Russia and Central Asian Countries’ Foreign Policy After the Ukraine Crisis

On April 1st, 2015, the Central Asia Center invited Baik Joo-hyeon, former Ambassador of South Korea in Kazakhstan (current Consul General of the Korean Consulate General in Houston), for a special lecture that was held at SNUAC’s Youngone Hall. While serving as the Korean Ambassador in Kazakhstan from 2012 to this March, Baik greatly contributed to establishing a good relationship between the two countries. Baik was the first Korean diplomat to work in the Soviet Union, as he was dispatched as the founding member of the Consulate General in the Soviet Union in 1990. The topic of his lecture was ‘Russia and Central Asian countries’ foreign policy after the Ukraine Crisis’.

After the Soviet Union collapsed, Crimea became the Autonomous Republic of Crimea within newly independent Ukraine. Recently, as the Ukraine government has been pushing ahead with joining the EU, Russia, which has been dissatisfied with the West expanding to the East, annexed the Crimea. While international tensions are rising, Kazakhstan has been carrying out a distinctive foreign policy. Even though it is an emerging country, it has established an international organization, and joined the Shanghai Cooperation Organization led by China. In addition, Kazakhstan has made effort to develop the economy, focusing on energy. On the other hand, Kazakhstan has been wary of Putin’s intervention, expanding omnidirectional cooperation with the United States, the EU, and North East Asian countries. Moreover, as a multi-ethnic country, it has been carrying out a policy for ethnic peace, endeavoring to keep its independence.

Around 70 people came to the lecture to listen to Baik’s first-hand experiences. Students and professors of various majors as well as NGO activists participated in the lecture. Even though the Ukraine Crisis has started in one country, it is intertwined with complicated international relations. Therefore, it was interesting to learn about various issues in different countries, including Central Asia. In particular, it seems that Kazakhstan’s independent foreign policy has considerable implications for Korea, as Kazakhstan is in between two superpowers, Russia and China. Hopefully, Korea, which is surrounded by four superpowers, will also carry out a balanced foreign policy.