Rowman & Littlefield Publishers
Pages: 352
•
Trim: 6½ x 9½
978-1-4422-0824-7 • Hardback • September 2011 • $165.00 • (£127.00) - Currently out of stock. Copies will arrive soon.
978-1-4422-0825-4 • Paperback • September 2011 • $65.00 • (£50.00)
Jeffrey Mankoff is Fellow and Deputy Director of the Russia & Eurasia Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. He was a 2010–11 Council on Foreign Relations International Affairs Fellow at the U.S. Department of State.
Introduction: The Guns of August
Chapter 1: Contours of Russian Foreign Policy
Chapter 2: Bulldogs Fighting Under the Rug: The Making of Russian Foreign Policy
Chapter 3: Resetting Expectations: Russia and the United States
Chapter 4: Europe: Between Integration and Confrontation
Chapter 5: Rising China and Russia's Asian Vector
Chapter 6: Playing with Home Field Advantage? Russia and its Post-Soviet Neighbors
Conclusion: Dealing with Russia's Foreign Policy Reawakening
Russian foreign policy has never been explicitly anti-American and Russian leaders have always sought good relations with the United States to the extent that it was compatible with their main goal: Russia is a great power. With this second edition, revised and enlarged, the author hopes to show how this hypothesis remains relevant and shapes the behavior of Russia on the international scene. According J.Mankoff, the statement of Russian foreign policy is the culmination of a process begun under President Yeltsin when the majority of the Russian political elite considered that the integration of Russia in the West was neither possible nor desirable. Despite the presence of some stereotypes widespread in the place of Russia, the richness of the analyzes presented in the book helps in any case to understand the ambitions and aspirations of post-Soviet Russia on the international scene.
— The French Journal of Political Science
Mankoff argues convincingly that there is little reason to believe that Russia will challenge the West or start a confrontation; they are so highly interdependent that any attempt at open confrontation would be reduced to a senseless zero-sum game. Hence—and despite its sometimes-biased overtones—Mankoff’s book is thoroughly researched and provides in-depth knowledge and expertise regarding the contours of Russian foreign-policy thinking. Furthermore, Mankoff has successfully found a balance that makes the book valuable for both informed and uninformed audiences. Anyone with an interest in the thorny issue of Russia’s foreign policy should read this book.
— Review of Central and East European Law
Very well-written. . . . After a lucid analysis of the main forces driving Russian foreign policy, the book turns to the relationship between Russia and some of the major global powers, namely the US, the EU and China. . . . The way in which the book combines rigorous and thorough research work, a clear-cut argumentation and structure, and a very dense but accessible style makes it one of the best available on the subject. Consequently, it should be read by scholars of Russian foreign policy as well as all those interested in gaining a deeper understanding of the topic, all too often treated in a conventional or, worse, partisan way, either justifying or condemning Russia’s foreign policy without explaining it.
— The International Spectator
Mankoff explores in detail the ups and downs in U.S.-Russian relations, Russia's complex interaction with Europe, its relations with Asia, and the course of its dealings with its post-Soviet neighbors. The analysis is balanced and rich. (Previous Edition Praise)
— Foreign Affairs
Mankoff has produced an extremely valuable account of Russian foreign policy, which manages to be both comprehensive and concise in its treatment of the subject. It has a lot to offer not just to the general reader but also to the specialist seeking to understand recent events in their proper historical context. (Previous Edition Praise)
— International Affairs
Jeffrey Mankoff's analysis of Russian foreign policy is a carefully researched, sober assessment of Russia's strategy for return to international significance. (Previous Edition Praise)
— The Russian Review
For students and scholars of international affairs, there is no better choice regarding Russian foreign relations. (Previous Edition Praise)
— Library Journal
This is truly an excellent book. From the factual as well as from the interpretive point of view, it is suitable for both the specialist and nonspecialist reader searching for a serious, historical explanation of the direction of Russian foreign policy in the immediate post-Yeltsin era. Highly recommended. (Previous Edition Praise)
— Choice Reviews
With this book, Jeffrey Mankoff has established himself as the best young American analyst of post–Cold War Russia. This careful and clear assessment of Putin's grand strategy should be required reading for the Obama administration, as well as for anyone else interested in Russia's rapid but fragile resurgence as a great power in twenty-first-century world politics. (Previous Edition Praise)
— John Lewis Gaddis, Yale University
It was refreshing to read a book that was so well written. Using both Western and Russian sources, the author carefully researches and analyzes controversial issues in Russian foreign policy but does so in an evenhanded and nuanced way. (Previous Edition Praise)
— Gordon Smith, University of South Carolina
Jeffrey Mankoff's analysis of Russia's foreign policy is a serious and well-researched exercise in understanding the complexities of a country still in search of its post-communist, post-imperial identity. Russia is no longer on a path to Western integration; but it still struggles with what it means to be a great power in the twenty-first century. (Previous Edition Praise)
— Dmitri Trenin, Carnegie Moscow Center
Offers an in-depth analysis of Russian relations with major world powers and its neighbors
Makes extensive use of official and unofficial Russian sources
Emphasizes continuity of Russian foreign policy aims
Analyzes U.S. policy and suggests future directions
Explains complex issues in a nuanced yet accessible style
Ideal for courses on Russian foreign policy and contemporary Russia
Presents Russian as well as Western viewpoints on key issues
New features
Updated to 2011
Provides deeper historical context, placing developments of the past two decades into the broader sweep of Russian history
Includes maps, timeline, glossary of key terms and individuals, photos, and charts