1 / 16

From the USSR to the Russian Federation

From the USSR to the Russian Federation. 2 perspectives on Soviet foreign policy in the Cold War USSR AS A PROBLEM an empire dominating Eurasian Heartland a global subversive force undermining capitalism USSR AS A SOLUTION an ally (WW2)

jluckett
Download Presentation

From the USSR to the Russian Federation

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. From the USSR to the Russian Federation

  2. 2 perspectives on Soviet foreign policy in the Cold War • USSR AS A PROBLEM • an empire dominating Eurasian Heartland • a global subversive force undermining capitalism • USSR AS A SOLUTION • an ally (WW2) • a source of help to developing countries (support of national liberation movements, economic assistance) • a counterbalance to the US

  3. After the Cold War • RUSSIA SHRANK – territorially, economically, militarily • RUSSIA TURNED INWARD – primacy of systemic transformation • RUSSIA PROCLAIMED ITS AFFILIATION WITH THE WEST – the ideological conflict disappeared (From being part of the Global Left, Russia joined the Global (neoliberal) Right

  4. So, Russia is no longer a problem for the West in the Cold War sense • Russia’s abandonment of its Soviet mode became a key enabling factor for the emergence of the New World Order, organized under neoliberal and American hegemony • RUSSIA AS A “NORMAL COUNTRY”: capitalist, cautious, status quo, pragmatic, with limited ambitions, seeking friends everywhere, wary of making enemies • SO, RUSSIA IS NOW PART OF THE SOLUTION, RATHER THAN A PROBLEM?

  5. RUSSIA AS A PROBLEM AFTER THE COLD WAR • The transition crisis: dangerous side-effects of reforms: • The nuclear dimension • Possibility of a totalitarian backlash • Potential for a civil war • Tensions with new neighbours, attempts to rebuild an empire • Russia as a US client: is no longer counterbalancing the US (not a problem for the US, but a problem for many other states) • Russia as a member of coalitions to counterbalance US hegemony (a problem to the US)

  6. The dominant American perspective: • Help Russia become a “normal” country AND • Prevent Russia from acting as a counterbalance Outside the US: • Many countries would like Russia to play the role of a non-hostile, but relatively independent, actor in international politics • Most Russians have the same perspective

  7. THE KEY QUESTIONS: • Has the US helped Russia cope with the transition crisis? • Or has the American involvement in Russian reforms made the crisis deeper and more protracted? • If the US role in Russian transition is assessed negatively, the US goal of keeping Russia neutralized in the international arena looks as part of a profoundly anti-Russian policy • Then Russia will inevitably try to regain maximum possible freedom from US control - both internally and externally

  8. And it will find a lot of supporters in the international arena • So, Russia’s shift from a pro-American to a more independent foreign policy can be seen as a natural evolution, guided by Russia’s national interests – and by the logic of the international system • What can make Russia more independent: • A stronger state – can it be a democracy? • Economic recovery • Assertion of Russia’s unique role in Eurasia • A pragmatic, multi-vector foreign policy • Regaining influence over “near abroad” • Working for a multipolar world

  9. Four features of Russian foreign policy in the 1990s: • “POST-COMMUNIST ECUMENISM” • THE POWER GAP • THE PRIMACY OF ECONOMICS • THE INSTITUTIONAL DEFICIT

  10. Evolution of elite interests • The oligarchy – the upper crust of the new capitalist class, product of the post-communist transformation • Most important sources of wealth: oil, gas and arms • Dependent on the West, primarily the US • Dependent on the Russian state, wants to rationalize it • Needs traditional foreign policy assets of the USSR • Assertive in the political sphere • Seeks economic opportunities worldwide • The bureaucrats • The “enforcers” (siloviki) – military and security elites • Federal civilian bureaucracy • Regional bureaucracies, regional foreign policy interests

  11. The national bourgeoisie • Well below the ranks of the oligarchy • Gets little from the West • Feels dominated by the oligarchs • Is nationalist and protectionist • The politicians • 1990s: liberals, communists, nationalists, the Party of Power • The Westernizer-Eurasianist divide • Putin’s synthesis: is the new Party of Power (United Russia) successfully bridging the Westernizer-Eurasianist gap?

  12. Issues for Putin’s second term • Enforcers vs. oligarchs • The return of a strong state – or a redivision of property? • Stability or new chaos? • Can the enforcers rebuild Russia as a powerful international actor? • The economy: living off the oil income vs. modernization • The state vs. capital • The new imperial project • Relations with US, Europe, China, the Moslem world • A new ideological divide?

More Related