‍Central Asia and The Caucasus Journal

Abstract Conflicts and many of the states’ actions can be analyzed through the theory of ontological security. Sometimes, states take measures which endanger their physical and realistic security. States confront disdain through honor seeking actions. The main question of the present research state: how ontological security triggered Russia to start the war with Ukraine? To answer this question, the hypothesis of the research states that neglecting Russia’s existential security borders from the West – within the form of NATO – led Russia to extensive military conflict with Ukraine in order to remind the West of its existential security borders. In the present research, data gathering method has been based on internet and library documents and the research has been conducted on the basis of descriptive-analytical approach. The findings of the research shows that Russia-Ukraine war has risen within the theoretical framework of ontological security which is based on Eurasianism and Russian nationalism and geopolitics that shape Russia’s biographic narrative. Russia’s attack on Ukraine is considered to be an honorable action to refrain from shame and disdain.
 

Abstract Government security is a fundamental concept in the academic field of international relations. To providing itfirstly accurate cognition and necessarily useful and effective cognitive frameworks and theories are required. Security research has traditionally focused on the uncertainty and vulnerability of countries in an anarchic international system. Their interests have challenged theories of international relations to provide a comprehensive explanation of security and the threat. Nevertheless, over the past two decades, a new subset has emerged that dedicated not to the security of states in the classical sense, but to their "ontological" security. In the conventional sense, security refers to "survival", such as the protection of the territorial integrity of the state. Ontological security relates to the relationship between a country's collective identity and a sense of security. This article tries to understand Russia's foreign policy and analyze the causes and motives of its behavior based on the theory of ontological security. Using descriptive-analytical research method and library and electronic resources, the author tries to find an answer for the following question: Why Russia decided to intervene militarily in Ukraine and Syria, despite the unfavorable material and spiritual costs, especially in terms of security and economic prosperity along with the international situation. The results of the article show that ontological security concerns have been a major driver of Russian foreign policy under Putin during these interventions.