«Soft Power» of Russia and the EU in the «Common Neighborhood»: Comparative Analysis of the Programs of Political Parties in Post-Soviet States

Abstract

The article is devoted to assessing the state of Russian soft power. The author was prompted to address this topic by a contradiction. On the one hand, a review of the scientific literature shows that experts appreciate the level of development of Russia's soft power in the near abroad. On the other hand, international political analysts state that the CIS States have chosen one or another form of multi-vector activity in the international arena, and Moscow's influence in the post-Soviet space has been declining in the past few years. Based on a Grounded theory developed by A. Strauss and J. Corbin, which analyzed the policy documents of political parties that passed national parliaments, the author comes to a number of conclusions. The attitude of party and political elites to Russia differs from one country to another and is inversely dependent on the attitude to the EU. When assessing the impact of Russia's soft power, it is necessary to follow an «individual» (country) approach rather than a region wide one.

Keywords

• soft power
• post-soviet space
• russia
• european union
• foreign policy