Interaction of Foreign and Domestic Factors in the International Political Process: The Case of Russia

The foreign policy of a state is determined by its domestic policy, the internal balance of power. The domestic political configuration of any state has a predominant role in understanding its foreign political moves. Therefore, an attempt to analyse the orientation of a state’s foreign policy without considering such key factors as its political system, interest groups, intra-elite competition and personal ambitions of its leader and others is not feasible.

Contemporary realities reveal that the existing line between domestic and foreign policy is blurred. This can be seen not only in the framework of a single state, but also in the relationships between several countries. It is constantly observed in International Relations (IRs) when different actors closely watch what is happening in the domestic fields of other states, and then in the international arena impudently appeal to the domestic policy of the partner country.