Vera Ageeva1; 1 Higher School of Economics, Russian Federation
Discussion
Russian relations with its near abroad has become more complex and contradictory over past years. Some former brother republics fell out from Russian orbit (Ukraine, Georgia), some of them remained closely attached to Russia both politically and economically (for example Belarus and Kyrgyzstan). There are also such countries as Kazakhstan which while being a loyal Russian partner is still able to implement «multivectoral» foreign policy and cooperate with a wide range of international actors (China, Europe, Turkey etc). Yet this balance is not easy to maintain. Ongoing debate on the common past (and its reflections on the current relations) reveals internal tensions and contradictions inherent to Russian-Kazakhstani relations today. Postcolonial prism to the common past applied by Kazakhstan has been for a long time radically rejected by Russia and thus excluded from the debate. Nevertheless the construction of postcolonial identity is acquiring more and more place in Kazakhstani elites and society. With new generations this topic will gain more and more both in Russian-Kazakhstani relations and in Russian historical and political discussion about its own past and its role in the history of their own colonies.
