Original scientific paper
NATO AND THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION – FROM FUNCTIONAL COOPERATION TOWARD NEW TENSIONS
Lidija Čehulić Vukadinović
; Faculty of Political Science, University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia
Abstract
Functional cooperation between NATO and the Russian Federation is a necessity within the contemporary international relations. However, due to a lack of mutual trust which is still being felt and competitively set objectives of both players, such cooperation is sometimes difficult to achieve. Author starts by presenting and analyzing the existing examples of cooperation between the two states on global issues (fight against terrorism, drug trafficking, natural disasters, training of security forces in Afghanistan) – most of which is taking place in Afghanistan. She continues by elaborating on the situation in the Arctic territories where both NATO and the Russian Federation are just starting to position their interests. Again, it is the global challenges to security that might bring the positions of the two players closer in this area (such as climate changes, safety of transport routes, energy exploitation), but based on their activities so far the author concludes that this area might also become an area of confrontation. Finally, the author analyses two major issues (missile defense in Europe and further NATO enlargement) that have been principal problems in NATO-Russia relations ever since the end of the Cold War. Regardless of the current crisis in Ukraine it is apparent that future relations between NATO and the Russian Federation will continue on two parallel tracks: functional cooperation on one, and “cold peace” on the other.
Keywords
NATO; Russian Federation; functional cooperation; confrontation; Euroatlantic integration
Hrčak ID:
148045
URI
Publication date:
6.11.2015.
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