No Place for Russia: European Security Institutions Since 1989 (Woodrow Wilson Center Series)

The optimistic vision of a "Europe whole and free" after the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 has given way to disillusionment, bitterness, and renewed hostility between Russia and the West. In No Place for Russia , William H. Hill traces the development of the post-Cold War European security order to explain today's tensions, showing how attempts to integrate Russia into a unified Euro-Atlantic security order were gradually overshadowed by the domination of NATO and the EU--at Russia's expense. Hill argues that the redivision of Europe has been largely unintended and not the result of any single decision or action. Instead, the current situation is the cumulative result of many decisions--reasonably made at the time--that gradually produced the current security architecture and led to mutual mistrust. Hill analyzes the United States' decision to remain in Europe after the Cold War, the emergence of Germany as a major power on the continent, and the transformation of Russia into a nation-state, placing major weight on NATO's evolution from an alliance dedicated primarily to static collective territorial defense into a security organization with global ambitions and capabilities. Closing with Russia's annexation of Crimea and war in eastern Ukraine, No Place for Russia argues that the post-Cold War security order in Europe has been irrevocably shattered, to be replaced by a new and as-yet-undefined order. "The book studies Russia's place in European security institutions since the end of the Cold War. Hill argues that neither Russia, the major European powers, nor the United States has been able to define a place for Russia in the network of European and Euro-Atlantic security institutions. The author looks at the larger process of transforming and building an interlocking structure of institutions, in particular the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), the European Union (EU), and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). The work proceeds chronologically, beginning with a summary of the Cold War and the status of institutions in 1989. Its general story is that the US used NATO, which excludes Russia, to retain a leading role in world politics; that the enlargement after 1999 of NATO and the EU, which also excludes Russia, alienated Russia from European security structures; that the significance of Russia's membership in the CSCE/OSCE diminished as western leaders gradually focused more and more on NATO and the EU. Hill traces events through the Kosovo War, the Arab spring, and the confrontation over Ukraine, citing how Russia, the United States, NATO, the EU, and the OSCE have reacted to events and to each other. In the end, with Ukraine, the OSCE is still present but its effectiveness is unclear, while these events test the already troubled EU and reinvigorate the original purpose of NATO. The book will also include a glossary of abbreviations, acronyms, and technical terms used in the manuscript, plus a basic chronology of key events and meetings"-- Provided by publisher