Карпова А. O., Панасюк І. М.

Дніпропетровський національний університет імені Олеся Гончара


Radical changes in Europe due to the destruction of the bipolar system in the late 1980s and early 1990s have led to the emergence of a qualitatively new situation in the field of security, its key issue has caused a dramatic imbalance of forces and strategic parity between the leading military and political blocs during the "Cold War" as a result of geopolitical changes in the early 1990's. NATO was under the threat of a systemic crisis, as there was the question of the rationality of existence of a massive military-political bloc, whose main task was collective defense.

 One way to achieve the objective for strengthening the position of NATO was to announce about the expansion of NATO to the east, it was the defining moment of building a new system of international relations. It was that factor which led to misunderstanding and a conflict between the Russian Federation and the United States. With no real influence on the former allies in Central and Eastern Europe, Russia was unable to prevent the transfer of NATO enlargement to the East. Signing of "Founding Act on Mutual Relations, Cooperation and Security between NATO and Russia" in 1997 could be seen as a compromise that summed up a period of intense negotiations and was the result of understanding of the fact by both parties that the future of the European security was impossible without the active participation of both Russia and NATO. In the late 1990's – early 2000's the attitude of Russia to the expanding of the alliance changed. Having lost a shade of the acute intransigence, the Russian attitude became quiet negative, emphasizing that there were many political and military objections. The main reasons of this approach were the realization that, firstly, the expansion of NATO was caused primarily by the internal European and transatlantic factors and did not intend to resist Russia, and secondly, Soviet countries membership of NATO except Baltic countries remained hardly probable in the nearest future.

 Now the main task of the Russian foreign policy of the European integration area is to minimize the negative consequences of NATO enlargement, and to establish relations of equal partnership with the compulsory respect of the interests of Russia. Completion of a period of the global confrontation was characterized by the appearance of the growing trend of "Europeanization" of security in Europe, its main features were striving to reduce the crucial U.S. role, strengthening of the political component in the structure and activity of the European Union to enhance the role of the European allies in the framework of the North Atlantic Alliance as well as to create a European defense structure. At the end of the 1990s Europe did not have an adequate alternative to the American military presence, and thus NATO. On the other hand, the process of NATO enlargement by CEE enforced the European part of the structure, reducing the Atlantic constituent of the bloc. Simultaneously a transfer of the United States attention to the new threats, the fight against terrorism and the regimes that support it, objectively will contribute to weakening of the U.S. involvement in the European security system, allowing the development of European defense and security initiatives.

 In 2008 D. Medvedev proposed the idea of ​​TES, it was met ambiguously both in Europe and in the USA. Thus, over the last decade the Russia's approach to the building of the European security architecture has changed significantly. Russia not only has left the idea of ​​creating a completely new comprehensive security system in Europe and the idea of ​​establishing a hierarchy among the institutions of the European security, but also has concluded that it is necessary to use all existing multilateral institutions as the elements of the European architecture, to transform and adapt them to the new European security order. Alongside the reforms of the European collective security within the framework of OSCE, the activation of the processes within NATO begins. In 2010 Lisbon Summit was held whereby developed a new strategy of cooperation in the triangle of the U.S., Russia and NATO was developed. Also to implement these ideas into practice NATO-Russia Council was established, it was undoubtedly a significant step toward the closer cooperation between the West and Russia.