The Importance Of The Middle East In Russian Foreign Policy

Abstract

The Soviet Union emerged as a superpower in the Cold War, and after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, a new Russia was formed. In order to achieve some power hegemony, priority was given to Russia´s security document. In his first term, Vladimir Putin focused on pragmatism and emphasized the power of domestic politics and the revival of the Russian economy. In his second term, Putin focused on the politics of realism to gain power on the international stage and to promote the return of Moscow´s interests. In his second term, Putin pursued three goals in the Middle East: political (power expansion), security (avoiding differences), and economical (strengthening Russia). Therefore, in this study, Russian foreign policy in the Middle East and its importance is analyzed. The question that embodies this study is: what are the issues in Russia´s foreign policy that make the Middle East region important for Russia? And the hypothesis related to this question: Russia’s concern about Islamic fundamentalism (security), economic and political reasons are among the most important factors in framing its foreign policy to the Middle East.