ABSTRACT
This chapter analyses dominant (NRCs and Russia’s reaction to the Orange Revolution in Ukraine. The analysis is divided into three main levels: international, domestic, and individual and reveals the dominance of the partner of the West role and other cooperative NRCs. It also demonstrates the lack of significant changes among dominant roles despite the events in Ukraine, which indicates the importance of relationships with the West to the Russian leadership. Overall, the chapter contributes to the existing literature by demonstrating how the combination of various external and internal factors determined the perception of Russia’s duties by its leaders which might have influenced RFP behaviour during the Orange Revolution. Furthermore, it shows that Russia’s behaviour was in accordance with the dominant NRCs and that it is hard to discern the strategic use of roles.
