Russian Repertoires of Power in the MENA region (RUSMENA)
The main objective of the RUSMENA project is to examine Russian power practices in the Middle East and Northern Africa (MENA) region between 2011 and 2021....
Research group for Russia, Asia and International Trade
Research group for Russia, Asia and International Trade
Reduced influence in the Arctic?
The Covid-19 Pandemic and the Legitimacy of Putin’s Regime: A Biopolitical Perspective
Russia is currently experiencing record numbers of COVID-19-related deaths. The pandemic has put medical knowledge at the very centre of politics around the world and Russia is no exception. The current debate in Russia is influenced by what appears to be a new regime of medical governance combined with ‘pandemic authoritarianism’.
Russian Grand Strategy and Energy Resources: The Asian Dimension
This chapter addresses a set of strategically important questions about the relationship between Russian strategy and the country’s energy resources. It is divided into three sections. The first presents a brief discussion of the concept of a ‘grand strategy’ and its application in the Russian context. The second examines the role of energy resources in a grand strategy in general, and in the current Russian context in particular. The final section considers the importance of Asia in the realisation of Russian energy and grand strategy. The chapter seeks to answer the following questions: • What is a grand strategy? • Does Russia have a grand strategy? • What is the connection between grand strategy and energy? • What is the role of energy resources in Russia’s grand strategy? • What is the role of Asia in Russia’s grand and energy strategy designs?
Frenemies: Arctic cooperation in conflict and a view from Russia
Lecture to congressional fellows participating in the Wilson Foreign Policy Fellowship Program (Wilson Center, DC)
The Pandemic as a Litmus Test for (Dis)Engagement of External Powers in Central Asia
This study provides an empirical overview of pandemic-related external assistance to the Central Asian countries of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan by partner countries and international organisations between March and September 2020. This state-of-the-art review of Central Asia official development assistance extends to pledged funds beyond this period. The systemic comparison of donors suggests that there is no single actor that stands out as a champion of economic recovery; these are mostly small, token contributions. By contrast, targeted medical assistance has been far more significant, albeit focused on short-term crisis management of the pandemic. There has been only a handful of assistance projects that reflect a long-term stake in Central Asia's economic recovery and the pandemic showed little evidence of the Great Game competition for regional geopolitical influence. Thus, the relations between big powers and Central Asia need to be reconsidered and given a new meaning that would better reflect the interests and interaction between the two parties. The pandemic showed that these relations were mainly pragmatic during the global health crisis with no external partner showing interest in projecting and expanding strategic influence on the region. The region needs to build its internal resilience against new crises and avoid excessive reliance on external assistance in the long term.
Invited speaker: Russian climate politics
Invited speaker on Russia's climate politics, at SWP-Berlin's Working Group on Russia: Annual conference, 7 December 2020
Norway as an in-between for Russia: Ambivalent space, hybrid measures
This three-year project addresses the acutely relevant question of whether Norway is acquiring the precarious status of an ‘in-between’ state in the Kremlin’s eye after the watershed events of 2014 (A...