Russian Cultural Diplomacy under Putin. Rossotrudnichestvo, the “Russkiy Mir” Foundation, and the Gorchakov Fund in 2007–2022

This book delves into the complex and often contradictory relations between the South Caucasus and European Union (EU). It covers the three periods of this relationship: the early contacts in the 1990s, the European Neighborhood Policy (ENP), and the Eastern Partnership Programme (EaP) that started in 2009. The book employs Europeanization theory and uses a mixed rationalist-constructivist framework as a complementary analytical instrument to decipher the two sides'behavior. The study's findings show that the complex relationship between the EU and the South Caucasus states cannot be explained through either a purely constructivist or a purely rationalist theoretical framework. Both, material and social motives are discernible. Thus, rationalism and constructivism are complementary tools for explaining the relations between the EU and South Caucasus countries. The rationalist perspective explains actors'preferences towards maximizing material utility and calculations by EU policymakers as to which strategy is most likely to advance the immediate interests of the EU in a given situation. This argument needs to be supplemented, however, with insights from constructivism. This approach emphasizes the universal nature of the values of the EU which are linked to internal dynamics in the EU and manifest themselves in the Union's relations with neighboring countries. The book finally illustrates how rational considerations, related to Russia's political and economic activities in the region, have determined the stances of the South Caucasus countries towards the EU. Western academics, experts, and journalists specializing in Eastern Europe and Eurasia have grappled with two fundamental analytical crises in connection with the 1991 disintegration of the USSR and Russias 2014 invasion of Ukraine. Both crises were brought about by similar lack of understanding by scholars, think tank experts, and journalists of Moscows relations with its neighbors. Typically, they were characterized by a downplaying of the historic and current role of Russian great power nationalism. The books contributors investigate how the Kremlins recent turbo-charging of Russias information warfare, 24-hour TV, and social media activity has expanded on traditional pro-Russian sentiments among Western academics, experts, and journalists. The authors analyze the downplaying of Russian nationalism, misinterpretations of the 2014 crisis, sympathetic portrayals of Crimeas occupation, and the use of the term civil war rather than Russian-Ukrainian war for the Donbas conflict in academia as well as the think tank world and media in the UK, Germany, Poland, Japan, The United States, and Canada. The list of contributors Olga Bertelsen (Tiffin University, Ohio), Paul DAnieri (University of California at Riverside), Andrew Foxall (Henry Jackson Society, London), Andreas Heinemann-Grder (University of Bonn), Shanshiro Hosaka (University of Tartu), Petro Kuzyk (Lviv National University), Michal Wawrzonek (Jesuit University Ignatianum, Krakow), Andrei Znamenski (University of Memphis, Tennessee), and Sergei Zhuk (Ball State University, Indiana). This book delves into the complex and often contradictory relations between the Southern Caucasus and European Union (EU). It covers the three periods of this the early contacts in the 1990s, the European Neighborhood Policy (ENP), and the Eastern Partnership Programme (EaP) that started in 2009. The book employs Europeanization theory and uses a mixed rationalist-constructivist framework as a complementary analytical instrument to decipher the two sides behavior. The studys findings show that the complex relationship between the EU and Caucasian states cannot be explained through either a purely constructivist or a purely rationalist theoretical framework. Both, material and social motives are discernible. Thus, rationalism and constructivism are complementary tools for explaining the relations between the EU and South Caucasus countries. The rationalist perspective explains actors preferences towards maximizing material utility and calculations by EU policymakers as to which strategy is most likely to advance the immediate interests of the EU in a given situation. This argument needs to be supplemented, however, with insights from constructivism. This approach emphasizes the universal nature of the values of the EU which are linked to internal dynamics in the EU and manifest themselves in the Unions relations with neighboring countries. The book finally illustrates how rational considerations, related to Russias political and economic activities in the region, have determined the stances of the South Caucasus countries towards the EU. The war in Ukraine has been fought with, among others, irregular armed groups since 2014volunteers, paramilitaries, and mercenaries. Based on interviews in the Russian-controlled Donbas and with Ukrainian combatants, the contributions to this volume disclose various micro-dynamics of the mobilization, group formation, and fighting. Who were these fighters and who organized them? Russia has been increasingly employing mercenaries as a way to conduct undeclared, but ruthless wars beyond her borders. Ukraines formation of irregular armed groups in 2014 was a response to the armys initially glaring inability to counter Russias military intervention. Most of the irregular battalions acted from the beginning under governmental orders. They have never operated autonomously, but compensated for operational weaknesses of regular armed groups. The initially high power of irregular battalions derived from state support, the capabilities of commanders, social networks, and the faculties of the fighters. This book breaks into the black box of Russian cultural diplomacy's ideological underpinnings and modi operandi. Relying on publicly accessible sources such as annual reports, news from official websites, social media posts, and other pertinent materials, the contributors examine the three most significant state-affiliated or full-fledged state institutions operating in this field. Their organization and management, budget and financial details, links to oligarchs, the government and other institutions, most important activities, as well as overall geographical presence are analyzed. The discourses of these organizations during the Russia-Ukraine War, including after 24 February 2022, are given special attention. The collection discloses how the Kremlin's foreign propaganda institutions support the Russian authoritarian regime and its expansionist policies. This book analyzes security developments in Lithuania since 1988, a period marked by liberation from nearly fifty years of Soviet occupation, the collapse of the USSR, and the integration of the country into NATO. Furmonavicius focuses on how Lithuania achieved liberation and how the country's integration into the European and Transatlantic security framework has influenced both its own and transatlantic security development. List of Tables List of Figures Introduction Rossotrudnichestvo: The Unbearable Harshness of Soft Power “The Russian flag will be flown wherever Russian is spoken”: The “Russkiy Mir” Foundation First Roubles, Then Guns: The Alexander Gorchakov Public Diplomacy Fund Conclusions: Russian Cultural Diplomacy after 2022 Bibliography