Russia's Strategic Balance and Security Policy Making in International System

Document Type : Research Paper

Author

Professor,Faculty of Law and Political Science, University of Tehran

Abstract

Russia is considered the core of the former empire of the USSR. Many social and structural features of the Soviet Union could be observed in the development of Russia’s political power and strategic attitude. Geo-political competitions between Russia and the West can be traced back to the 19th century. These competitions were shaped within the framework of the balance of power system in international politics. The Soviet Union had changed the power equation to some extent. The US and the Soviet Union created the bipolar power system during the Cold War of 1945-1991.The international power structure changed in 1991; but this change did not have a significant impact on Russia’s security policies towards the region. Although the bipolar structure has changed since 1991, Russia has not changed much of its security policies towards the US. The author tries to explain the role of the geo-political factors in Russia's security policy-making. Russia opposes the expansion of NATO and the U.S. unilateralism in international politics. Clues of such approach could be observed in Russia's opposition to U.S. missile defense plan and its criticism of the US strategic policy of withdrawal from the anti-ballistic missile treaty. Russia has been following the model of soft balancing and multilateral cooperation in its foreign policy. Indications of this approach can be seen in Russia’s policies towards its peripheralareas. The focus of Russian securitypolicyin theMiddle East (e.g., in Syria) is on maintaining astrategicbalancevis-à-vistheU.S.


Keywords

Central Eurasia Studies
Volume 6, Issue 2 - Serial Number 2
March 2014
Pages 121-140

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