Dr Andrey Baykov: Russia & the West - Towards a New Understanding, SOAS University of London
Channel: SOAS University of London
Date: 20/05/2016

https://www.soas.ac.uk/cisd/

Dramatic developments in Russia-Western relations have attracted an outpouring of commentary.  For the most part, however, analysts have not explicitly addressed the connection between these events and international relations theories.  Theory is a necessary part of analyzing complex events.  After all, at stake in debates over increased tensions between Russia and the west are classic issues in international relations theory, from levels of analysis, to agency vs. structure, economic vs. political incentives, etc. Whether seeking to explain the shift in inter-state relation between Russia and its western partners or to recommend policy responses, analysts must invoke theory.  And events, in turn, inevitably help scholars clarify and update theories.  The utility of any theory is often seen to be a function of its ability to make sense of fast-changing events on the ground. For too long, however, this intimate connection between theory and event has remained implicit rather than explicit when it comes to assessing Russia-West relations. 

Dr Andrey Baykov is Vice-President for Graduate and International Programs and Associate Professor of International Affairs at MGIMO-University. He is also the editor-in-chief of Russia’s International Trends peer reviewed and Scopus Indexed journal, a member of the International Studies Association, a member of the Executive Board of the Russian Political Science Association, as well as Director of  the Academic Educational Forum on International Relations, a Russian NGO committed to promoting newest IR methodology and best teaching practices across Russian and the CIS countries.

Andrey Baykov graduated from MGIMO in 2007, receiving a Master’s degree in international relations. In 2009, he was awarded a PHd in political science for researching comparative regional integration in East Asia and Europe. Having expanded on this study, in 2012 he published his major work “Comparative Integration” (First Prize of the Russian Academy of Sciences in 2013 and Donald Robertson Award of the U.S. International Studies Association). He was a visiting scholar at George Washington University (2008), the Free University of Berlin (2011) and Sciences Po Paris (2013). 

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