This thesis analyzes Russian foreign policy towards Azerbaijan in the post-Soviet era. The dissolution of the Soviet Union paved the way for the independence of Azerbaijan. This development necessitated the redefinition of the relationship between Russia and Azerbaijan. However, post-Soviet Russia was reluctant to treat Azerbaijan as a fully independent state that could develop its relations other states freely. In this way, Moscow sought to keep Azerbaijan under its own sphere of influence. To this purpose, Russia used its influence in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and the development of the Caspian Sea energy resources as its two main policy instruments for controlling Azerbaijan. When Vladimir Putin was elected as the President of Russia in 2000, it was not clear whether the previous Russian foreign policy towards Azerbaijan would continue as in the past or change. The developments between 2000 and 2005 show that Vladimir Putin changed the previous Russian stance on the Caspian Sea energy resources and took more collaborative posture towards Azerbaijan. However, Putin continued the earlier Russian position on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. This study argues that there has been both change and continuity in Russian foreign policy towards Azerbaijan since Vladimir Putin&rsquo / s rise to Russia&rsquo / s presidency in 2000. In this sense, Russian foreign policy under Putin could be conceptualized mainly as a pragmatic foreign policy. This conceptualization makes it possible to identify both change and continuity in Russian foreign policy towards Azerbaijan.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:METU/oai:etd.lib.metu.edu.tr:http://etd.lib.metu.edu.tr/upload/2/12606384/index.pdf |
| Date | 01 August 2005 |
| Creators | Huseynov, Elmar |
| Contributors | Tanrisever, Oktay |
| Publisher | METU |
| Source Sets | Middle East Technical Univ. |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | M.S. Thesis |
| Format | text/pdf |
| Rights | To liberate the content for METU campus |
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