"History of Russia" by Vdovin and Barsenkov found "inappropriate" for educational process

The expert commission of the Academic Council of the History Department of the Moscow State University (MSU), which comprises historians from several universities, recognized the higher school textbook on Russian history, written by MSU Professors Alexander Vdovin and Alexander Barsenkov, which aroused criticism because of the data about Chechens placed in it, as "inappropriate."

By the outcomes of the expert's examination of the textbook "History of Russia. 1917-2009", Nurdi Nukhazhiev, Ombudsman in Chechnya, started preparing a lawsuit, believing that the manual contains "slanderous allegations" against the Chechen people. The expert opinion has caused a lot of conflicting opinions.

Experts expressed concern that the discussion around the textbook "has gone beyond scientific debates; and in some cases was used as a tool of PR-campaigns; while scholars have seriously criticized the work of the MSU Professors. The statement of the above commission argues that the textbook "uses non-verified data, borrowed from publicist journalism and various unreliable sources," the authors "make use of ethnic origin as a criterion for assessing actions of certain politicians," the "Kommersant" writes.

The decision of the commission does not imply any prohibition of the textbook. The teachers, who agree with the opinion of the MSU commission, will not include the textbook into the list of recommended literature for students, the "Interfax" reports.