Russian Foreign Policy: The Return of Great Power Politics

This thoughtful and balanced text examines the development of Russian foreign policy since the end of the Cold War. Jeffrey Mankoff argues that Russia's more assertive behavior since Vladimir Putin became president in 2000 has resulted from both a deep-seated consensus among its elite about Russia's identity and interests as well as a favorable convergence of events-including the persistence of high energy prices and the check on U.S. power resulting from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Because these factors are the result of long-term trends, the author argues that there is little reason to expect that the election of Dmitry Medvedev will fundamentally alter Russian foreign policy behavior. Presenting an evenhanded treatment of controversial issues, Mankoff analyzes Russia's interactions with major global actors, including the United States, the European Union, the Commonwealth of Independent States, and China. Despite Moscow's often-harsh rhetoric and the deployment of Russian forces against Georgia in 2008, the author convincingly demonstrates that there is little reason to fear a return to a Cold War-like standoff with the West. Instead, he argues, today's Russia is more interested in restoring what its leaders consider to be its rightful place among the world's major powers rather than in directly challenging the West. Thoroughly researched and knowledgeable, this book will be invaluable for all students of Russia.

About the Author :
Jeffrey Mankoff is Fellow and Deputy Director of the Russia & Eurasia Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. He was a 2010-11 Council on Foreign Relations International Affairs Fellow at the U.S. Department of State.

Review :
"Jeffrey Mankoff's analysis of Russia's foreign policy is a serious and well-researched exercise in understanding the complexities of a country still in search of its post-communist, post-imperial identity. Russia is no longer on a path to Western integration; but it still struggles with what it means to be a great power in the twenty-first century." --Dmitri Trenin, Carnegie Moscow Center "It was refreshing to read a book that was so well written. Using both Western and Russian sources, the author carefully researches and analyzes controversial issues in Russian foreign policy but does so in an evenhanded and nuanced way." --Gordon Smith, University of South Carolina "For students and scholars of international affairs, there is no better choice regarding Russian foreign relations." --Library Journal "Mankoff explores in detail the ups and downs in U.S.-Russian relations, Russia's complex interaction with Europe, its relations with Asia, and the course of its dealings with its post-Soviet neighbors. The analysis is balanced and rich." --Foreign Affairs "Mankoff has produced an extremely valuable account of Russian foreign policy, which manages to be both comprehensive and concise in its treatment of the subject. It has a lot to offer not just to the general reader, but also to the specialist seeking to understand recent events in their proper historical context." --International Affairs "With this book, Jeffrey Mankoff has established himself as the best young American analyst of post-Cold War Russia. This careful and clear assessment of Putin's grand strategy should be required reading for the Obama administration, as well as for anyone else interested in Russia's rapid but fragile resurgence as a great power in twenty-first century world politics." --John Lewis Gaddis, Yale University "This is truly an excellent book. From the factual as well as from the interpretive point of view, it is suitable for both the specialist and nonspecialist reader searching for a serious, historical explanation of the direction of Russian foreign policy in the immediate post-Yeltsin era. Highly recommended." --Choice Reviews "Jeffrey Mankoff's analysis of Russian foreign policy is a carefully researched, sober assessment of Russia's strategy for return to international significance." --Daniel R. Kempton, The Russian Review