ABSTRACT
Since the fall of the Soviet Union, Russian foreign policy has constantly been attempting to balance cooperation with the West, the promotion of integration in the former Soviet economic space and cooperation with China and other Asian countries. In this vein, the establishment of the Eurasian Economic Union and its enlargement, has probably been the most ambitious political initiative of President Vladimir Putin. In the Russian Foreign Policy Concept (Kontsepsija vneshei politiki Rossijskoi Federatsii 12 February 2013), the primary strategic aim is to strengthen Russia’s influence over the former Soviet area and its sphere of interest, and increase Russia’s globalised competitiveness through this regional integration process.
