Russia and the Arab spring: A counter-revolutionary power in the Mena region

Abstract

This chapter aims at exploring the global dimension of the Arab Spring by focusing on the analysis of Russia’s response to these events. Overall, it argues that Russia has played the role of a counter-revolutionary power in the Middle East and North Africa region. This comes as the result of the complex articulation of several strategic and ideational factors. The region is of considerable importance to Russian elites due to its strategic, economic, and political value. However, this more material explanation is insufficient to fully understand Russian foreign policies toward the Arab Spring. It is only when we bring more ideational components relating to perceptions of governance change as a threat that one is able to get a broader picture of Moscow’s positioning and action in the framework of the Arab Spring.