Publication

This paper examines the development and expansion of Russia’s policies and presence in the Pacific. It argues that, with no continuous external threats of losing its territories in the pacific in the past, Moscow’s interests in the region were limited to extracting natural resources as well as creating a buffer zone and a foothold for further eastward expansion. However, the author writes that the Kremlin’s present drive to the east, in effect since the beginning of the 21st century, has strong economic underpinnings and could reinforce Russia’s position in the Asia-Pacific region.