Vladimir Putin and Russia’s Imperial Revival

McNabb revisits earlier Russian empires--Kievan Rus, Muscovite, Romanov, Soviet--and sees in the Russian aggression in Ukraine a revival of empire. He argues that Putin’s recent militant actions are evocative of that decades-long, post-war state of tension between super powers. The book examines Russian foreign policy from the twelfth century to the end of the Soviet Union and analyzes present policy and relations with the rest of the world. It deals with geopolitical and economic events since 1991, and describes the tools that Russian leaders are using to achieve twenty-first-century foreign policy goals. Following a discussion of Russia’s weapons of aggression used over its smaller and weaker neighbors, the book ends with a summary of the author’s and the other Russia watchers’ conceptions and interpretations of the shape and future direction of Putin-influenced foreign policy. Eleven chapters are divided into four sections: a millennium of empire building; from uncertainty to supreme confidence; Russia’s foreign policy weapons; Russia’s foreign policy in action. Chapters are: the collapse and rebirth of the Soviet empire; stages in the building of a Russian empire; Russia’s foreign policy in transition; the Putin-era foreign policy of consolidation; building defensive barriers; reforming and rearming Russia’s military; Russia’s undeclared cyber wars; the energy weapon in Russia’s foreign policy; Russian aggression in Ukraine: empire revival; Russian intimidation in the Baltic and Nordic states; Russian foreign policy after Putin. . Annotation ©2016 Ringgold, Inc., Portland, OR (protoview.com)