Russia wants to eliminate the “dominance” of the United States and Western countries in the world, according to its new foreign policy doctrine

The “hybrid war” has begun: Russia adopted this Friday a new diplomatic doctrine that portrays the West as an “existential threat” whose “dominance” must be fought.

The adoption of this doctrine formalizes a deep gap between Russia and Western countries after the attack on Ukraine that began in February 2022, which led to the consolidation and expansion of NATO, and Moscow turned its attention to China and India.

In a document of more than 40 pages, reminiscent of the Cold War of the last century in its content and tone, Russia appears as a defender of the Russian-speaking world from Westerners who want to “weaken it with everyone.” means.”

The new document, published on the Kremlin website, replaces the 2016 version and is not shy about language.

“Russia intends to prioritize the elimination of vestiges of domination by the United States and other hostile states in world affairs, ”the document says.

At a meeting of his National Security Council, President Vladimir Putin justified the change with “great changes in the international arena” that are forcing Russia to “adapt its strategic planning documents.”

The new doctrine emphasizes the “existential nature of the threats (…) posed by the actions of unfriendly countries” and identifies the US as “the main instigator and conductor of the anti-Russian line,” summed up Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.

“In general, the policy of the West, aimed at weakening Russia characterize in all respects as a hybrid war of a new type,” Foreign Minister Lavrov added.

China and India, key partners

The United States and its allies have imposed a series of economic sanctions against Russia, which accuses them of waging a proxy war in Ukraine by supplying arms to Kyiv.

Russia, increasingly isolating itself in the West, is trying to politically and economically draw closer to Asia, in particular to China, which it considers a priority in its new doctrine.

In the new strategy, Moscow emphasizes the importance of “deepening relations and coordination with friendly sovereign global centers of power and development located on the Eurasian continent.”

Putin showed complicity with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping during a summit in Moscow in March and stressed the “special nature” of relations between the two countries.

The ties, however, seem increasingly unbalanced in China’s favor due to growing reliance on Russia.

In the new Russian doctrine, an important place is also given to relations with Africa, where Moscow has strengthened its presence, including through the Wagner paramilitary group.

Finally, the document presents Russia as a “civilization” uniting the peoples that define the “Russian world”. The concept has been used by the Kremlin to justify its offensive in Ukraine, where it claims to be protecting the Russian-speaking minority.

Putin is presented as the banner of the “traditional values” of the Orthodox Church against the decline of the West, which is also reflected in this new doctrine.

The document reads that it is necessary “to neutralize attempts to impose pseudo-humanist and neoliberal ideological principles leading to the loss of traditional spirituality and moral principles.”

(According to AFP)