Dynamics of the Regional Integration in Eurasia: Eurasian Regionalism vs. West-Oriented Regionalism

This paper aims to make comparison between “Eurasian regionalism” and “West-oriented regionalism” based on the discussion of the development of major regional organizations and regional integration established among the post-Soviet states, and to analyse the potentials, limitations of Eurasian regional integration and its challenges. This two regionalism indicate the confrontation of the regionalization process among the post-Soviet states. In some cases the Eurasian regionalism and West-oriented are presented as mutually exclusive projects causing internal divides within societies as it happens in Ukraine, Moldova, and Armenia. We still cannot say that the future of both regionalism projects is quite certain. West-oriented regionalism depends on the EU’s commitment to the project and the readiness to accept European values in the EaP participant countries. Eurasian regionalism, though, highly institutionalized lacks vision and agreement on what is ‘Eurasian’. In Russia, the concept of ‘Eurasia’ is often used as the opposite of the ‘West’ or ‘Atlantic’ Other, and it is expected that Eurasian integration will strengthen Russia’s position as a dominant power in the region to achieve the goal of Russian foreign policy to build multipolar world order. From several aspects, regionalization in Eurasia remains an unfinished project. In the first place, there are several competing regionalist projects, not one, emerging in the geographic space among the Europe, Russia, and the China-dominated East Asia. The Russia- driving regionalism has been primarily concerned about achieving Russia’s geopolitical and geo-economic goals. For Central Asian countries, regionalism means to open a space to balance potential Russian hegemony and a platform to resume their development. The Central Asian governments have discovered the real economic and political benefits provided by regionalization at early tines: a possibility of relying on several donor countries, instead of just one, an improved security and an enhanced international status.��� ��������� 2007��� ������(���������������������)��� ������������ ��������������������� ��������� ������ ������ ��� ���������(KRF-2007-362-B00013