Russia and the enlargement of NATO

Abstract

Five years after the end of the cold war and the extinction of the Soviet Union, Russia's foreign policy is still in a transitional phase. It is waiting for a stabilisation of the post-communist regime, and for a clear definition of its identity and national interests. Initially, in a continuation of the «new political thinking», the dominant line was the quest for alliance with the former adversaries. However, in the end of 1992, internal problems reversed this, and it seemed that the «Euro-Asiatic» tendencies prevailed over the «Atlantic» ones. In turn, from 1994 onwards, this line was corrected by a more realistic and pragmatic one. Agreements were made on non-nuclear policy with the Ukraine, and there was co-operation with the western powers to resolve the civil war in Bosnia-Herzegovina. However, this attitude did not prevent growing Russian opposition to the enlargement of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. In its relationships with the United States and Europe, this became Russia´s most prominent foreign policy question. The responsible officials consider that Russia's status as a great power and its position in the regional balance of power are threatened: the enlargement of the Atlantic Alliance's boundaries would mean a threat to Russia's strategic security, and a new division of Europe. The Russian position became more entrenched during the latest electoral cycle. It will only be possible to resolve the problem of enlargement of the North Atlantic community, and to integrate Russia in a stable post cold war balance of power, after this cycle is finished.