A Divided Continuum: The Logic of Russian Escalation Against Post-Soviet States
Journal: ScholarlyCommons (University of Pennsylvania)
Year: 2020

This thesis probes for patterns in the escalation of Russian interventions against neighboring post-Soviet states after the Cold War. It then seeks to explain the causation of such patterns. I conclude that the factors influencing the intensity levels of Russian interventions can be understood within a periodized framework. After the USSR’s collapse, Russia’s limited economic capacity prevented it from intensifying its interventions against neighboring ex-Soviet states. An increase in economic p