Skriba, A. S. Realism and Policy of Small States in the XXIth Century

Abstract: Conclusions made within the theories of realism show that against the background of reduced tension between strong actors of international policy, relations between countries with different potentials create different variants of distribution of power and influence in the world. Noteworthy that small states which subjective status has considerably grown over the past decade bring additional variety into international policy, on one hand, and do not allow excessive concentration of power, on the other hand. Basic models of state behavior remain traditional for the realism of the balancing and adjoining policy but they acquire specific features under modern conditions. The main specific feature is the implementation of a rather contradictory policy by small states. This policy is aimed at getting closer to the regional leader and keeping the distance and retaining the region’s freedom at the same time. It is very important to understand that the future confrontation of international environment depends on the results of such external political dualism.

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