Russian strategic culture : explaining Russian foreign policy in the annexation of Crimea 2014

Abstract

The contemporary international system highly values the principle of state sovereignty. Russia, as a member of the United Nations enforcing that exact value, is supposed to restrain itself from the use of force and enact an interventionist approach in its foreign policy. However, what Russia did in 2014 was the exact opposite. Russia annexed Crimea from the sovereign Ukraine through the use of force and military intimidation. This research explores Russia’s motives and perspectives in that particular foreign policy. By utilizing the Strategic Culture theory as the theoretical framework, the research reached an understanding about Russian strategic culture – its assumptions and beliefs stemmed from historical experiences that shape its collective identity and relationship with other group, determining the use and means to reach its security objectives. Russia’s perception of the West as a threat and its belief to launch pre-emptive strike as the only measure of defense is the reason behind Russian annexation of Crimea, in the face of lurking threat of Western encroachment.