Russia and the European Union

This course delves to an important, complex, and unique subsystem of the international relations: relationship between Russia and the European Union. These are relations between the union of democratic states and major consolidated autocracy that are in close proximity to each other and have a shared neighborhood. The study of complex interactions between polities of a different nature requires various theoretical explanations regarding the types of power in international relations (and their constraints and possibilities), interdependencies and their implications, as well as the role of institutions. The course covers all major dimensions of relations between Russia and the European Union – political, economic, and cultural, as well as paying attention to the countries “in between”. The war unleashed by Russia in Ukraine and its current and long-term implications for the European continent will also be the subject of close attention during the course.