GEOPOLITICAL PERSPECTIVE OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION AND BRZEZINSKI’S READINGS OF THE UKRAINIAN CRISIS

Abstract

From November 2013 to the present day the Ukrainian crisis generated the most severe conflict in Europe since the 1990s, while current skirmishes in the eastern part of the country and recent new developments have the potential to further tighten the crisis. Notwithstanding the internal elements of the ongoing crisis, this paper will be focused on the analysis of its external - geopolitical – dimension. By acquiring a conceptual framework from Zbigniew Brzezinski’s writings on geopolitics, this article will analyze the Ukrainian crisis in terms of strategic, economic, and ideological interests of the Russian Federation.