Post-Soviet or Post-Colonial? The relations between Russia and Georgia after 1991

Abstract

Abstract This article analyses Russia’s foreign policy towards Georgia during the post-Soviet era. It examines the nuances between post-Soviet policies, which are heavily loaded with historical and nation-building issues, and neo-colonial ones, understood as the refusal to let go of the former empire. Since 1991, Russia has held the key to Georgia’s territorial integrity, political stability and economic development. Moscow’s policies gradually became more aggressive in the aftermath of the colour revolutions (from 2003 onwards). Georgia’s new leadership portrayed Russia as the main obstacle to the country’s modernisation, and the hostility reached a climax with the 2008 war in South Ossetia. Having considered the evolution of bilateral relations and the international context, this article argues that although Russia’s pressure on Georgia has always been strong, the change in political actors and the balance of forces – with the growing influence of the EU and NATO in post-Soviet countries – have played a decisive role in triggering aggressive, and eventually revisionist policies. Keywords: Russia, Georgia, Post-Soviet, Saakashvili, Caucasus war ----- Bibliography: Spetschinsky, Laetitia/Bolgova, Irina V.: Post-Soviet or Post-Colonial? The relations between Russia and Georgia after 1991, ERIS, 3-2014, pp. 110-122. https://doi.org/10.3224/eris.v1i3.19127