This collection of studies investigates the political economy of international relations between the Soviet bloc (the "East") and the developing world (the "South"), focusing on the 1970s and 1980s. The works examine East-South relations from the standpoints of international trade patterns, financial transfers, and military relations.

This book discerns Soviet leaders' views of the United States and sees them in relation to foreign policy statements and actions. Hermann first examines the subtle problem of analyzing perceptions and interpreting motives from the words and deeds of national leaders. He then turns to cases, measuring the dominant U.S. hypotheses about the USSR against Soviet behavior in Central Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia, as well as Soviet participation in the arms race. Finally, he weighs his conclusions against a thematic study of speeches and publications by members of the Politburo.

The European Union is still emerging as a fully fledged foreign policy actor. The vagaries of this process are clearly visible, yet insufficiently explained in the EU policies towards the post-Soviet space. EU Foreign Policy and Post-Soviet Conflicts examines EU intervention and non-intervention in conflict resolution, with a specific focus on the EU’s role in the post-soviet conflicts in the South Caucasus and Moldova: Abkhazia, South Ossetia, Nagorno-Karabakh and Transnistria. It explains how EU foreign policy affected these conflicts, but more importantly what EU intervention in these conflicts reveal about the EU itself. Based on extensive field research, the author argues that the reluctant EU intervention in post-Soviet conflicts results from a dichotomous relationship between EU institutions and some EU member states. Popescu argues this demonstrates that EU institutions use policies of ‘stealth intervention’ where they seek to play a greater role in the post-Soviet space, but they do so through relatively low-profile, uncontroversial and depoliticised actions in order to avoid visible Russian opposition. Exploring an array of questions related to the EU as a foreign policy actor, this book traces the politics of conflict intervention by EU institutions using original empirical data related to the EU decision making process and will be of interest to students and scholars of European politics, conflict resolution, foreign policy and Post-Soviet politics.

An assessment of the explanatory utility of different approaches to account for post-Soviet Russia's foreign policy towards the West, arguing that only by focusing both on external constraints and changes in the Russian leadership's foreign policy thinking can we explain major facets of Russia's conduct from 1992-2007.

Special Sections: Russian Foreign Policy Towards the “Near Abroad” and Russia's Annexiation of Crimea II This special section deals with Russia’s post-Maidan foreign policy towards the so-called “near abroad,” or the former Soviet states. This is an important and timely topic, as Russia’s policy perspectives have changed dramatically since 2013/2014, as have those of its neighbors. The Kremlin today is paradoxically following an aggressive “realist” agenda that seeks to clearly delineate its sphere of influence in Europe and Eurasia while simultaneously attempting to promote “soft-power” and a historical-civilizational justification for its recent actions in Ukraine (and elsewhere). The result is an often perplexing amalgam of policy positions that are difficult to disentangle. The contributors to this special issue are all regional specialists based either in Europe or the United States.

This book surveys Russia's relations with the world since 1992 and assesses the future prospect for the foreign policy of Europe's largest country. Together these essays offer an authoritative summary and assessment of Russia's relations with its neighbors and with the rest of the world since the collapse of the Soviet Union.

A comprehensive exploration of postrevolution Iranian foreign policy analyzes the country's relations with key nations and regions and the impact of both Iran's domestic situation and the developing global system. Iran's Foreign Policy in the Post-Soviet Era: Resisting the New International Order provides the first truly comprehensive, in-depth survey of Iranian foreign policy, issue by issue and country by country, since the Islamic Revolution. To help readers understand both the what and the why of Iran's role in the world and formulate useful responses to that role, the author provides a detailed analysis of Iranian foreign policy in all its dimensions. The first part of the book places Iranian actions, particularly its relations with the United States and other key players, within the context of the emerging international system, while also showing how domestic developments impact foreign policy. The second part surveys Iranian relations with specific actors, notably the United States and Russia, and with key regions, including Europe, Central Asia, the Arab world, Latin America, and Africa. Providing an antidote to existing preconceptions, this incisive analysis lays an analytically sound basis for shaping policies toward Iran—policies with potentially high payoff in terms of regional security and stability.

This book deserves to be read carefully by scholars and laymen of foreign policy dealing with the former Soviet Union, Russia and South Asia, and particularly by the political leaders of India and Pakistan. The book is a multi-dimensional analysis of (a) Soviet-American rivalry; (b) Soviet determination to expand in the direction of South Asia and the Gulf; (c) the regional dynamics of the Middle East most especially Iran, Afghanistan and China, the major power in Asia.