Russia's Great Power Ambitions: The Role of Siberia, the Russian Far East, and the Arctic in Russia's Contemporary Relations with Northeast Asia

Abstract

Being at the confluence of two worlds – East and West – has had long-term influence on how Russia has thought of its national identity, in particular prompting the question: to what extent is it joining or resisting these two worlds? This thesis argues that Russia’s self-perception of being a great power – greatpowerness - defines its status and position in the world. This ‘greatpowerness’ is a central element of Russia’s national identity and exerts huge influence in the country’s foreign policy making. Under the presidency of Vladimir Putin, Russia has established a long-term project to develop and improve living conditions in Asiatic Russia, and advance its integration into Northeast Asia.
This thesis pursues a research study focusing on these problems: Russia’s insistence on its great power status and the idea of Russia as a great power straddling the West and Asia as a key demand of national identity. The thesis tries to explain how Russian foreign policy reflects this; but also how Asiatic Russia remains a central element defining and promoting this national identity and its quest for great power status. This thesis aims to examine how the aforementioned ideas relate to the apparent necessity of Russia to develop Asiatic Russia and integrate it into Northeast Asia and the broader Asia-Pacific region, pointing out to the dilemmas between cooperation and security issues. The function and perception of Asiatic Russia has never been exclusively internal or external but has always arisen out of the interaction of the two. Therefore this thesis does not only study changes in Asiatic Russia in the post-Soviet period; but also the new external conditions in Northeast Asia.
This thesis attempts to connect three aspects—national identity, geographical settings, and external strategy, to determine the place of Siberia, the Russian Far East, and the Arctic in Russia’s contemporary relations with Northeast Asian countries.