Russia as a Civilization-State: Making Sense of Moscow’s 2023 Foreign Policy Concept

Abstract

With the war against Ukraine, Russian foreign policy is going through a critical juncture that causes significant regional and global uncertainties. The current crisis is not a result of short-term brinkmanship but a consequence of Moscow’s three-decade-long search for self-identification since the collapse of the Soviet Union. To follow the Kremlin’s overall foreign policy trajectory and self-identification, Foreign Policy Concepts are quite helpful since they reflect the main framework of Russian diplomacy since 1993. The study begins by explaining the significance of the Concepts for Moscow’s foreign policy. Then, it highlights the main themes of the latest Foreign Policy Concept: anti-hegemonism, multipolarity, Russia as a centre, and Russia as a civilization-state. In each section, Moscow’s understanding of these themes is discussed and put into a historical context to explain the significance of their appearance in the official documents. The article then compares the previous concept to expose the change of narrative in 2023 to show the main changes in Russia’s foreign policy priorities, articulation of other actors, and perception of threats.

Keywords

• Russian Foreign Policy
• anti-hegemonism
• multipolarity
• civilization
• fortress Russia

Bir medeniyet-devlet olarak Rusya: Moskova’nın 2023 Dış Politika Konseptini anlamlandırmak

Abstract

2022 yılından bu yana devam eden Ukrayna’ya karşı savaş ile birlikte Rus dış politikası önemli bölgesel ve küresel belirsizlikler yaratan bir yol ayrımından geçiyor. Mevcut kriz, kısa süreli bir maceracılığın değil bilakis Moskova’nın Sovyetler Birliği’nin dağılmasından bu yana süregelen otuz yıllık kimlik arayışının bir sonucudur. Bu sürecin incelenmesi için, 1993 yılından bugüne kadar yayınlanan Dış Politika Konsepti belgeleri, Kremlin’in genel dış politika yönelimlerini ve kendisine dönük kimlik tanımlamalarındaki dönüşümün takibini yapabilmek için oldukça faydalıdır. Çalışma ilk olarak Konseptlerin, Moskova’nın dış politikası için öneminin açıklanması ile başlamaktadır. Ardından, 2023 Konsept belgesinde öne çıkan temalar aydınlatılmaktadır: anti-hegemonizm, çok kutupluluk, bir merkez olarak Rusya, ve bir medeniyet-devlet olarak Rusya. Her bir temaya ayrılan kısımda, Moskova açısından bu kavramların anlamı açıklanarak tarihsel bağlamları verilmektedir. Çalışmanın bir sonraki kısmında mevcut Konsept, bir önceki Dış Politika Konsepti belgesi ile mukayese edilerek anlatıdaki değişim ortaya çıkarılmakta ve bu sayede Rusya’nın dış politika önceliklerinin, diğer aktörleri nasıl tanımladığının ve tehdit algılarının nasıl değiştiği gösterilmektedir.

Keywords

• Rus dış politikası
• Anti-hegemonizm
• Çok kutupluluk
• Medeniyet
• Kale Rusya

References

1. Adamsky, Dima (2019), “Christ-loving Diplomats: Russian Ecclesiastical Diplomacy in Syria”, Survival, 61(6): 49-68.
2. Alekseeva, Tatiana (2019) Mezhdunarodnykh Otnosheniy kak politicheskaya filosofiya i nauka (Moscow: Aspekt-Press).
3. Allison, Roy (2018), “Protective Integration and Security Policy Coordination: Comparing SCO and CSTO”, The Chinese Journal of International Politics, 11(3): 297–338.
4. Baev, Pavel (2015), “Russia Outside the Security System”, Russian Politics & Law, 53(4): 53:4, 92-101.
5. Blitt, Robert C. (2021) “Religious Soft Power in Russian Foreign Policy: Constitutional Change and the Russian Orthodox Church”, Berkeley Center for Religion, Peace & World Affairs, University of Tennessee Legal Studies Research Paper No. 422.
6. Bobrov, Aleksandr (2021), Kontseptual’nye osnovy vneshney politiki Rossii (Moscow: Aspekt Press).
7. Bogaturov, Aleksei (2007), “Tri pokoleniya vheshnepoliticheskikh doktrin Rossii”, Mezhdunarodnye protsessy, 1(13): 54:69.
8. Bordachev Timofeev and Anastasiya Pyatachkova (2018), “The Concept of Greater Eurasia in the Turn of Russia to the East”, International Organisations Research Journal, vol. 13(3): 33–51.

9. Bukh, Alexander (2009) Japan's National Identity and Foreign Policy Russia as Japan's 'Other' (Oxford and New York: Routledge).
10. Carta, Caterina. (2019) “A Rose by Any Other Name”: On Ways of Approaching Discourse Analysis. International Studies Review, 21: 81-106.
11. de Haas, Marcel (2010), Russia’s Foreign Security Policy in the 21st Century: Putin, Medvedev and Beyond. (New York: Routledge).
12. Dugin, Aleksandr (2000) “Priglasheniye k diskussii: yevraziyskaya kontsepsiya rossiyskoy gosudarstvennosti” Filosofiya prava, 1: 73-79.
13. Feklyunina, Valentina. (2016). “Soft power and identity: Russia, Ukraine and the ‘Russian world(s)”, European Journal of International Relations, 22(4): 773-796.
14. Fierke, Karin (2013) “Constructivism” Dunne, Tim et al. (ed.) International Relations Theories. (Oxford: Oxford University Press): 166-184.
15. Grek, Ivan (2023) “The grassroots of Putin’s ideology: civil origins of an uncivil regime” East European Politics, 39(2): 220-239.
16. Hopf, Ted (2013) “Common-Sense Constructivism and Hegemony in World Politics.” International Organization, 67(2): 317–54.
17. Hopf, Ted (1998) “The Promise of Constructivism in International Relations Theory.” International Security, 23(1): 171–200.
18. Katsumata, Hiro (2006) “Establishment of the ASEAN Regional Forum: constructing a ‘talking shop’ or a ‘norm brewery’?”, The Pacific Review, 19(2): 181-198.
19. Kharkevich, Maksim (2016) “The Critical Experience of Russia in Global Governance” Russian Politics and Law, 54(5): 461-476.
20. Koldunova, Ekaterina (2016) “Russia and Regional Institutions in the Asia-Pacific Region”, Russian Politics and Law, 54(5): 516-532.
21. Kortunov, Andrey (2020) “Krepost’ ili bunker”, https://russiancouncil.ru/analytics-and-comments/analytics/krepost-ili/bunker (01.02.2024)
22. Kortunov, Andrey (2019) “Kto budget stroit novy miroporyadok”, https://russiancouncil.ru/en/analytics-and-comments/analytics/who-will-build-the-new-world-order/ (23.12.2023).
23. Kragh, Martin and Andreas Umland (2023) “Putinism beyond Putin: the political ideas of Nikolai Patrushev and Sergei Naryshkin in 2006–20” Post-Soviet Affairs, 39(5): 366-389.
24. Kremlin.ru (2023) “Valdai International Discussion Club meeting” http://en.kremlin.ru/events/president/news/69695 (09.11.2023).
25. Kremlin.ru (2016) “Ukaz Prezidenta Rossiyskoy Federatsii ob Utverzhdenii Kontseptsii vneshney politiki Rossiyskoy Federatsii” http://static.kremlin.ru/media/acts/files/0001201612010045.pdf (09.11.2023).
26. Kremlin.ru (2008) “Konseptsiya vneshney politiki Rossiyskoy Federatsii” http://kremlin.ru/acts/news/785 (10.11.2023).
27. Krickovic, Andrej (2017) “The Symbiotic China-Russia Partnership: Cautious Riser and Desperate Challenger”, The Chinese journal of international politics, 10(3): 299-329.
28. Makarychev, Andrey (2014) “Security Agenda in Russia: Academic Concepts, Political Discourses, and Institutional Practices” Kaldor, Mary and Iavor Rangelov (eds.) The Handbook of Global Security Policy. (Wiley: Sussex): 408-425.
29. Markedonov, Sergei (2006) “In Defense of the National Idea” Russia in Global Affairs, 4(3): 140-147.
30. Melville, Andrei (2017) “A Neoconservative Consensus in Russia?”, Russian Politics & Law, 55(4): 315-335.
31. Mezhuev, Vadim (2003) “Sud’ba Tsivilizatsiy: Konfrontatsiya ili Dialog” Lichnost. Kul’tura. Obschestvo, 5(3-4): 44-54.
32. Mezhuev, Vadim (1997) “Ponyatiye natsional’noy interes v rossiyskoy obshcestvenno-politicheskoy mysly” Polis, 1: 5-31.
33. Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation (2023) “Konseptsiya vneshney politiki Rossiyskoy Federatsii” https://mid.ru/ru/foreign_policy/official_documents/1860586/ (09.11.2023).
34. Morozov, Viatcheslav and Bahar Rumelili (2012) “The external constitution of European identity: Russia and Turkey as Europe-makers” Cooperation and Conflict, 47(1): 28-48.
35. Nezavisimaya Gazeta (2000) “Konseptsiya vneshney politiki Rossiyskoy Federatsii” https://www.ng.ru/world/2000-07-11/1_concept.html (01.12.2023).
36. Primakov, Evgeny (2012) “Vneshnyaya politika Rossii: zadachi i perspektivy” Ivanov, Igor (ed.) Vneshnyaya Politika Rossii 2000-2020. (Moskva: Aspekt-Press): 7-15.
37. Putin, Vladimir (2007) “Vstupleniye i diskussiya na Myunkhenskoy konferentsii po voprosam politiki bezopasnosti” http://kremlin.ru/events/president/transcripts/24034 (22.11.2023). Romanova, Tatiana (2018) “Russia’s Neorevisionist Challenge to the Liberal International Order”, The International Spectator, 53:.1-21.
38. Russia Matters (1993) “Printsipy vneshney politiki Rossiyskoy Federatsii” https://www.russiamatters.org/sites/default/files/media/files/1993%20Foreign%20Policy%20Strategy%20RUS.pdf (14.12.2023).
39. Savchenko Anatoly and Ivan Zuenko. (2020) “The Driving Forces of Russia’s Pivot To East”, Comparative Politics, 11(1):111-125.
40. Sergunin, Alexander (2016) Explaining Russian Foreign Policy: Theory and Practice (Stuttgart: ibidem-Verlag).
41. Shakleina, Tatiana and Baykov, Andrei (2017) Megatrendy: Osnovnye traektorii evolyutsii mirovogo poryadka v 21 veke, (Moscow: Aspect-Press).
42. Skriba, Andrei (2016) “Russian Strategy towards the Post-Soviet Space in Europe: Searching for Balance between Economy, Security, and Great Power Attractiveness”, Strategic Analysis 40(6): 604-618.
43. Timofeev, Ivan (2019) “Novaya anarkhiya? Stenarii dinamiki mirovogo poryadka” https://russiancouncil.ru/analytics-and-comments/analytics/novaya-anarkhiya-stsenarii-dinamiki-mirovogo-poryadka (10.12.2023)
44. Timofeev, Ivan (2015) “Novaya predskazuyemost’ Rossii” https://russiancouncil.ru/analytics-and-comments/analytics/novaya-predskazuemost-rossii/ (14.12.2023)
45. Torkonuv, Anatoly, Dmitry Streltsov, Ekaterina Koldunova (2020) “Rossiysky povorot na Vostok: Dostizheniya, problemy i perspektivy”, Polis: Political Studies, 5: 8-21.
46. Tsymbursky, Vadim (1993) “Ostrov Rossiya: Perspektivy rossiyskoy geopolitiki” Polis, 5:11-17. Tsygankov, Andrei and Pavel Tsygankov (2021) “Constructing National Values: The Nationally Distinctive Turn in Russian IR Theory and Foreign Policy." Foreign Policy Analysis,17( 4): 1-20.
47. Tsygankov, Andrei (2016) Russian Foreign Policy: Change and continuity in national identity. (Rowman&Littlefield: Lanham).
48. Unaldilar-Kocamaz Sinem (2019) “The rise of new powers in world politics”, Uluslararası İlişkiler, 16(61): 127-141.
49. Valdai (2023) “Vladimir Putin Meets with Members of the Valdai Discussion Club.” https://valdaiclub.com/events/posts/articles/vladimir-putin-meets-with-members-of-the-valdai-club-transcript-2023/ (12.11.2023).
50. Vinogradov, Andrei (2019) “Rossiya v Evrazii: mezhdu Kitaem i Zapadom: Identichnost’, ideologiya i geopolitika”, Kontury global’nykh transformatsii, 12(2): 228-246.
51. Weber, Cynthia (2010) International Relations Theory - A Critical Introduction. 3rd ed. (New York: Routledge).
52. Wendt, Aleksander (2006) “Social Theory as Cartesian science” Guzzini, Stefano and Anna Leander (ed.) Constructivism in International Relations – Wendt and his critics (New York: Routledge).
53. Wendt, Alexander (1994) “Collective Identity Formation and the International State.” The American Political Science Review, 88(2): 384–96.
54. Zygar, Mihail. (2019) “Vsyo Kremlyovskaya Rat’: Kratkaya istoriya sovremenny Rossii” (Moscow:Intellektual’naya literatura).