Russia S European Agenda And The Baltic States

Russian foreign policy has become an increasing concern in 21st century, together with Russia’s relations with its former Soviet neighbours - but its relations with the Baltic States are particularly sensitive, given the Baltic membership of NATO and the EU and Russia’s increasingly fractious relations with those institutions. This book discusses the development of Russia’s approach to the new security architecture in Europe and assesses the prospects for a more active engagement of Russia in the Baltic Sea region and Europe as a whole. The book considers the full range of issues affecting security, including energy, economic relations; the special position of Russia’s Kaliningrad enclave; and Russia’s special interest in the Russian minorities in the former Soviet Baltic states. The evolution of Russian-Baltic relations from 1990-2008 is set in the more general context of Russia’s European agenda, looking into the role and place of the Baltic States in this agenda. It provides a comparative analysis of the European agenda in of Russia’s foreign policy under Boris Yeltsin, Vladimir Putin and Dmitry Medvedev, and concludes that, despite the replacement of the former Cold War stand-off with a more positive climate and a complicated array of bilateral and multilateral contacts much more still needs to be done to engage Russia fully with the new Europe

Baltic-Russian relations have been complicated and tense since the collapse of the USSR and the restoration of Estonian, Latvian and Lithuanian independence. Although Baltic accession to the European Union (EU) has created a new international context for interstate relations in the region, enlargement did not bring about the much hoped for improvement in Baltic-Russian relations. This case-study-rich volume examines links between identity, memory politics and foreign policy. It analyzes and explains developments in Baltic-Russian relations after both NATO and EU enlargement, focusing on the incompatibility of Baltic and Russian post-Soviet national identity constructions and the manifestations of this underlying antagonism in bilateral relations and on the broader European and international arena. Built on the constructivist perspective in international relations, this volume provides a coherent and illuminating account of the dynamics of Baltic-Russian relations after NATO and EU enlargement. Combining policy-relevant analysis with theoretical insights, it will meet the needs of academics and students of foreign policy, EU external relations and international relations more generally.

First published in 1998, this book exsplores the dilemma in Western policy towards Russia in recent years is whether to admit into NATO and the EU all those countries who wish to join, or whether to respect Russian sensitivities and be more selective. The Dilemma is at its peak for those countries bordering Russia; they are the ones who fear Russia the most, but whose integration into the West provokes Russia the most, a situation likely to strengthen Russian non-democratic forces. This is the dilemma that the present volume evolves around. Apart from stressing geopolitical fundamentals and the countries’ historical experiences, the book is also future-orientated. Will Europe’s Baltic rim become an outpost of the West with an iron curtain to its East, will it become an extensive ‘grey zone’, or will the countries become Western bridge-builder’s eastwards?

The book emphasizes the region as such and its complex security challenges, seen in a longer-term perspective. Security is conceived in the classical sense yet with a clear understanding of the links to the broader aspects.

This book offers a comprehensive analysis of the legal and political challenges surrounding the EU accession of the Baltic States. It examines the impact of EU enlargement on relations with Russia and on the constitutional development of the countries concerned.

NATO's enlargement has brought it to the borders of the Baltic states who covet membership in NATO. However, admitting them into NATO is one of the most difficult problems for the Alliance because of Russia's unconditional opposition to such action and because of NATO's own internal divisions on this issue. Nonetheless, a new regime or system of security for the entire Baltic region must now be on the U.S. and European agenda. The key players in such a process are Russia, Germany, and the United States. Their actions will determine the limits of the possible in constructing Baltic security for the foreseeable future. Dr. Stephen Blank presents a detailed and extensive analysis of these three governments' views on Baltic and European security. Their views on regional security are materially shaped by and influence their larger views on their mutual relations and policy towards Europe. Their views also demonstrate the complexity of the issues involved in constructing Baltic, not to mention European, security. But because NATO enlargement is the most serious foreign policy and defense issue before Congress now, such an analysis can illuminate much of what is happening in the NATO enlargement process and why it has taken its current shape.