The decline of hegemony and its impact on post-Soviet regionalism: Testing hegemonic stability theory in reshaping regional order

• Main Authors: Nuriddenova, Aizada, Tolentino, Elaine Nicolas
• Format: text
• Published: Animo Repository 2014
• Subjects: Hegemony; Soviet Union—Administrative and political divisions; Regionalism; Soviet and Post-Soviet Studies
• Online Access: https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/faculty_research/13666
• Institution: De La Salle University

This paper explains the reasons for the failure of regionalism promoted by Russia in the former Soviet Union region after the Cold War through hegemonic stability theory and the theory of the role of political leaders in the foreign policy decision-making process. Russia's deepening economic crisis enabled the former Soviet Union republics to break away from a Russia-centric diplomatic strategy and take a strategic approach toward other powers such as the European Union, the United States, and China, which further weakened Russia's regional hegemony. It worked as a loop. This paper examines how domestic politics affects Russia's pursuit of regional hegemony through a comparative analysis of the cases of Ukraine, the most uncooperative in Russia's pursuit of regional hegemony, and Kazakhstan, the most active sympathizer.