Description

As the U.S. and the West more broadly seek to establish improved relations with Russia, no issue is more sensitive � nor holds more possibilities for upsetting those relations — than policy toward the countries along Russia’s borders. Given the history and former links dating back to the Soviet period (and in some cases even longer), Russian officials have made clear their interest in establishing a sphere of influence (or privileged interests) among Ukraine, Moldova, Belarus, the Caucasus, and the states of Central Asia. A number of leading Western officials, President Obama included, have rejected such a notion and made clear that policy toward these states will be determined on its own merits, not through a Russia prism. The possibilities for serious problems between Russia and the West over policy toward this region are real, but not inevitable. What should the West do? What kind of policies are possible?