Shadows of empire: post-Soviet parastates in Russian foreign policy

The post-Soviet period has seen dramatic political upheaval across Eastern Europe and the Caucuses. The shadow cast by centuries of Russian influence on Eurasia still affects political tensions in the region. Previous studies have examined both Russian foreign policy in the twenty-first century and...

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Main Authors: Hardy John, Vlad Ruxandra Oana
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: University of Belgrade - Faculty of Political Sciences and Belgrade Centre for Security Policy 2024-01-01
Series:Journal of Regional Security
Subjects:
Online Access:https://scindeks-clanci.ceon.rs/data/pdf/2217-995X/2024/2217-995X2402207H.pdf
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author Hardy John
Vlad Ruxandra Oana
author_facet Hardy John
Vlad Ruxandra Oana
author_sort Hardy John
collection DOAJ
description The post-Soviet period has seen dramatic political upheaval across Eastern Europe and the Caucuses. The shadow cast by centuries of Russian influence on Eurasia still affects political tensions in the region. Previous studies have examined both Russian foreign policy in the twenty-first century and the implications of parastates on Russia's periphery. This study focuses on the intersection of these issues, identifying parastates as a political wedge used by Moscow to maintain buffer states between its borders and NATO. It presents a comparative analysis of three parastates that are supported by Russia: Transnistria in Moldova, Abkhazia and South Ossetia in Georgia, and Nagorno-Karabakh in Azerbaijan. The study finds that Russia supports post-Soviet parastates to perpetuate political stalemates that undermine stability in countries that act as buffers between Russian and NATO borders. This highlights opportunities for further research on a foreign policy tool that can be used to significantly influence regional security.
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publishDate 2024-01-01
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spelling doaj-art-d6f6e28bbcd54f9daea7f82bbd58e7792025-01-08T16:24:41ZengUniversity of Belgrade - Faculty of Political Sciences and Belgrade Centre for Security PolicyJournal of Regional Security2217-995X2406-03642024-01-0119220723610.5937/jrs19-537212217-995X2402207HShadows of empire: post-Soviet parastates in Russian foreign policyHardy John0https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0322-9380Vlad Ruxandra Oana1https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8380-8835Rabdan Academy, United Arab EmiratesRabdan Academy, United Arab EmiratesThe post-Soviet period has seen dramatic political upheaval across Eastern Europe and the Caucuses. The shadow cast by centuries of Russian influence on Eurasia still affects political tensions in the region. Previous studies have examined both Russian foreign policy in the twenty-first century and the implications of parastates on Russia's periphery. This study focuses on the intersection of these issues, identifying parastates as a political wedge used by Moscow to maintain buffer states between its borders and NATO. It presents a comparative analysis of three parastates that are supported by Russia: Transnistria in Moldova, Abkhazia and South Ossetia in Georgia, and Nagorno-Karabakh in Azerbaijan. The study finds that Russia supports post-Soviet parastates to perpetuate political stalemates that undermine stability in countries that act as buffers between Russian and NATO borders. This highlights opportunities for further research on a foreign policy tool that can be used to significantly influence regional security.https://scindeks-clanci.ceon.rs/data/pdf/2217-995X/2024/2217-995X2402207H.pdfrussiaforeign policyparastatespost-soviet statesbuffer statesnato
spellingShingle Hardy John
Vlad Ruxandra Oana
Shadows of empire: post-Soviet parastates in Russian foreign policy
Journal of Regional Security
russia
foreign policy
parastates
post-soviet states
buffer states
nato
title Shadows of empire: post-Soviet parastates in Russian foreign policy
title_full Shadows of empire: post-Soviet parastates in Russian foreign policy
title_fullStr Shadows of empire: post-Soviet parastates in Russian foreign policy
title_full_unstemmed Shadows of empire: post-Soviet parastates in Russian foreign policy
title_short Shadows of empire: post-Soviet parastates in Russian foreign policy
title_sort shadows of empire post soviet parastates in russian foreign policy
topic russia
foreign policy
parastates
post-soviet states
buffer states
nato
url https://scindeks-clanci.ceon.rs/data/pdf/2217-995X/2024/2217-995X2402207H.pdf
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AT vladruxandraoana shadowsofempirepostsovietparastatesinrussianforeignpolicy