Russian-European Relations in the Balkans and Black Sea Region PDF Download

Author: Vsevolod Samokhvalov
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 3319520784
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 296

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Book Description
This book provides a detailed analysis of Russia’s ‘great power identity’ and the role of Europe in forming this identity. ‘Great power identity’ implies an expansionist foreign policy, and yet this does not explain all the complexities of the Russian state. For instance, it cannot explain why Russia decided to take over Crimea, but provided only limited support to break-away regions in Eastern Ukraine. Moreover, if Russia is in geo-economic competition with Europe, why has no serious conflict erupted between Moscow and other post-Soviet states which developed closer ties with the EU? Finally, why does Putin maintain relationships with the European countries that imposed tough economic sanctions on Russia? Vsevolod Samokhvalov provides a more nuanced understanding of Russia’s great power identity by drawing on his experience in regional diplomacy and research and applying a constructivist methodology. The book will appeal to students and scholars of international relations, in particular Russian-European relations, Russian foreign policy and Russian studies.

Author: Sinem Akgul Acikmese
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317400372
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 133

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Book Description
The idea for this book is derived from the scantiness of academic references on the European Union’s policies towards the Black Sea, relative to this region’s officially stated significance for the EU. Even though the EU plays a vital role in Black Sea political agendas, the EU’s cooperation with the region is not extensively covered by academic discussions and literature. This is mostly due to the fact that the EU’s focus on foreign affairs is mainly associated with the Balkans, as part the current and potential expansion, and the Middle East, as a direct consequence of the upheaval of the Arab Spring. The Black Sea region is crucially important for the EU because of the opportunities and challenges that the region presents, both politically and socio-economically. Contributions to this book mostly focus on specific issues of EU–Black Sea cooperation, from conflict to the environment to democracy, and how these particular relationships are perceived within the region as well as through the lenses of stakeholders such as Russia, Turkey, and the USA. Overall, the collection focuses on projecting a more efficient role and a holistic strategy for the EU in its approach towards the Black Sea region, testifying to the need for a strong EU presence. For this reason, the Black Sea area remains ‘the neighbourhood too close to, yet still far from, the European Union’. This book was originally published as a special issue of the Journal of Balkan and Near Eastern Studies.

Author: Niklas Nilsson
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
This article examines two fields of geopolitical competition in the Black Sea region, in which an increasing EU involvement is increasingly challenging Russian interests. First, the EU's effort to diversify its energy sources through new transportation routes is meeting competition in the form of Russian-sponsored projects. The EU has realized the partial incompatibility of Russian and EU interests in this regard; however, the lack of cohesion within the EU prevents the formation of common external energy policies. Second, the EU is increasingly recognizing its interest in engaging with conflict resolution in the region. This also runs contrary to Russian strategy, which strives to maintain the status quo in the conflicts rather than working for solutions, in order to maintain Russian leverage over the South Caucasus and Moldova. In this field, the EU has yet to officially recognize its interest conflict with Russia. However, due to the intertwinement of the conflict resolution processes with the EU's deeper policy goals in the Black Sea region, namely the promotion of a stable, secure and democratic European neighborhood, the EU will likely find it increasingly difficult to pursue its key interests in the region, while simultaneously maintaining a passive stance towards Russian policies in the region.

Author: Carol Weaver
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317040333
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 196

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Book Description
The Black Sea region rarely hit the media headlines until the outbreak of war in Georgia in 2008, yet its importance as a focus of European Union (EU) external policy making had already been growing for several years. The area is fascinating and diverse, comprising both large and small states, with a mixture of democracies and more authoritarian regimes. Traditionally a central foreign policy concern for Russia and Turkey, since the end of the Cold War, the EU and the US have become increasingly involved in the many dimensions of Black Sea politics. This book brings together a broad range of specialists on the region to analyze the challenge of divergent agendas both within and outside the EU. More specifically it looks at how the EU's enlargement to include states on the Black Sea shore has brought about new external policies including the European Neighbourhood Policy, Black Sea Synergy and the Eastern Partnership, all representing subtly different aims and interests. The various sections in the book also examine regionalization, conflict resolution, security, relationships between the Black Sea's states and last but not least, the vital issue of energy which has begun to dominate the discussion of the region. Designed to further the debate on the future of EU policies for the Black Sea region, this book is an essential resource for researchers, students and others in search of a coherent picture of the inter-relationship of EU initiatives and policies in the region.

Author: Dimitrios Triantaphyllou
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317966201
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 181

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Book Description
This book on the security context in the Black Sea region is a timely endeavour and substantive contribution to understanding the state of play in the region and its linkages to the rest of the world. With contributions from analysts from Europe, the United States, Russia, Ukraine and Turkey, the book provides a holistic perspective. Post-Cold War developments have increased interest in the Black Sea region and the role of the regional and extra-regional actors in its security issues: this volume examines the position of the United States; NATO’s involvement; the EU’s engagement; Russia and Turkey’s aspirations alongside the policies of the other states in the region as they seek a role for themselves. It illustrates and investigates key concerns such as security, energy and energy security, regionalism and good governance; and questions why a cooperative security framework (or other regional schemes which could accommodate the needs of all stakeholders) has to date never become a reality. This book adds to the growing body of research on the region, presenting the facts of the current situation and asking what can be done in the Black Sea region for it to survive given its precarious security environment. This book was published as a special issue of Southeast European and Black Sea Studies.

Author: Carol Weaver
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages :

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Book Description
This thesis asks 'To what extent have US-Russian tensions affected European Union policy in the wider Black Sea region?' partly to help answer the broader question of 'Are we in the process of changing from a state dominated, anarchic and realist world to one where effective regional and global organisations take precedence?' Both the United States and Russia are referred to as 'modern' states with 'realist' foreign policies, whilst the EU is described as 'postmodern' or 'post-sovereign'. Now the EU extends to the Black Sea coastline there is a clash between the realism of the US and Russia, and the post-sovereign politics of the EU, whose policy is to resolve conflicts and promote a stable and peaceful European neighbourhood. Tensions and policies are systematically analysed using methods which include interviews and documentary analysis. NATO enlargement is argued to have contributed to the war in Georgia and the hastening of the Eastern Partnership policy. Tensions over an anti-ballistic missile system, Black Sea access, energy security, territorial integrity, spheres of influence and conventional forces are also shown to have affected the implementation of EU policies, as well as causing policy changes in some instances. One change in EU direction has been from bilateral only relations with eastern partners to both bilateral and multilateral relations (partly through Black Sea Synergy) in an attempt to promote regional cooperation as well as Europeanisation. The research concludes that US-Russian tensions, inter alia, have affected EU policy, which could point towards the triumph of realism in the Black Sea region. However, in the more recent post-Bush era, cooperation has become more visible. The thesis also argues that there is a situation of 'balanced multipolarity' (between Russia, the EU, Turkey and the US) in the region, which could lay the foundation for a cooperative security community to develop.

Author: Carol Weaver
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317019938
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 178

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Book Description
The Black Sea region is a dynamic and complex area in which many national and international actors have key interests, including Russia and the US. The European Union stretches to the sea’s western coast where it meets former Soviet territory as well as EU candidate Turkey. Regional tensions include those over NATO enlargement, a US anti-ballistic missile system, access to the Black Sea, democratization, spheres of interest and the conflict zones of Abkhazia, South Ossetia, Nagorno-Karabakh and Transnistria. In addition, the region’s close proximity to the Caspian basin offers the prospect of alternative energy resources and routes to western states. The Politics of the Black Sea Region: EU Neighbourhood, Conflict Zone or Future Security Community? explores and examines the many diverse political, security and economic interests that affect the region and the possible outcomes for it. By reviewing the wider history and examining the political systems and policies of the Black Sea nations and organizations as well as analyzing current tensions and future trends, it provides an invaluable, comprehensive and unique political guide to this fascinating area.

Author: Nikolaĭ Aleksandrovich Kovalʹskiĭ
Publisher: Institute of Europe Russian Academy of Sciences
ISBN:
Category : Mediterranean Region
Languages : en
Pages : 272

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Author: Thomas Weihe
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Black Sea Region
Languages : en
Pages : 146

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Book Description
At once an energy corridor and gateway for trafficking and organized crime, the Black Sea region is an area of burgeoning importance to the European Union. Its frozen conflicts in Abkhazia, South Ossetia, and Transnistr ia are dangerous centers of instability in Europe's immediate neighborhood. The Black Sea is also nearing the EU in purely geographic terms: in 2007 its littoral states Romania and Bulgaria will join, accession talks with Turkey have been opened, Georgia and Ukraine have expressed interest in EU membership and are being discussed as possible candidates for a NATO enlargement. The growing Western presence in the region has set off alarm bells in Russia, which regards the Black Sea as its sphere of influence. The prospect of NATO expanding poses a particularly acute threat of escalation. Also, Moscow's remarks that independence for Kosovo could serve as a precedence for the spearatist frozen conflict regions ar being seen as harbingers of future conflict. EU and regional representatives have therefore counselled respect for Russia's interests around the Black Sea, consideration of its objections, and efforts to facilitate cooperation that would benefit all sides. Does the EU need a Black Sea strategy? If so, what form should it take? This 134th Bergedorf Protocol documents a meeting of senior politicians and experts from the region and EU states in Odessa who analyzed the situation and put forward policy options

Author: Stephen J. Flanagan
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781977405685
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 194

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Book Description
Russia has long used political, military, economic, informational, and clandestine tools against countries in the Black Sea region. In this report, the authors present elements of a Western strategy to counter Russian malign influence and aggression.