Russian Policy in the Post-Soviet Space
U N I T 5
Lead-in
1. Comment on the quotations:
a) "We have no eternal allies and we have no perpetual enemies. Our interests are perpetual and eternal and those interests it is our duty to follow" (Lord Palmerston).
b) "Тот, кто не жалеет о разрушении Советского Союза, у того нет сердца, а тот, кто хочет его воссоздания в прежнем виде, у того нет головы" (В. Путин).
2. Answer the questions:
a) When was the CIS created?
b) What was the initial goal of the CIS?
c) What states is it composed of?
d) Which of them are likely to terminate their membership?
Pre-reading
1. Look at the title of the article. What do you think it is about?
2. Read the first and the last paragraphs with a view to finding out the topic and the message of the article.
Russia’s Solitude after the CIS
M. Delyagin
(Dr. Sc. (Economics), is Chairman of the Presidium and Director of Research at the Institute for Globalization Studies)
1. The recent series of ‘colored’ revolutions in several post-Soviet states has dramatically altered Russia’s immediate neighborhood as it has created a fundamentally new geopolitical reality. Unfortunately, the Kremlin has not attempted to amend its foreign or domestic policies to meet the new challenges; moreover, it has failed to rethink the scale of the changes…
The meaning of post-Soviet integration
2. Following the fashions set by some Russian politicians, the Commonwealth of Independent States is now universally known as a “liquidation firm” intended to ensure a “civilized divorce” between the post-Soviet countries and alleviate Russia’s “imperial phantom-limb pains.” If the meaning of the CIS has come to be interpreted in such a narrow sense, then it is obvious that its mission is really over. It has fulfilled its mission and, therefore, it must be reorganized into a club of regional leaders who would occasionally meet to discuss non-binding solutions and joint humanitarian programs.
3....