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Role theory and Russia’s attempts to integrate the post-Soviet space: from internal to international duties

  • Author: Damian Strycharz
  • Institution: Cracow University of Economics
  • ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8653-3892
  • Year of publication: 2022
  • Source: Show
  • Pages: 72-100
  • DOI Address: https://doi.org/10.15804/npw20223504
  • PDF: npw/35/npw3504.pdf

Role theory and Russia’s attempts to integrate the post-Soviet space: from internal to international duties

With the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Moscow’s foreign policy towards the post-Soviet space has become an even greater area of concern. In order to better understand Russia’s behaviour in the post-Soviet space, it is worth analysing what led to Moscow’s renewed interest in this area. There are numerous accounts explaining Russia’s policies towards its neighbourhood, but they often focus on material factors or Russian imperial complexes. To address the existing gap and examine changes in Moscow’s attitude towards the region, this paper will use role theory and analyse shifts in Russia’s national role conceptions. It argues that the combination of important external and internal factors led to changes in perception of Russia’s international duties and responsibilities between Putin’s rise to power and his return to the presidency in 2012. Consequently, these changes resulted in different understanding of Russia’s role in the post-Soviet space, which had implications for Russia’s increasingly aggressive actions in the region afterwards.

Ролевая теория и попытки России интегрировать постсоветское пространство: от внутренних к международным обязанностям

После российского вторжения в Украину в феврале 2022 года внешняя политика Москвы в отношении постсоветского пространства стала еще более серьезной проблемой. Чтобы лучше понять поведение России на постсоветском пространстве, стоит проанализировать, что привело к возобновлению интереса Москвы к этой сфере. Существует множество версий, объясняющих политику России по отношению к своим соседям, но они часто сосредоточены на материальных факторах или российских имперских комплексах. Чтобы устранить существующий разрыв и изучить изменения в отношении Москвы к региону, в данной статье будет использована ролевая теория и проанализированы сдвиги в представлениях о национальной роли России. Утверждается, что сочетание важных внешних и внутренних факторов привело к изменению восприятия международных обязанностей и ответственности России в период между приходом Путина к власти и его возвращением на пост президента в 2012 г. Следовательно, эти изменения привели к различному пониманию роли России на посту президента. - Советское пространство, что впоследствии повлияло на все более агрессивные действия России в регионе.

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