The Geopolitical Strategies of Putin's Russia: Case studies of Ukraine and Syria

Jacobsen, Mads Høygaard

4. term

Development and International Relations, Master

2016

2016-05-31

This thesis examines Russia’s geopolitical strategies under Vladimir Putin and the forces that have shaped them by applying neoclassical realism to two case studies: Ukraine and Syria. Drawing on a diverse set of American, European, and Russian sources—including political speeches, analyses from Foreign Affairs/Council on Foreign Relations, and works by authors such as Alexander Dugin and Matthew Raphael Johnson—the study combines systemic and domestic-level explanations. The analysis covers Putin’s view of the state, the wars in Chechnya and the fight against Wahhabi Islamism, the confrontation with oligarchs and the subsequent economic recovery that enabled military modernization. In foreign policy, it discusses projects for Eurasian integration, the 2007 Munich speech advocating multipolarity, color revolutions in the near abroad, the trajectory from Euromaidan to civil war in Ukraine, and Russia’s military engagement in Syria and its stated rationales. The thesis concludes that Russia’s regional strategy is largely a response to U.S. and Western efforts to contain it, while at the systemic level Russia seeks to challenge unipolarity by promoting multipolarity and partnering with actors such as China; Russia’s actions are interpreted primarily as defensive. The author also notes the limits posed by the politicized nature of the topic and the ongoing, rapidly evolving conflicts.

Denne afhandling undersøger, hvad Ruslands geopolitiske strategier er under Vladimir Putins styre, og hvilke drivkræfter der har formet dem, ved at anvende neoklassisk realisme på to casestudier: Ukraine og Syrien. Ud fra et bredt materiale af amerikanske, europæiske og russiske kilder—herunder politiske taler, analyser fra Foreign Affairs/Council on Foreign Relations og værker af blandt andre Alexander Dugin og Matthew Raphael Johnson—kombinerer studiet systemiske og indenrigspolitiske forklaringer. Analysen gennemgår Putins statssyn, krigen i Tjetjenien og kampen mod wahhabitisk islamisme, den indenrigspolitiske konfrontation med oligarker og den økonomiske genrejsning, som muliggjorde militær modernisering. I udenrigspolitikken behandles projekter for eurasisk integration, Putins München-tale i 2007 om multipolaritet, farverevolutioner i nærområdet, udviklingen fra Euromajdan til borgerkrig i Ukraine, samt Ruslands militære engagement i Syrien og dets begrundelser. Afhandlingen argumenterer i konklusionen for, at Ruslands regionale strategi overvejende forstås som en reaktion på USA’s og Vestens forsøg på at inddæmme landet, mens Rusland på systemniveau søger at udfordre unipolaritet gennem multipolaritet og samarbejde med blandt andre Kina; Ruslands tiltag tolkes primært som defensive. Forfatteren påpeger samtidig begrænsninger ved emnets politisering og konfliktens løbende udvikling.

[This apstract has been generated with the help of AI directly from the project full text]

Russia ; Geopolitics ; Putin ; Dugin ; Eurasianism ; Atlanticism ; Syria ; Ukraine

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Jacobsen, Mads Høygaard:

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