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As follows from the analysis the author comes to some conclusions:
1. Model of gender relations, being one of basic characteristics of social community (ethnos, in particular), it is determined by other specific sociocultural characteristics of this community.
2. Gender model and its changes can serve as the indicator of depth of social and sociocultural transformations in society.
3. Transformation of gender model is one of the forms of response of society to critical challenges to the address of it; they occur spontaneously and cannot be caused by methods of political mobilization or ideological pressure.
Author of the abstract - Valentina Schensnovich
2019.01.005. IDRIS RABADANOV. GEOPOLICY OF THE CASPIAN SEA // "Strategiya Rossii," Moscow, 2018, № 2, February, P. 35-42.
Keywords: the Caspian region, security, the Caspian states, geopolitical interests, Russia, the U.S.
Idris Rabadanov,
Reserve Officer, Parliamentary Assistant of the State Duma, General member of the Committee on Defense
The author of the article considers events which take place in the Caspian region, within the national interests of the Caspian states and geopolitical processes in this region. According to some political scientists, the U.S. and their allies purposely stoke controversy between the countries of the Caspian Basin to gain control over energy supply of the region and change positions of Russia on key issues in economic and military-political context.
The author notes that the Caspian region is traditionally the territory of Russian national interests, which has great importance
for economy and security of the state, especially in view of geopolitical standoff in the Middle East. The Caspian region is a space where the interests of the leading world powers meet: such as the USA, European Union, India, Turkey, China and some other countries of the Eurasian continent.
The main stressor in the region is unstated legal status of the sea. After the collapse of the USSR division of the basin remains a subject of unsettled controversies connected with division of the Caspian sea shelf of oil, gas and also unique biological resources. The Caspian Sea is the largest enclosed body of water on Earth, its length from the North to the South is about 1200 km, width from the West to the East - from 195 to 435 km, and its area is about 44% of total reserves of lake waters on Earth. More than 130 rivers mouths into the Caspian Sea among which Volga which is considered to be the largest of them, being the main central waterway of Russia, which connects the Caspian by Volga-to-Don Canal with the World Ocean. Moreover, the Caspian Sea is deemed to be one of the richest tanks of oil, gas, and biological (90% of world reserves of sturgeons) resources in the world.
Speaking about historical background, the author notes that in the Soviet period the Caspian Sea practically was an inland water within boundaries of the USSR and only in the south a part of the coast belonged to Iran with which there were treaties regulating interstate relations on which only watercrafts of the USSR and Iran could be in the Caspian Sea (both countries had a right to use marine environment of the sea and also have maritime forces there and fish). However, the treaties didn't have clear regulations about delimitation of the water area. The Soviet Union, being a global superpower, unilaterally designated the line of agreed upon delimitation "Astara - Gasan Kuli." And though Iran legally didn't recognize this line as sea border, but actually didn't violate it.
Today the status of the water is not officially defined. The Caspian states can't agree more than twenty years about its delimitation. Behind the scenes is that de facto there is a sectoral
delimitation, and de-jure outdated Soviet-Iranian agreements on the Caspian Sea which install free regime of navigation for the Caspian states and common use of bioresources of the sea. Internationally there are no analogs of a similar complicated legal situation and there are no precedents of its solving, though it is understood that the Caspian Sea has to have own legal status.
Considering military-political questions of the Caspian region the author notes growth of its conflict-generating potential. For example, signing between Kazakhstan and the U.S. in July, 2017 of the next five-year plan of military cooperation for 20182022 details of which are confidential. Kazakhstan is interested in creation of own Navy in the Caspian Sea where the U.S. will actively help.
China also cooperates with Kazakhstan which carries out large-scale economic expansion there. Astana considers cooperation with Beijing as an opportunity to get rid of the involvement into Russian area of interest. Both states realize the New Silk Road project where Chinese party invests eleven-figure of dollars for construction of Kazakh part of transport infrastructure, including construction of the new city Nurkent on the border with China where up to 100 thousand people will live, for serving freight flows China.
Azerbaijan having huge oil and gas reserves also became the strategic partner for the U.S. and since the beginning of the 90s of the XX century without any noise gradually integrates into NATO, realizing programs of military cooperation in modernization of National army on NATO standards. It should be noted, nevertheless, that interstate relations between Russia and Azerbaijan remain rather good, and positions of both countries coincide with the majority of questions.
Turkmenistan, as well as other countries of the Caspian region, doesn't lag behind in questions of cooperation with the American side. On the pretext of fight against international terrorism Ashgabat repeatedly resorted to Washington. The policy of the U.S. referring to Turkmenistan is very pragmatic - the States
show interest in gaining access to the Turkmen industrial and military infrastructure. Over the last years the West tries to diversify cooperation and holds a course towards rapprochement with Turkmenistan.
The situation with Iran is another, as sovereignty is important for it and in consequence of which it pursues independent national policy. Iran long was under sanctions, because of suspicion in nuclear weapon development, and the U.S. tried to achieve its international political isolation, and an ultimate goal of the U.S. is shift of power in Iran and its involvement in the U.S. sphere of interests. Therefore in the conditions of political and economic oppositions of Tehran with the West its understanding on the main questions on security in the Caspian region coincides with Moscow position. The positive aspect is that Russia and Iran have no common land border, and, therefore, they have nothing to divide and it is easier to agree. From military-political point of view Tehran stands for Moscow on key issues of the Caspian cooperation, considering that safety in the Caspian Sea is a prerogative of exclusively Caspian states. Such position on a question extremely important today for security allowed "the Caspian five" to reach the agreement not to let presence of armed forces of not regional powers in the Caspian Sea.
Such states as China, countries of the European Union, India, Turkey exert an impact on the situation in the region. Beijing can crucially deprive Russia and the U.S. of leadership in economic terms in the Caspian Sea. Priority orientations of Beijing foreign policy are interaction with the states of the Asian-Pacific region, however as import requirements of energy resources grow the role of the Caspian region in policy of China will increase. The reserved attitude of the People's Republic of China on key questions of regional security allows it to establish easily dialogues with the states of Central Asia and South Caucasus.
Unlike the western partners Russia works for maintenance of peace and security in the Caspian Sea as the situation in the region is tense. Geopolitically the Caspian Sea is a strategic military point
of the Russian Federation in the Middle East and in Central Asia in proximity to which there is warfare. So, during the military campaign in Syria the Russian Navy demonstrated its unique capacities, having made missiles launching "Kalibr NK" from a distance of 1500 km from the water area of the Caspian Sea on rebels' positions of the ISIL terrorist organization banned in Russia.
Due to the growing threat of international terrorism, the military-political leadership of Russia seriously increases presence and possibilities of the Armed Forces in the Caspian Sea. The flotilla in the Caspian Sea for 90% will consist of latest patterns of armaments, military equipment and will strengthen defensive capacity of Russia in this area though at the same time Russia constantly shows its readiness for cooperation with all interested countries for maintenance of security in the Caspian region.
Summing up the author draws conclusion about future of this region.
1) The interest of world politics in the Caspian region will only increase. There is a number of factors: uncertain international legal status of the Caspian Sea; energy security; transport safety; environmental compliance; information security; military safety.
2) Live conflicts in the region are an essential obstacle for regional cooperation, and the Caspian Sea for foreseeable future can turn into one of the most unstable regions in the world.
3) Russia shouldn't allow loss of its economic and political influence in the Caspian region as it directly threatens its national security.
Author of the abstract - Elena Dmitrieva
