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The purpose of current article is to analyze current foreign policy of USA in Asian region, which are widely defined by US politicians as the "reversal" to Asia. The key-elements of this strategy include noticeable military presence, regular military exercises, geopolitical expansion from the Pacific to the Indian Ocean, as well as preservation of American leadership and containment of growing China`s influence inside the region. Later the policy transformed into the so-called Pivot, which means a significant increase in diplomatic, economic and strategic U.S. investment in Asia Pacific. While conducting its new political line Barack Obama`s administration initiated U.S. participation in different geopolitical issues of the Asia-Pacific region, such as the issue of the South China Sea, dispute over Chinese dams on Mekong River and so on. Obama's initiatives are considered by China as U.S. interference into regional affairs. Moreover, many politicians and experts predict that "Georgian scenario" could repeat in the region. This will lead to deterioration of multilateral relations due to increased presence of USA inside Asia-Pacific. Analyzing the American approaches to formation of the regional security architecture the authors come to the conclusion that US administration aims to contain China in the Indo-Pacific geostrategic area. In mid-term, this policy provokes aggravation of a number of disturbing trends in the region. Basically, it becomes less stable and integrated. Apparently, US policy will lead to further deterioration of relations between USA and China. Under such circumstances, Russia should conduct cautious maneuvering between the two poles of power and stick to a policy of non-interference.

The article examines the recent strengthening of Kyrgyz-Chinese ties, that may be seen in a number of infrastructure projects within "One Belt, One Road" project. There are a number of accompanying difficulties that are offset by the further possibilities of cooperation (increasing trade turnover, turning Bishkek into an online trading hub, transferring excess Chinese capacity to the territory of Kyrgyzstan).

The reader is invited to the review of the IMEMO RAS collective monograph «Political processes in the post-Soviet space: new trends and old problems» (ed. by E.G. Solovyev and G.I. Chufrin. Moscow, 2020). The review notes the scientific relevance and practical significance of the monograph for modern science and foreign policy activities of modern Russia, as well as identifies most acute problems of new sovereign countries' functioning after the collapse of the USSR. As a result, it is concluded that dynamics of the ongoing political and economic processes in the post-Soviet space, destabilization of the situation along the perimeter of Russia's borders requires increased attention of the Russian political, economic, scientific, and cultural elites to the situation in the neighboring countries.

The article analyzes the activities of the European Union within the framework of the Eastern Partnership in 2019–2021. The updated program of recovery, sustainability, and reforms, supported by an economic and investment plan, does not justify all its efforts. It also can reform the EU's relations with its Eastern partners and make them more depoliticized. This may lead to the fact that the EU will further reduce its transformational ambitions. And this, in turn, will call into question the fundamental aspect of his foreign policy identity – the role of the EU as a transformative force. In other words, such a development could not only weaken the EU's role in Eastern Partnership countries, but also undermine the value of its foreign policy.

The article is devoted to the study of the sociocultural phenomenon of the mosque by considering it as a place of prayer and also as a center of social life of the Muslim Ummah. The article describes the historical development of mosques as a sort of political centre for the Islamic community, as well as the transformation of the role of mosques in the life of nowadays Muslims. The authors give a brief description of the largest mosques that are located within the Middle East, the European Union and the Russian Federation, who claim the role of the center of social life of Muslims. On the example of the Volga Federal district and its capital city of Nizhny Novgorod, the authors analyzed the contribution of mosques in social and political life of the Muslim Ummah, and also gave some recommendations to solve the existing problems of mosques that interfere with the normal development and functioning of the Muslim Ummah in the region.

Abstract: After D. Trump came to power it started developing a new US Middle East policy, based on the regional threat assessment, such as the unstable political situation in a number of regional countries, radical regimes, terrorism, especially ISIS. In addition, the most important task for the Trump administration was to try to regain lost US influence in the region, which resulted in the so-called "strategy of sufficient presence" and in the support of regional allies, "centers of power" such as Israel.A distinctive feature of D. Trump's policy in the region can be considered a change in rhetoric regarding the Iranian nuclear program up to the introduction of new economic sanctions. Moreover, the American approach to the settlement of the Syrian crisis is connected with the prevention of the growing influence of Iran and Russia in the region.American-Turkish relations also underwent significant changes, which were very tense until 2017. The states managed to find common ground on a number of issues of international politics. However, the situation is still significantly complicated by American support for the Kurds in their quest for autonomy.Trump's ratings at home are falling, and therefore there is a possibility that Trump will lose the upcoming presidential elections to his opponent D. Biden. However, trying to predict the prospects of the US Middle East policy in the event of D. Biden's victory, the authors came to the conclusion that it will not undergo significant changes, except for the nuclear deal with Iran. The key tasks of American foreign policy will remain the fight against terrorism, countering the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, and the search for likeminded states in the region.