ABSTRACT
The assumptions that the Russian leadership have brought to bear upon its foreign policy have been the subject of much attention and debate, both within Russia and beyond. The presence of over 20 million ethnic Russians in the successor states, the close cultural bonds that exist between Russia and some of its neighbours and the claims of the Russian Orthodox Church to uphold authority over all Orthodox Christians in the former Soviet Union all, it is argued, serve to reinforce this compulsion. Russia's military capability is also a poor basis for policy in the successor states. Andrei Kozyrev was born into a Russian family in Brussels, Belgium. Not surprisingly, given his background, he was always keen to become involved in some area of foreign policy or diplomacy. The reality of relations, however, departed markedly from Kozyrev's optimistic scenario. Rather than the development of partnership, during 1992 and early 1993 Russia found itself challenged by the successor states in several ways.
