Is Russian Foreign Policy A Complete Mess?

Russian Foreign Ministry headquarters. © RIA Novosti. Valery Melnikov

Mark Adomanis, Moscow Times: Russia's Foreign Policy Is Full of Contradictions

WNU Editor: This commentary reinforces the point that I have been making in the past few days on how surprised I have been on the outdated view that many pundits in the West still have of today's Russia .... pundits/analysts/media organizations/think tanks/politicians/etc. .... many of them still believe that today's Russia is like the old Soviet Union .... when in fact it is nothing like that. Being one who has been immersed in Russian foreign policy for over 30 years .... I can speak with some authority here. In the past .... when it came to foreign policy .... the Politburo would dictate policy, the Supreme Soviet would rubber-stamp it .... and no one then deviated from that line. Today ... the story is completely different. Like most Western nations .... Russia's foreign policy is no longer one unified message .... it is many messages .... and sometimes they are contradictory .... and like most foreign policy decisions that are made in the West .... Russia's foreign policy is also a reflection of internal politics. Which in itself is also always changing, contradictory, and definitely confusing.

Update: Here is a good post on what are the 3 crucial geopolitical front-lines for Russia's military today .... Russia Is Reinforcing 3 Crucial Geopolitical Frontlines (Jeremy Bender, Business Insider).