Euro-Atlantic vector in the military doctrine of Ukraine in the 1990s – early 2019

Abstract

The article is devoted to the main stages of changes in the military doctrine of Ukraine in the context of the Euro-Atlantic vector of Kiev’s foreign policy in the post-Soviet period. The military doctrine of the neighboring state is one of the documents, changes in which not only reflect changes in the foreign policy, but also directly affect the geopolitical situation and the balance of power in the region. The fixation in the military doctrine of new goals and objectives of foreign policy reinforces the desire to transform the existing system of relations between states, and the definition in the doctrine of the opponents and threats emanating from them indicate an increase of the level of instability in the international relations.

Available sources bear evidence that for most of the period under review, Ukraine adhered to the concept of multi-vector approach, the attempts to abandon which towards Euro-Atlanticism, however, were made several times in 2002–2010. Euromaidan of 2014 brought to power the supporters of EuroAtlantic integration, as a result of which the new military doctrine of Ukraine fixed the final rejection of the non-aligned status of the country and the high level of tension in relations with the Russian Federation and became one of the obstacles to the creation of an effective system of regional security.