Afterword. Russia and the West: Toward Understanding

Abstract

Course Description and Objectives Throughout history Russia has had an ambiguous relationship with the Western world. Sometimes the West has been vilified as a threat or an enemy, and other times it has been held up by Russians as a model to emulate, even as a path to salvation from Russia's endemic social and economic woes. Russia and the West have never treated each other with indifference, and this love/hate relationship is in full force today. In this course, we will examine why this has been the case, and particularly what it means for Russian foreign and security policy today. Drawing on contributions from philosophers and historians as well as international relations scholars and practitioners, we will discuss whether Russia's interaction with the West has been driven primarily by realist great power considerations, by a cultural cycle of Orthodox Slavic nationalism vs. pro-Western internationalism, by domestic economic pressures, or by the idiosyncratic visions and interests of individual Russian leaders-and in turn, how choices made by the West have affected all of these things. Students will be encouraged to come up with their own answers to these riddles, thereby honing their critical reasoning and argumentation skills. A simulation of an international summit meeting will hone students' speaking and oral presentation skills. Students will leave the course with a broad, factual knowledge about selected current and historical Russian political, foreign policy, and security issues, as well as with an introduction to some of the current theoretical debates among scholars of international relations and Russian foreign policy. Through reading the works of both Russians observing the West, and Westerners observing Russia, students will also have the opportunity to reexamine some of their own views on the broader meaning and significance of Western culture. Course Requirements and Grading Students will take an in-class midterm exam on Mar. 11, as well as a final exam at the date and time set by the College (which has not yet been announced). For both the midterm and final, which are otherwise closed-book, students may bring with them one 8 ½" by 11" sheet of paper, on which they have written or typed anything they like.

The Dialogue of Russia and Kazakhstan on Strategic Partnering in Tourism

“…In the development of the travel and tourism industry, an important role belongs to tourism planning [5]. The problem that appears is to identify how the touristic plans can be made and how they can be implemented.…”

“…The development of tourism has a significant impact on the formation of the level and quality indicators of life of the population of the country or region. The variety of forms and types of the tourism activities and the high multiplicative effect characteristic for tourism allow simultaneously developing cooperation in the tourism sector [5].…”