi-ethnischen Gesellschaften.''

Passagen Verlag The publishing house Passagen Verlag was founded in 1985 in Vienna by Peter Engelmann. The primary intention of the publisher was the translation of Jacques Derrida's work into German language, German. Around the author Derrida, Peter Engelmann deve ...

, 1991 * ''Russian Pluralism – Now Irreversible? '' (ed. with Keith Armes; Kate Martin)

St. Martin's Press St. Martin's Press is a book publisher headquartered in Manhattan in New York City. It is headquartered in the Equitable Building (New York City), Equitable Building. St. Martin's Press is considered one of the largest English-language publishe ...

, 1992. * ''Russia – a return to imperialism?'' (ed. with Keith Armes; Kate Martin) St. Martin's Press, 1996. * ''Flawed succession: Russia's power transfer crises'' ( ed. ) Lexington Books, 2006 He has also published extensively in both scholarly and general periodicals, including the ''Slavic Review'', ''Strategic Review'', ''Global Affairs'', ''Soviet Analyst'', the ''Boston Globe'', and the ''Boston Herald''. In an August review for ''Commentary of Hydra of Carnage'', a collection of contributions to a 1985 Tufts conference by Ra'anan and others,

Angelo Codevilla Angelo Maria Codevilla (May 25, 1943 – September 20, 2021) was an American professor of international relations at what is now the Pardee School of Global Studies at Boston University. He served as a United States Navy officer, a foreign serv ...

wrote that the essays “inadvertently make it clear that government lacks the intellectual and moral tools” to meet the challenge of terrorism. His 2006 book on

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

, ''Flawed Succession'', was called "superb" by historian

Simon Sebag Montefiore Simon Jonathan Sebag Montefiore ( ; born 27 June 1965) is a British historian, television presenter and author of history books and novels, including '' Stalin: The Court of the Red Tsar'' (2003), '' Jerusalem: The Biography'' (2011), '' The Rom ...

in the NYT.

Personal life

He had a son named Gavriel who graduated from Fletcher in 1978, who died of cancer several years later.Quinde, Herbert; Mira Boland: I was a vigilante for Project Democracy; Larouche Pub; June 8, 1990

/ref>

References

External links

Official page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ra'anan, Uri 1926 births 2020 deaths American political scientists Austrian emigrants to the United States Boston University faculty Tufts University faculty Alumni of Wadham College, Oxford