Peacemaking as an important part of Russian foreign policy

2020 ◽  
pp. 63-68
Author(s):  
S. M. Ivanov

The article examines such an important aspect of Russian foreign policy as peacekeeping. Russia has been participating in many activities to maintain and strengthen peace in the post-Soviet space and in other regions of our planet. This activity is successfully carried out in the formats of the UN, CIS, CSTO, OSCE, other international organizations and on a bilateral basis. The author notes that the role of peacekeeping is growing immeasurably in the context of attempts to revive the atmosphere of the Cold War, the ongoing arms race in the world, the build-up of nuclear missile potentials of a number of countries, and the intensifi cation of the forces of international terrorism represented by radical Islamist groups.

Author(s):  
Andrej Krickovic

Over the last four decades, Russia has been at the very center of peaceful change in international relations. Gorbachev’s conciliatory New Thinking (NT) fundamentally transformed international relations, ending the Cold War struggle and dismantling the Soviet empire and world communist movement. Contemporary Russia is at the forefront of the transition away from American unipolarity and toward what is believed will be a more equitable and just multipolar order. Over time, Russia has moved away from the idealism that characterized Gorbachev’s NT and toward a more hard-nosed and confrontational approach toward peaceful change. The chapter traces this evolution with a particular emphasis on the role that Russia’s unmet expectations of reciprocity and elevated status have played in the process. If they are to be successful, future efforts at peaceful change will have to find ways to address these issues of reciprocity and status, especially under circumstances where there are power asymmetries between the side making concessions and the side receiving them. Nevertheless, despite its disappointments, Russia’s approach to change remains (largely) peaceful. Elements of NT, including its emphasis on interdependence, collective/mutual security, and faith in the possibility of positive transformation, continue to be present in modern Russian foreign policy thinking.


2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 46-56
Author(s):  
Irina Busygina ◽  
Mikhail Filippov

In this article, we explore the inherent trade-offs and inconsistencies of Russia’s policies toward the post-Soviet space. We argue that attempts to rebuild an image of Russia as a “great power” have actually led to a reduction of Russian influence in the post-Soviet region. The more Russia acted as a “Great Power,” the less credible was its promise to respect the national sovereignty of the former Soviet republics. In 2011, Vladimir Putin declared that during his next term as president, his goal would be to establish a powerful supra-national Eurasian Union capable of becoming one of the poles in a multipolar world. However, Russia’s attempt to force Ukraine to join the Eurasian Union provoked the 2014 crisis. The Ukrainian crisis has de-facto completed the separation of Ukraine and Russia and made successful post-Soviet re-integration around Russia improbable.


Author(s):  
Konstantin E. Meshcheryakov ◽  

The article investigates the evolution of the Russian-Uzbekistani relations in the last years of the presidency of Islam Karimov (2012–2016). Based on a wide range of official sources and periodicals, it identifies the main trends, achievements and issues of bilateral cooperation in the political, trade, economic and humanitarian spheres. It determines the factors that influenced the interaction between Moscow and Tashkent, and pays a particular attention to the role of the presidents of the two states in the development and strength- ening of their cooperation. The author concludes that throughout the period under review the Rus- sian-Uzbekistani relations faced serious challenges. They were remarkably conflicting, unpredictable, inconsistent, and quite turbulent, what provoked the discussions about the correspondence of their real political condition to their high legal status (in 2004, Russia and Uzbekistan became strategic part- ners, and in 2005, allied states). Nevertheless, the two countries overcame most of their differences and took a course towards the further expansion and deep- ening, as well as modernization of their relations. As a result, at present Uzbeki- stan remains one of the most important Russia’s partners not only in Central Asia, but throughout the post-Soviet space, as well as within the framework of the leading international organizations.


1996 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 229-246 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark N. Katz

AbstractSince the breakup of the USSR in 1991, there has been significant change in Moscow's Middle East policy. During much of the Cold War, Moscow sought to project Soviet influence throughout even the far off Arab region of the Middle East. In the post-Cold War era, though, Russian foreign policy has focused on that part of the Middle East closest to the former USSR-the Northern Tier. This article will examine the major aspects of post-Cold War Russian foreign policy toward the Middle East in order to identify Moscow's multiple goals in the region and discuss Moscow's capacity for achieving them. First, though, a brief review of the different stages of Imperial and Soviet foreign policy toward the region is necessary in order to show the extent to which post-Cold War Russian foreign policy toward the Middle East has and has not changed.


2020 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 307-327
Author(s):  
Virsaviya Viver ◽  

The article discusses modern Eurasian integration - regional processes of unification in the post-Soviet space, in which Russia plays a guiding role. Despite the declaration by the American establishment of the importance of the Eurasian macro region and the deep involvement of the United States in the region’s affairs, the American foreign policy discourse clearly shows a lack of interest on the part of the expert community in integration in the post-Soviet space against the backdrop of Washington’s assistance in integration processes in other regions of the world. In this regard, the purpose of the article is to analyze the current practice of coverage in the American scientific and academic discourse of Eurasian integration processes with the active role of Russia. Based on the opinion of American experts from centrist, liberal and conservative think tanks, it is planned to determine the place of Eurasian integration issues in the American foreign policy discourse, to determine the dynamics of changes in the process of coverage of Eurasian integration by the American expert community, and to outline the nature of the assessments of American experts on Eurasian integration projects.


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