The Russian Challenge To The European Security Environment

“Roger Kanet, a respected expert on the Soviet Union and post-Soviet Russia, has assembled a stellar team of scholars, from Russia and the West, to examine Russia’s policy toward Europe. The individual chapters offer well-researched, provocative, and contrasting assessments, using theoretical frameworks ranging from realism to constructivism. Russia’s annexation of Crimea and support for the rebellion in Ukraine’s east have ignited a heated debate over the motivations and objectives shaping Russian policy in Europe. That makes this superb volume particularly timely.” –Rajan Menon, Anne and Bernard Spitzer Chair in Political Science, The City College of New York, USA This edited collection examines the factors that have contributed to the growing conflict in Eurasia between the Russian Federation and the European Union and the United States. The individual chapters, written by authors with different national backgrounds, highlight the factors that have contributed to the emerging competition between the two sides that has culminated in the confrontation over Ukraine and Syria. It also deals with questions concerning the possible emergence of a new security environment in Europe and Eurasia.

Indhold:Introduction: The new security environment. Part I: The role of the United States and Russia in Security. Part II: Security in Central and Eastern Europe. Part III: Russia's regional security challenges. Conclusions

This book is the first full-spectrum analysis of Russian and European norms of political action, ranging from international law, ethics, and strategy, to the specific norms for the use of force. It brings together leading scholars from these various fields, examining the differences in norm understanding between Russia and Europe. In light of the 2014 occupation and annexation of Crimea by Russia, and its subsequent covert participation in the internal affairs of Ukraine, including aggressive flying and major military exercises, Russia seems to be a classical revisionist power, intent on changing the balance of power in Europe in particular. It also reaches beyond Europe, inserting itself as the key actor in the Syrian war. The book therefore considers how we should understand Russia. It also questions whether or not the West, in particular Europe, responds adequately in this delicate and dangerous new situation. The book concludes that at present Russia acts strategically and with considerable success whereas Europe is reactive in its response.

The Routledge Handbook of Russian Security offers a comprehensive collection of essays on all aspects of Russian security and foreign policy by international scholars from across the world. The volume identifies key contemporary topics of research and debate and takes into account the changes that have occurred in the study of Russian security strategy since the end of the Cold War. The handbook is organised into five sections: The theory and nature of Russian security policy The domestic and foreign policy nexus Instruments used by Russia in pursuing its security Global and regional aspects of Russian security and foreign policy Case studies of Russian involvement in a series of security conflicts. The book concludes with case studies of the major examples of Russian involvement and operations in a series of security conflicts, including that in Georgia, the intervention in Ukraine and occupation of Crimea, and the ongoing Civil War in Syria. This volume will be of great interest to students of Russian security, strategic studies, foreign policy, European politics, and International Relations in general.

This comprehensive exploration of the new international environment examines not only traditional political-military concerns but also economic, ethnic, and other factors in the security environment of Russia and its neighbors to the west, (Vol. 1), south (Vol. 2), and east (Vol. 3). This dynamic approach takes account of both internal and external aspects of security problems and their interplay. International authors participate in considering each problem from all relevant points of view.

The war in Ukraine, and Vladimir Putin's bid to overturn the post-Cold War international settlement in Europe, have forced many Western governments to reappraise their approach to Russia. Until 2003, it was widely believed that a modernizing Russia might be accommodated into the international system as a constructive and benign actor. Variations on this view have given way to the realization that Russia, on its present course, cannot be a partner or ally, and that differences outweigh any common interests. Russia needs reform, but the domestic political obstacles to it are daunting. At the same time, if Moscow maintains its current course, in both economic management and international relations, this will be increasingly dangerous for Europe and costly, if not disastrous, for Russia. The questions addressed in this report are how far those costs will rise, whether Russia can bear them, what will happen if it cannot, and how the West should respond in the near and longer term.

NATO, the most successful alliance in history, is beset by unresolved tensions and divergent interests that are undermining its cohesion, credibility and capability. In this new book, Mark Webber, James Sperling and Martin Smith explore four key post-Cold War developments that threaten NATO's survival: an overextended geostrategic reach and an unwieldly security policy portfolio; a failure to address capability short-falls and meet defence spending benchmarks; US weariness and European wariness that call NATO into question; and intra-alliance discord over Russia’s place in the European security order and how to deal with Moscow’s destabilization of Georgia and Ukraine. The authors propose in response a range of policy options that could reinvigorate NATO, but conclude with a note of caution. Alliances come and go and most are cast into the dustbin of history. If NATO is to avoid this fate, it must not only address the major problems that trouble it, but also get to grips with future challenges to alliance cohesion and credibility, from Brexit to the emerging contest with China.

There are different perceptions in the west about Russian interference in the EU; some states see Russia as a friendly partner, and some view it as a hostile power, but, majority of states want to maintain friendly relations with Russia. These factors matter, and the relations with and perceptions of Russia certainly differ between various countries. It is noted that the US and NATO presence in Eastern Europe was a bigger challenge to the national security of Russian Federation, and that the US wanted to pressure Germany to undermine the Nord Stream-2 pipeline project. The construction of the controversial natural gas pipeline Nord Stream 2 has been delayed for months and completion is increasingly at risk after the US imposed sanctions on involved companies and threatened further steps. The pipeline under the Baltic Sea has been the subject of heated debate for years. The book focuses on the Security Challenges faced by the Baltic States, Ukraine and Belarus.