Struggle for Security: A Study on Russia’s Foreign Policy (2014 – 2020)

RostamAghaei, Alireza; Ghavam, Abdolali; Barzegar, Keyhan

Struggle for Security: A Study on Russia’s Foreign Policy (2014 – 2020)

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

Alireza RostamAghaei ¹

Abdolali Ghavam ²

keyhan Barzegar

¹ . PhD Candidate of International Relations, Faculty of Divinity, Political Science and Law, Science and Research Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran.

² The Author in Charge; Professor of International Relations, Beheshti University, Tehran, Iran.

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.

Keywords

Ontological Security

Russian Identity

Russia's Foreign Policy

the Syrian Crisis

the Ukraine Crisis

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