The academic side of this module was quite enlightening and helped me develop my views on U.S.-Russian relations and on the current nature of Russian foreign and domestic policy. One aspect of the week that I found especially interesting was how united a lot of academic opinion seemed to be on Russia’s goals for the future and on its vision for the new world order. While some claim that one of modern-day Russia’s main points of divergence from its previous iterations (i.e. the USSR or the Russian Empire) is that it lacks a true dominating ideology, I found that most academics seemed to be united on a few main points; namely a) the world is becoming more multipolar, b) Russia must prove itself as a “great power” and c) there is little hope for rapprochement between Russia and the West in the near future, especially between Russia and the United States. While scholars’ opinions varied on the finer points of these themes, there seemed to be broad consensus from most Russian scholars that these sorts of ideas help form the base of the predominant line of thinking in the Russian political and academic establishment. PARAGRAPH The constant repetition of these themes surprised me and gave me food for thought regarding my own research. I am currently planning the initial stages of my master’s thesis, in which I plan to discuss the ideologies of young Russian specialists on the United States and compare them to the views of their predecessors in government and academia on Russian foreign policy as it pertains to the United States. While I obviously cannot directly use information garnered from this module in my thesis due to the lectures being off the record, the general viewpoints that I heard throughout the course of the week will certainly help me construct the ideological framework for my research. I also hope to discuss these sorts of issues with some of the speakers in the future in a more formal setting. PARAGRAPH Additionally, moving beyond my current research, having a deeper understanding of these core tenets of Russian viewpoints on foreign policy and Russia’s position in the world will allow me and other fellows to work better with Russia in the future. After all, Russians and Americans generally tend to see the same issues from completely different perspectives – an idea that was reinforced by this module. While there is some common ground between younger generations, it is nonetheless difficult at times to properly communicate on political issues given that the narratives advanced by academics in the United States and Russia are essentially diametrically opposed to one another and that these competing narratives are not heard by students in either country. As such, for me, this module was quite useful, as I was exposed to academic viewpoints that are rarely heard in Western educational institutions but are widespread in Russia and, presumably, other countries as well. I feel that by gaining a better understanding of what Russians believe and are taught regarding international relations and the world order, I have become better equipped to work with Russians on pertinent issues in my future career.
