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GEOPOLITICAL POSITIONING OF RUSSIA IN THE FAR EAST

Sergey A. Barov, Y. S. Medvedev, T. G. Orlova, P. A. Kopylova

Abstract

The article is devoted to the topical problem of the Russian Federation foreign policy in the Far East transformation in recent decades. Traditionally, the region is a sphere of Russia's special interests. The collapse of the Soviet Union marked a shift in the balance of power in it towards the US-Japanese alliance and the new powers have emerged claiming a leading place, it is primarily China. In the 21st century, Russia is gradually returning to regional affairs as an active actor, focusing its efforts not on promoting military interests, as it was during the Cold War, but on economic interaction. American interference in the regional affairs and desire of the American elite to undermine the military power of Russia and China, the sharp deterioration of Japan-China relations and the Russian-American global confrontation leave their imprint on Russia's policy in the Far East. One of the scenarios for the further development of the situation is the slow but consistent military-political confrontation between the continental powers Russia and China, on the one hand, and sea powers as Japan and the United States on the other. A special place in Russia's foreign policy strategy is the sphere of energy security and energy cooperation with China, Japan and South Korea. The energy cooperation of the parties (through energy supplies and ensuring the security of their transportation routes) has great prospects for the development of region-wide economic processes and the establishment of strategic interaction at both the bilateral and multilateral levels. In the opinion of the authors, Russia's desire to develop a universal concept for the development of the APR, with the support of many Russian initiatives to de-escalate tensions in the Far East's hot beds of tension from China, allows Russia to expect to become the main conciliatory force in the region in the near future.

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