УКРАИНСКАЯ ПОЛИТИЧЕСКАЯ ЭЛИТА КАК ФАКТОР ФОРМИРОВАНИЯ ОСНОВ ВНЕШНЕЙ ПОЛИТИКИ УКРАИНЫ

Abstract

The purpose of the article is to study the role and features of the influence of the political elite of Ukraine on the formation of the country's foreign policy. The research methodology is based on axiological and structural-functional approaches to the study of political elites, as well as the methods of sociological science. As a result of the study, it was found that the most important feature that predetermined the character and composition of the Ukrainian political elite is the merging of the power and economic elites. The internal political development of Ukraine is an example of the increased importance of elites in determining the ways of the country's development. The interests and views of the Ukrainian political elite are a determining factor in the formation of Ukraine's foreign policy, which is based on the development of relations with the West and distance from Russia. At the same time, there is a significant divergence of views of the Ukrainian political elite and society on the vision of the foundations of the country's foreign policy. It is due to the different perceptions of the political elite and broad masses of the population of the value of the country's sovereignty, as well as the interests of the most influential representatives of the Ukrainian economic elite who are actively involved in the internal political process.