Master 2025/2026

The Sources of Russian Conduct

Type: Elective course (International Relations: European and Asian Studies)

Delivered by: School of International Regional Studies

When: 1 year, 3, 4 module

Open to: students of one campus

Instructors: Timofey Bordachev

Language: English

Course Syllabus

Abstract

The course provides a perspective of the main sources of Russian conduct. Russia's modern foreign policy is a natural continuation of its traditional geopolitical aspirations. Different policy prescriptions arise not from attention to different facts but from implicit explanatory models that try to make sense of what the available information means. These questions can be answered only by an understanding of how the Russian government operates, what are its bases of support, the relationship of society and interest groups to Russian political authority, and the relationship of Russian domestic politics to its foreign policy. Consequently, the course will focus on the rules and regulations thanks to which Russia occupy its place in the system of international relations.