Russia in Global Affairs

The experience of great powers clearly shows that “loneliness,” that is, pursuance of solely one’s own interests and reliance primarily on one’s own resources is the norm.

Subjective plans of communist China for the world, let alone its “intrigues” as an object of Western discourse, throw the West into a conspiracy fervor. Meanwhile, the Chinese ambassadors in the four key European countries continue to develop their diplomatic skills, relying, among other things, on Western philosophical concepts.

Without some accommodation, which will entail compromises on what major countries consider core values and principles, the world will face growing disorder. Europe found a means of doing so to end the Wars of Religion in the 17th century, and the great powers did the same after the end of the Second World War. We need to repeat that feat today.

In his work entitled “Critical Geopolitics: The Politics of Writing Global Space” Gerard Toal wrote: “Geography is about power. Although often assumed to be innocent, the geography of the world is not a product of nature but a product of histories of struggle between competing authorities over the power to organize, occupy, and administer space.”

In China, global governance is understood as a new type of principles, mechanisms, methods, and activities focused on the values professed by holism and on the common interests of humankind, whereby various actors, using equal dialogue, negotiations and cooperation for managing the public affairs of humankind, jointly respond to global changes and global problems.

The psychological security (PS) of individual BRICS countries and the association as a whole is under increasing pressure from both internal and external negative factors. Global economic crises, a dangerous escalation of tension in interstate relations, attempts to impose sanctions, and unlawful extraterritorial application of national law are accompanied by major manifestations of psychological warfare.

Jacek Bartosiak, Marek Budzisz & Ridvan Bari Urcosta from Strategy&Future talk with Fyodor A. Lukyanov – Editor-in-Chief of Russia in Global Affairs, Chairman of the Presidium of the Council on Foreign and Defense Policy, and Research Director of the Valdai Discussion Club on the change of the world order, the growing role of regional powers, the return of history and the role of Russia, China, the USA, and Europe.

After a century in which Moscow and Washington effectively dominated the world, the political establishment in both countries clings to the past. But the public has moved on, and these nations are now less important to each other.

Russia cannot afford to treat Asia as a secondary priority, although it often still does. If Moscow continues in this way, Russia could find itself facing a creeping expansionism from the east. In any case, Russia’s former model of relations with the European Union has clearly ceased to function.