11. Russia’s New Policy Towards Aspiring Political Movements and Unrecognized States

This chapter highlights the main dynamics shaping Russia’s policy towards aspiring political movements and unrecognized states. Moscow’s attitude towards these actors has been traditionally determined by its foreign policy paradigm which favours establishing official links only with sovereign and recognized states. This attitude was quite noticeable even during the Soviet era when Moscow supported the idea of a world revolution, and Soviet foreign policy was officially coordinated with the activities of the Communist International. Between 1991 and 2008, Russian leadership also continued this policy. Yet, Russia’s attitude started to change when Kosovo’s independence was recognized by many Western states, which has also been one of the main reasons prompting Moscow to recognize the independence of Abkhazia and South Ossetia following the Russian-Georgian war. Since 2008, Russia’s policy has gradually drifted towards a wider recognition of the de facto states and aspiring political movements around the world.