Russian Security Priorities in Near Eurasia

... resources as Russia, may well do without having to control its peaceful neighbours, and potentially unfriendly behaviour on their part should be stopped not by “binding” them to Russia, but by inevitable retaliation. Ultimately, nowhere outside Europe does Russia encounter the phenomenon of anti-Russian consolidation as a historically important factor in domestic and foreign policy. This means that in the South Caucasus and Central Asia, Moscow’s concern in the future may be only the internal problems of its neighbours, but not their aggressive behaviour towards Russia. The way relations between them are developing now, while Russia is really solving ...