Russia and the Georgian and Ukrainian Conflicts: Some Remarks

This paper critically discusses the current mainstream views on Russia’s involvement in Georgia and Ukraine and implements geopolitical reasoning and analyses. Russian Foreign policy is guided both by (neo-)realist and constructivist theoretical perspectives. However, reviewing Russia’s policy in its near abroad, it appears that it is formed on reactive decisions the results of which may not always be understood as advantageous from a rational actor perspective. In the Post-Soviet Space, Russia behaves in accordance with its imperial experience, which bestows upon its geopolitical interests a layer of moral obligation, combining with either altruism or expansionism, or with both at the same time. The Russian alliance with Iran, and their interventions in Syria, are explained mainly by security concerns. Russia’s support of separatism in South Ossetia, Abkhazia and Eastern Ukraine, and incorporating Crimea, do not yield advantageous results for the Russian interests from a rational actor’s perspective.