Suchergebnisse

Abstract
The Russian leadership envisages Russia as a bridge connecting East and West via Asiatic Russia. Nevertheless, this self-image seemingly does not fully correspond to the current trends; moreover, it is unclear what the Russian Government tries to 'bridge' as it has been unable to construct a bridge across the Lena River connecting Yakutsk, the capital of its largest Republic, to Russian mainland. This work attempts to examine both the external and internal dimension for the Russian Far East of Russia's 'turn' to Asia, and the way Sakha Republic experiences the tension between the domestic and international dimensions of this 'turn' to the East.

Historically, the Arctic has been much more important to Russia than to other Arctic countries. In Soviet times, the development of the Arctic was of paramount importance and it was used by the Soviet government to legitimise its great power status to domestic and international audiences. It is argued in this paper that the administration of President Putin has re-established a narrative on Russia as an Arctic power. In this sense, Russia not only seeks to exploit natural resources and develop the Northern Sea Route, but to project status as it conceives of itself as a great power. This paper suggests that the Arctic is not only becoming more important for Russia itself but also for Northeast Asian countries, as China, Japan and South Korea require a stable regional environment and secure supply of natural resources, which are essential for their prosperity and stability. In this sense, diverse partnerships are being developed between Russian and Northeast Asian countries; this work analyses the key components of those partnerships and its potential benefits. The development of the Far North constitutes an essential component in Russia's larger and long-term project to develop Asiatic Russia. It would be fallacious to examine Russia's Arctic strategy only through the prism of the current confrontation between Russia and the West. Keywords: Russia, great power, Arctic, Far North, Northeast Asia, China, Japan, South Korea.