Includes bibliographical references and index.

Russia's self-image as a great power / Dina Moulioukova and Roger E. Kanet -- Russian strategic culture and renewed conflict with the West / Roger E. Kanet -- Images and decision-making in foreign policy: the case of Vladimir Putin / Aleksandar Jankovski -- Atlanticism in an age of great power competition: is Russia achieving its goals? / Suzanne Loftus -- The battle of ontological narratives: Russia and the annexation of Crimea / Dina Moulioukova and Roger E. Kanet -- The role of energy in Russian foreign policy / Arsen Gasparyan -- NATO, US grand strategy and the Russian response / Rajan Menon and William Ruger -- The Russian response to U.S. sanctions / Charles E. Ziegler -- A comparison of Soviet and Russian foreign policy: ontological security and policy toward Africa / Roger E. Kanet and Dina Moulioukova -- Russia's expanding role in the Eastern Mediterranean: opportunities and challenges / Nuray Ibryamova -- The new great game: ontological factors in Western and rising powers competition in Venezuela / Dina Moulioukova and Karina Brennan.

"This volume examines the role of Russia in the world under President Putin's rule. When the Soviet Union disintegrated after the Cold War, Russia seemingly embarked on the establishment of a democratic political system and seemed intent on joining the liberal international order. However, under President Putin's rule, there have been dramatic shifts in Russian domestic and foreign policies, in order to re-establish itself as a great power. This book examines broad aspects of Russian political culture and threat perception, such as Russia's reaction to NATO expansion; its information warfare and energy policies; and its policy towards the Global South, especially the Middle East and Africa. The objective of the analyses is to explain the factors that influence Russian foreign policy, and to show how and why Russian relations with the European Union and the United States have deteriorated so rapidly in recent years. The volume introduces an alternative approach to the standard realist perspective, which often underlies existing analyses of Russian policy - namely, the work offers a theoretical perspective that focuses on the Russian sense of identity and on ontological security. This book will be of much interest to students of Russian foreign policy, security studies, and International Relations"-- Provided by publisher.

Description based on print version record and CIP data provided by publisher.