RUSSIAN FOREIGN POLICY IN THE ESTERN MEDITERRANEAN SINCE 1991

The Cold war was a contest in the spheres of energy and arms sales that resembled market
competition. The Western countries considered the growing activity of Russia in the Eastern
Mediterranean countries as a challenge to their strategic interests in the region. The increasing
tension between USSR and USA meant the growth of the political influence both globally and
regionally. The tension between the two blocks were military in manner and ideological in matter.
The growing activity of Russia in the Eastern Mediterranean throughout past years after the Cold
war was much more about promotion of Russian oil and gas companies on the regional market.

From the EU perspective, the growing concern about national energy security made the
diversification of external energy supplies one of the core objectives for the EU energy policy. It
developed relations with Asia, the middle east and North Africa on energy issues. Therefore in 2008,
the EU initiated the establishment of the Union for the Mediterranean as re-launching of the Euro-
Mediterranean Partnership.

Due to economic and political difficulties, Russia’s military presence was swiftly decreasing in
different regions throughout the early 1990s and the Eastern Mediterranean was not an exception.
Nontheless, the last decade saw a recovery of Russia’s military presence in the Eastern
Mediterranean, for instance, the re-appearance of theRussian navy in the Eastern Mediterranean
announced by Vladimir Putin in 1999. The aim of re-establishing military ties with the region was
stated in the ( Naval Doctrine of the Russian Federation 2020) which was approved in2001. In the
doctrine military and political stability in the region required the sufficient naval presence of Russia
in the region. In 2006, Russian newspapers reported about the Kremlin’s plans for the modernization
of the Soviet naval base in the Syrian port city, transforming the base into a full scale military base.
This base will be used even for the partial relocation of the Black Sea fleet of Russia. Another
important manifestation of Russia’s growing military and political presence in the region was the
increasing military- technical co-operation with the Mediterranean countries.

There were changes in relations with Egypt before the Arab Spring. Egypt dominated a special
position in both Eastern Mediterranean and Afro-Asian region in general. Throughout the last
decade, relations between Russia and Egypt were getting increasingly closer with accordance to
practical mutual interests. Apart from common issues dealing with bilateral relations, these interests
comprised different regional co-operation in the Mediterranean on the question of security and joint
struggles against Islamic radicalism. However, all forms of co-operation did not make Egypt- Russias’
key partner in the Eastern Mediterranean . The role played by Syria in realisation of the Russian
foreign policy Strategy in the Eastern Mediterranean was always far more significant than the
former. Since Soviet times, Syria traditionally has been one of Russia’s main strategic allies in the
region, therefore that is why among other Arab states, Syria did not criticize Soviet operation in
Afghanistan.
More over, after the collapse of the Soviet Union, the development of Russian Turkish relations
exhibited several distinct stages based on specific objectives and changes in the International
context. In 2001, Russian minister of foreign affairs and his Turkish counterpart signed the (Plan for
development of co-operation between Russia and Turkey in Euro-Asia). Russia did not end on
Turkey, it stretched its foreign relations to Israel and Greece through working together in co-
operation.

In this regard, the activities of Russia in Eastern Mediterranean especially after Cold War was shaped
with the country’s increased activities in the Eastern Mediterranean region with other states
through co-operation. Its activities in the region were mainly based on the influence of Russian
energy on regional markets, expansion of its naval bases as well as other economic and political
issues.