Orthodox billionaire Konstantin Malofeev, who has been linked to support for far-right projects and pro-Russian separatism in Ukraine, may begin teaching at Moscow State University. That was reported by Meduza, citing a source.
According to the outlet, a course titled “History of Empire” has appeared in the schedule for second-year students at the Faculty of Political Science, with K. V. Malofeev listed as the instructor. Meduza says it has a screenshot of the schedule, while no MSU преподаватель with that exact full name could be identified. The information has not been officially confirmed: the faculty website currently shows schedules only through December 31, 2025, and Malofeev is not listed there. He has also said nothing about teaching in his Telegram channel.
Malofeev has previously published four books about “empire” and told Alexander Dugin on his Tsargrad television channel that he sees empire as a multinational state answerable to a ruler whose power comes from God. In the same discussion, he contrasted “empires” with “anti-empires,” which he described as systems centered on personal enrichment, comfort, and money.
Malofeev trained as a lawyer: he graduated from MSU’s law faculty in the mid-1990s and in 2022 defended a candidate dissertation there on the Constitutional Assembly of the Russian Federation. In 2025, he also held the Future Forum 2050 conference at the university.
Experts interviewed by Novaya Gazeta Europe said the arrival of ideologically engaged lecturers at universities reflects attempts by political forces to use campuses as platforms for influence. Mikhail Lobanov of the MSU Initiative Group recalled that such appearances previously drew protests from students and faculty, but that opposing them has become riskier under wartime conditions.
Dmitry Dubrovsky of Charles University’s Boris Nemtsov Center said that teaching at MSU helps such figures reinforce an image of belonging to the intellectual elite. At the same time, he argued that pro-war projects have so far failed to take deep root in Russian universities, and that ideological pressure on higher education remains largely an external overlay that has not yet produced a substantive restructuring of the system.