Abstract: This article is devoted to the evaluation of the condition of and efficiency achieved by the Russian analytical centers. It is no secret that the analytical activities, which are a most important strategic component of management decisionmaking in the Russian state, are currently experiencing a systemic crisis due to certain clear objective reasons. The crisis that the Russian analysts are going through is further confirmed by the international ratings which, event with their political bias, still provide an objective view of the condition in which the Russian analytical industry is now and of its analytical potential. The methodology of this research is based on the systematic, structural and functional, and comparative political approaches, methods of analysis, synthesis, induction, deduction, modeling, expert review. It has been established that the Russian experts and analysts often lack a clear position on the matters they examine. Use of obsolete methodology may be observed with respect to analysis and forecasting political processes from their current state without taking into consideration the various forces acting each in its own direction in the situation of social and political chaos initiated by the information technologies intended for influencing the consciousness of larges masses of people and political elite of the countries with state and social institutions which are not fully formed yet. This results in a superficial analysis of the events which are taking place and unreliable forecasting of the political situation development in problematic countries and regions.

Keywords: rating, Russia, analytical activities, analytics, international relations, society, politics, evaluation, interests, values.

Abstract: For today’s Russia, studying the technology for demolishing national identity is now more important than ever because it identifies the causes for the defeat suffered by the USSR in the Cold War and, as a result, it explains the essence of the model of the modern Russian state built by now. Becoming aware of the nature of such war against Russia makes it possible to build the strategy for effective counteraction, promptly identify the reasons why certain modernization processes in our country are non-existent or very slow. Information and psychological war is viewed by the author as a combination of technologies aimed at corrupting the public perception in the countries of the potential (geopolitical) opponent in order to reduce the resistance in case of external expansion and to implement successful colonial policy. The methodological basis is formed by the general scientific cognitive methods (dialectics, analysis, synthesis, analogy, functional, systematic, and structural approaches, abstraction and specification, linguistic analysis), specific scientific methods (as well as special legal research methods: formal legal, comparative law research, technical legal, legal modeling) and special (sociological, psychological, anthropological, historical) methods. Using various research methods and the latest achievements in social sciences in their combination made it possible to describe the object and subject matter of the research in the common regularities of their existence and development, contributed to achieving the chosen objective and solving the tasks set. The author defines the information and psychological war as a combination of technologies aimed at corrupting the public perception in the countries of the potential (geopolitical) opponent in order to reduce the resistance in case of external expansion and to implement successful colonial policy. It is using it that makes it possible to manipulate the public opinion reducing protest intentions. Certain political and legal myths are implanted in the society distracting it from the reality.

Keywords: information war, manipulation, West, colony, ideology, collaborationism, intervention, management, managed chaos, expert.

Abstract: The article presents the analysis of the contents, specifics and causes for the punitive operation in Donbass, its participants and the means and methods of performing it, the essence of the “scorched earth” tactics implemented during this operation by the governmental authorities against the population of Donbass. The article makes an analogy with the occupation of Donbass during the Great Patriotic War. The authors identify the reasons why the USA are supporting the governmental authorities in the Ukraine which are carrying out the punitive operation, the role and position in this conflict of mercenary soldiers and private military companies. In this research, the authors used the systematic, structural and functional, comparative historical and comparative political approaches, the methods of analysis, synthesis, induction, deduction, unity and struggle of opposites, participant observation, modeling, expert review. 70 years after the victory over fascism, war returned to Donbass again. The war returned with virtually the same declared “civilizing European values” and, obviously, with the new successors of the leaders of the Nazi Germany convicted by Nurnberg tribunal – extreme right Ukrainian nationalists calling themselves the followers of Bendera and Shushkevich. Towards anybody who disagrees, they act using the same methods as the Nazis and their henchmen did during World War II.

Keywords: international relations, foreign policy, Ukraine, Donbass, punitive operation, violation of human rights, private military companies, humanitarian crisis, illegal armed groups, conflict.

Abstract: This article reviews the main existing theoretical models of communication and information policy, compares different approaches to defining the elements of the communication chain. It analysis the transformation of the concept of subject-object relationship in the communication processes. One of the distinctive characteristics of the modern society is its high information saturation. It does not matter whether you accept the concept of information society in general or not, the technological leap in the information and communication sphere, which significantly transformed the structure of social relations, must be admitted as fact. The information explosion affected virtually every sphere of human activities and resulted in considerable changes to the form and principles of communication processes: we observe intensification of interaction between subjects, constant growth of the information processing and communication speed, increased number of channels for its dissemination. Methodologically, this research is based on the systematic, structural and functional, comparative historical, comparative political, geopolitical and cultural civilization approaches, methods of analysis, synthesis, induction, deduction, modeling, observation. The development and polarization of new media, which offer to members of the society new methods of interaction, are posing to social institutions, governmental agencies and commercial entities, again and again, the question of effective models for managing information and communication processing and make the communications policy one of the priority directions in research. The important task here is to understand which of the existing models of information and communications policy can successfully respond to the structural changes in the social environment and identify in which direction to move when developing new algorithms for interaction with the audience.

Keywords: international relation, foreign policy, information war, information policy, information diplomacy, state, Russia, values, security.

Abstract: According to OPEC, daily production of oil in Iraq in February 2014 grew by 400 thousand barrels and reached 3.4 mmbpd – the highest level in the last few decades. Out of that amount, about 2.8 mmbpd were exported. If the country manages to maintain its average annual export at the level of 2.9 mmbpd, in 2014 it will earn about USD 100 billion (in 2013 Bagdad got about USD 89 billion while annual export was 2.4 mmbpd). Iraqi authorities are planning to achieve, by the end of 2014, the production of 4.5 mmbpd and in 2020 they intend to produce 9 mmbpd of oil. According to the annual review published by the International Energy Agency (IEA), by 2030, Iraq may confidently become one of the three global leaders in the production and export of hydrocarbons.

Keywords: international relations, foreign policy, Iraq, Iraqi Kurdistan, oil, USA, conflict, interests, values, security.

Abstract: This article touches upon a number of problematic aspects related to India’s energy dependency and the inter-state interaction between the countries of the South Asian region. Two pipeline projects are discussed: Iran-Pakistan-India and Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India as well as the difficulties associated with their implementation, both of economic and political nature. The author pays special attention to the impact on the construction of the above pipelines made by the two largest players in the modern system of international relations – China and the USA. The chronological method is used for identifying the specific features of changes to Indian foreign and domestic policy aimed at procuring both its own energy security. Situation analysis makes it possible to recreate certain events in the development of the regional security problem and the attempts at settling the conflicts based on documentary sources and periodicals. Systematic method is the approach to considering the problem as a complex dynamic, comprehensive and integral phenomenon on the basis of the analysis of the interdependence of all the elements both individually and in their combination. Comparative method allows tracing the specific features of relationships between the countries of this region and their partner countries and the countries which are potential threats to their safety in general. The scientific novelty of this research lies in the author’s attempt at evaluating the main directions of the developments in the relationships between the countries in the South Asian region from the point of view of India’s energy security. In light of the latest events in the system of international relations and the growing role of energy resources as a valid leverage for influence, the importance of this research is growing. The conclusions made by the author are as follows: 1. The necessity for the Indian political elite to implement a multidirectional approach to the problem of the country’s energy security. 2. The growing role of the USA and China as non-regional players immediately affecting the participants of the IPI and TAPI pipeline projects. 3. The possibility for the positions of Moscow and Beijing as well as of Moscow and New Deli to move closer to each other in the matters related to the future “energy dialogue”. 4. The necessity to take into consideration the growing role of China in South Asia and its ability to block or hinder the implementation of energy projects that India needs.

Keywords: international relations, problems of inter-state interaction, energy security, energy resources, IPI, TAPI, pipeline diplomacy, China, Russia, USA.

Abstract: As the principal factor of the creation and development of the democratic election tradition in today’s Russia, this article chronologically considers the election campaigns for the lower house of the parliament during the period from 1993 to 2011 and expresses the opinion about possible trends of the forthcoming election cycle in the Russian Federation in 2016-2018. It is noted that at this historical stage, the Russian political system is still affected by the influence both of the internal political factors and external geopolitical processes. At the same time, new objectively occasioned trends are being actively created and they are not affected by the environment. The methodological base of this research is the systematic, structural and functional, comparative historic approaches, methods of analysis, synthesis, induction, deduction, observation, and modeling. Since 1993, elections to the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation have been taking place in the new history of our country. Together with the institute of electing the President of the country, they also define the stages of the formation, establishment and development of the political system in today’s Russia. Lawmaking in our country is directly dependent on the quality of the parliament membership and its relationship with the executive federal authorities. It is the history of elections to the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation which enables us to trace the key stages of Russia’s development as a democratic country on the modern geopolitical map of the world.

Keywords: international relations, foreign policy, Russia, elections, State Duma, deputy, state, interests, values, security

Abstract: This article is devoted to the history and traditions of the development of the Russian-Argentinian relationship. Special attention is paid to the development of the commercial, economic and technical connections, the growing mutual understanding between the countries, their desire to expand and strengthen their cooperation. The subject of the bilateral relations between Argentina and Russia is now frequently discussed, not suddenly and not immediately after the notable visit paid by President of the Russian Federation V. V. Putin to Argentina in July 2014, which was taking place against the background of general activation of the Russian-Latin American relations in recent years and of the escalation of the Ukrainian crisis in 2013-1014, as well as the introduction of sanctions. The methodological base of this research is the systematic, structural and functional, comparative historic and comparative political approaches, methods of analysis, synthesis, and observation. Facts, especially those which have taken place in recent years, most evidently demonstrate the dynamic nature of the development of the Russian- Argentinian relations, their potential, the growing understanding between the parties on the key problems of today. In 2015, it will be 130 years since the diplomatic relationship between Russia and Argentina was established, this undoubtedly serves as a good reason for not only totaling all the pluses of this relationship, but also for outlining the new prospects and opportunities, further strengthening the mutual understanding between the parties in various areas.

Keywords: conflict management, foreign policy, international relations, Russia, Argentina, visit of V. V. Putin, Latin America, interests, values, security.

Abstract: This article analyses the current system of international security. The article focuses on finding the key parameters of the international security system. On the basis of the synergy approach proposed by S. P. Kapitsa for describing demographic transition phenomena, the author identifies four parameters of the international security system: natural environment and resources; demographic growth, mass migration and the non-uniformity in the development of various areas of the world; information, science and technology; global economy and globalization. These developmental factors change the nature of international stability. Methodologically, this research is based on the systematic, structural and functional, comparative historical, comparative political, geopolitical and cultural civilization approaches, methods of analysis, synthesis, induction, deduction, modeling, observation. International security is understood as the internal condition (property) of the system of international relations which supports the life and interaction between countries, their regional associations and the global community as a whole as well as the protection of their vital interests from various threats that may arise. Organizationally, international security includes the system of measures aimed at reducing the level of international conflicts and procuring military strategic stability in the world, and at expanding the cooperation between different states and nations in order to combat their common threats.

Keywords: international relations, foreign policy, Russia, geopolitics, political instability, diplomacy, state, interests, values, security.

Abstract: This article aims to shed light on the historic pre-requisites of the current processes taking place in the regions of South Asia and affecting the global order in the 21st century. Politological analysis of border conflict settlement in South Asia shows that there are six specific regional features of such settlement of border conflicts which exist in the area in question: economic; political; ideological; diplomatic; precedent; religious features. This work focuses on the political and economic component whose influence is mostly evident in these countries. The main research method we chose is the historical reconstruction of the key events in the near-border zones of India and China. As our conclusions, we can point out the following: settlement of the conflict between China and India on the whole is in a latent state. The rare negotiations at top level only ensure the stability of non-aggression. No real steps to settle the border conflict are taken. Some rare provocations in the tension zone serve as proof that the parties are not interested in any forced final resolution of this problem.

Keywords: region, independence, sovereignty, conflict, diplomatic relations, uprising, India, China, hostilities, foreign policy.

Abstract: After the Crimean peninsula, according to the results of the people’s referendum, became a part of Russia, some countries in the West openly started talking about political and economic sanctions against the Russian Federation. In particular, one of the measures against Russia was the quick reduction of forecasts for the credit ratings of Russia. For instance, the largest international rating agencies lowered their forecasts for the credit rating of Russian banks and large companies, they did it synchronously and concurrently, as if acting under orders. How painful this step taken by the rating agencies will be for Russia, for consequences may await Russia and the global community in this regard – this is what this paper is devoted to. As noted by A. V. Manoilo, “political sanctions are, first of all, a wave of moral reproach and reprimand which must fall on Russia and make it feel ashamed”. It appears that shame should become a normal state for Russia, not only because of what was done, but in general.

Keywords: international relations, foreign policy, Ukraine, Crimea, rating, rating agency, state, conflict, sanctions, Russia.

Abstract: This article is devoted to the history of training in Russia of professionals for Ethiopia during the period from the end of the 19th to the beginning of the 20th century. The author pays special attention to the role played by Russian Red Cross in establishing the diplomatic relations between our two countries. When Bolsheviks came to power in Russia, the diplomatic relations between Russia and Ethiopia were suspended. The official Addis Ababa sympathized for the upholders of the tsarist regime and when the news about the execution of emperor Nikolas II and his family reached Ethiopia, a special memorial service was arranged in St. George’s church in Addis Ababa which was attended event by the Patriarch of Ethiopian Christian church, public officials and diplomats from western countries, including the temporary charge d’affaires of Russia P. K. Vinogradov. Methodologically, this research is based on the systematic, structural and functional, and comparative historical approaches, methods of analysis, synthesis, induction, deduction. The formal relations between the two countries were frozen up until 1943. Ethiopia did not send any more students to Russia, this practice was resumed only in 1960s. However, Russia remains one of the first European country in history which started training professionals for Africa.

Keywords: Conflictology, foreign policy, Ethiopia, Russian-Ethiopian relations, Menelik II, Embassy, Red Cross, Tekle Havariyat, Vitte, General Shvedov

Abstract: The main foreign-policy objective of Hitler’s Germany – to conquer “life space” – was connected, first of all, with conquering the USSR which was supposed to become the “German India”. To substantiate its claims to the Soviet territory, the Nazi ideologists developed their “race theory” and propagated the myths about the “demographic threat” posed by the peoples of the Soviet Union and some military and political “Russian Bolshevik” and “Asian threat”. The development of the plan for determining the fate of the USSR peoples resulted in the program of their “germanization”, deportation and destruction, which was not implemented because of the victory of the Red Army in the Great Patriotic War. This article is built on the research of numerous sources, including archive materials, and studying existing Russian and foreign historiography. During the Soviet era, the ideology of the German national socialism was considered, primarily, from the point of view of its “class bias”, i.e. economic objectives. It was considered that Hitler aimed at gaining world supremacy in the interest of the German bourgeoisie. Any matters related to the national policy of the Nazi leadership were pushed aside. However, it was the insufficient attention to the national aspect of the plans made by Hitler’s Germany which resulted in the remaining vagueness in the assessment of the future awaiting the peoples of the USSR if the Third Reich had won.

Keywords: Great Patriotic War, national policy of the USSR, Nazism, “race theory”, “life space”, geopolitics, A. Rozenberg, national policy of Germany, national relations, Third Reich.

Abstract: In this article, the authors talk about the interpretation of the concept of “patriotism” as a special method for conceptualizing the reality by the representatives of the Russian expatriate and emigrate community. The article considers and analyzes the contents of the activities performed by emigrants abroad during the post-revolutionary period and World War I. In 2012, it was the 90th anniversary of the event which played a huge negative role in the life of Russia, which was the expulsion from the country after the Great October Socialist Revolution, resounding defeat of intervention and internal counter-revolution, of outstanding people of their time: educators, philosophers, scientists, doctors, artists, poets, writers, highly professional specialists and public figures, humanitarians, thinkers. They were sent to exile only because they were fighting for the principle of spiritual freedom in their life and creative work and were deemed hopeless by the Soviet authorities in terms of converting them to the communist faith. It was expulsion performed by the new power for ideological, rather than political, reasons.

Keywords: international relations, foreign policy, Russia, Russian emigration, cultural mission of emigration, patriotism, “Philosophers’ ships”, Russian patriot, true patriot.