Dimitar Bechev, Rival Power: Russia’s Influence in Southeast Europe. New Haven, CT & London: Yale University Press, 2017.

Authors : Jahja MUHASİLOVİC

Pages : 195-206

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Publication Date : 2020-12-27

Article Type : Review Paper

Abstract :Russia started following a more assertive foreign policy in the Balkans after the Ukraine crisis and the annexation of Crimea in 2014. Moscow tries to generate disruption in the region to keep the West preoccupied and divert it from its immediate neighborhood. In its strategy Russia relies on `hybrid warfare` as a strategy by actively using Slavophil groups, influencing media and social networks, cyber-attacks, and planting conspiracy theories against the Western paradigm. But, Kremlin`s foreign policy faces serious obstacles in the region. Although it has some local support, almost all of the Balkan states don`t have any doubts about their Euro-Atlantic future. Even before Putin`s government the attitude of the Balkan governments toward Russia was not much different than it is today. Throughout history, small Balkan nation-states developed skills to get Russian support for their own causes, but they often would turn their backs to Russia the moment their expectations were met. This book gives an insight into the present condition of Russian influence in the region today and successfully draws parallels with the past Russo-Balkans relations.
Keywords : Russia, Balkans, Hybrid Warfare, Foreign Policy, Geopolitics