Russian Neighborhood Policy and Its Eurasian Client States: No Autocracy Export

In this article, Pål Kolstø and Helge Blakkisrud examine Russia's policy towards Abkhazia, South Ossetia, and Transnistria, investigating whether authoritarian regimes engage in active export of their political systems or whether they are primarily concerned about their geopolitical interests. 

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Russia in Global Affairs, vol. 19, issue 2. 

Do authoritarian regimes engage in active export of their political systems? Or are they primarily concerned about their geopolitical interests? This article explores these questions by examining Russia's policy towards Abkhazia, South Ossetia, and Transnistria. In all three de facto states, Moscow is fully able to dictate election outcomes should it desire to, but, we argue, has increasingly refrained from doing so. These client states are unlikely to attempt to escape from Russia's tutelage; and with its geopolitical interests fully ensured, Russia appears willing to grant them latitude. We then ask whether these findings can be extrapolated to serve as a template for understanding Russia’s policy towards its client states more generally, discussing Moscow’s reactions to attempted regime change in Armenia and Belarus.

The article is published in Russia in Global Affairs, vol. 19, issue 2 and can be read here

Published July 18, 2021 8:10 PM - Last modified July 18, 2021 8:10 PM