Routledge Russian Foreign Policy in Eurasia: National Interests and Regional Integration (Post-Soviet Politics)

How has Russia increased its strength and power over the last 15 years? By what means did the Kremlin bring Armenia back into its orbit? Why did Azerbaijan and Georgia try to avoid antagonizing Moscow? Can we conclude that Russia has restored its sphere of influence in Eurasia? Employing a case-centric research design this book answers these questions by analyzing Russia’s foreign affairs in the South Caucasus after the end of the Cold War. Exploring the relevance for those affairs of the creation of the Eurasian Economic Union it uses neoclassical realism and regime theories as frameworks. Arguing that Russia’s material power capabilities guide Moscow’s foreign policies in all three South Caucasian states, the author points out that Russia responds to the uncertainties of international anarchy by seeking to control its former territory and shape its external environment according to its own preferences. This book will be of interest to academics and postgraduate students in International Relations, International Political Economy, Comparative Politics, and Foreign Policy as well as Eurasian Studies and Post-Soviet Studies. Review "President Putin and the Russian leadership are engaged in a massive building project of reassembling ‘Greater Russia’. Drawing mainly on the examples of the Caucasian states, Russian Foreign Policy in Eurasia relates Russia’s current efforts to establish a Moscow-centered Eurasian Union to the long history of Russian imperial domination under both the tsars and the communists. Arakelyan demonstrates most clearly how Moscow draws upon those historical linkages, in combination with current economic and security dependencies, to tie some neighboring states to a new Moscow-centered regional economic and political order, but also the factors that have enabled some states to resist Russian entreaties." - Roger E. Kanet, University of Miami "Lilia Arakelyan’s book is one of few theoretically-informed studies of Russian foreign policy in the Southern Caucasus. Following a neoclassical realist approach, she argues that Russia is motivated by considerations of regional hegemony and global status. Liberals and constructivists may disagree, but should read the book and seriously consider its arguments." - Andrei P. Tsygankov, International Relations & Political Science, San Francisco State University About the Author Lilia A. Arakelyan holds a PhD in International Studies from the University of Miami. She has worked on numerous academic and policy-oriented projects, and taught International Studies courses at the University of Miami. Her articles and books chapters focus on Russian foreign policy in the post-Soviet space, different aspects of nationalism, ethno-national conflicts in the South Caucasus, and on international security more broadly.