International Studies Compendium Project

Extract

Comment on this article   Over the centuries, amidst many shifts in the direction of the foreign policy of Russia, there has been surprising continuity in the behavior of governments headed by tsars, commissars, and presidents. In many respects, Russian foreign policy has been similar to that of other great powers, and in other respects it has been unique. To begin with the continuities and similarities, as a general rule of statecraft, Russia has pursued balance-of-power policies. The most common technique associated with the balance of power is forming or joining military alliances, but the balance of power may also entail, among other things, military buildups, intervention in weaker countries, or resort to war. Essentially it involves the mobilization of power to countervail the power of an enemy or a potential adversary. Thus, tsarist Russia was a member of the Triple Entente (with Great Britain and France) in the period leading up to World War I, as a counter to the Triple Alliance headed by imperial Germany. In the Soviet period the Warsaw Pact served as a military counterpart to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). The Russian Federation differs from preceding Russian regimes in not being a member of any military alliance. This is because post-Soviet Russia, unlike preceding regimes, has no major enemies. Nevertheless, it does have rivals and competitors, and ... log in or subscribe to read full text