Eurasianism
BLUF
Eurasianism is a Russian political-ideological tradition, originating in 1920s émigré intellectual circles and revived by Alexander Dugin in the 1990s as Neo-Eurasianism, that holds Russia to be neither European nor Asian but a distinct Eurasian civilization with its own geopolitical destiny: the organization of the Eurasian landmass under Russian leadership as a counterweight to the “Atlanticist” (Western, US-led) world order.
Eurasianism is analytically significant for two distinct reasons:
- As intellectual genealogy: Dugin’s Neo-Eurasianism, derived from Mackinder’s Heartland Theory and filtered through 1920s émigré nationalism, is the most explicit doctrinal framework underlying Russian anti-Western strategic communications. Understanding it is prerequisite to decoding the rhetorical layer of Russian foreign policy justifications.
- As state influence: Neo-Eurasianism has had documented influence on Russian foreign policy doctrine from the mid-2000s onward — particularly the concepts of “sovereign democracy,” “multipolar world,” and the framing of NATO expansion as existential threat.
Historical Eurasianism (1920s–1930s)
The original Eurasianist movement emerged among Russian émigré intellectuals in Prague and Paris in the 1920s, following the Bolshevik Revolution. Key figures: Prince Nikolai Trubetzkoy (linguist), Pyotr Savitsky (geographer), Nikolai Alekseyev (jurist).
Core claims of classical Eurasianism:
- Russia is not a failed European state but a distinct civilization shaped by the Eurasian steppe, Orthodox Christianity, and the Mongol heritage
- Westernization (the Petrine reforms, liberal democracy) is a form of cultural colonization that alienates Russia from its authentic identity
- Russia’s natural zone of cultural and political organization is the Eurasian landmass, not the European state system
- The Soviet project, despite its Marxist ideology, represents in practice the continuation of the Eurasian empire (this claim was politically controversial among anti-Bolshevik émigrés)
Classical Eurasianism declined after the 1930s but left a textual legacy that Dugin systematically revived and weaponized in the post-Soviet period.
Neo-Eurasianism: Dugin’s Framework
Alexander Dugin’s Foundations of Geopolitics (1997) and The Fourth Political Theory (2009) represent the most systematic contemporary elaboration of Neo-Eurasianism.
Geostrategic layer: Neo-Eurasianism explicitly derives from Mackinder’s Heartland Theory but inverts its normative valence. Where Mackinder warned against Russian Heartland domination, Dugin prescribes it as Russia’s historic mission. The strategic program:
- Reconstruct the Eurasian “Great Space” under Russian leadership
- Displace US presence from Europe (primarily by separating Germany from the Atlantic alliance)
- Partition Ukraine — which Dugin explicitly prescribes as non-existent as a state — to remove the geographic obstacle to Russian access to Eastern Europe
- Build a continental Eurasian alliance from Lisbon to Vladivostok (the “strategic depth” strategy)
Civilizational layer: Neo-Eurasianism frames the geopolitical contest as a civilizational conflict between “Land” (Eurasian, traditional, community-based values) and “Sea” (Atlanticist, liberal, individualist values). This civilizational framing maps onto Huntington’s Clash of Civilizations vocabulary — a convergence that explains why both frameworks are simultaneously deployed in Russian strategic communications.
The Fourth Political Theory: Dugin’s post-Foundations work positions Neo-Eurasianism as a fourth political alternative to liberalism (First), communism (Second), and fascism (Third). The Fourth Political Theory is anti-liberal, anti-individualist, anti-universalist, and grounded in “Dasein” (Heideggerian being) as a collective subject rather than individual rights.
State Policy Dimension
Neo-Eurasianism’s influence on Russian state policy is documented but contested in degree:
Documented influence:
- The “multipolar world” concept in Russian foreign policy doctrine from Yevgeny Primakov’s tenure as Foreign Minister (1996–98) through current official documents uses language directly traceable to Eurasianist framing
- “Sovereign democracy” (suverennaya demokratiya) as a concept denying the universality of Western democratic standards reflects the Eurasianist critique of Western universalism
- The Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) and Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) represent institutional embodiments of the Eurasian coalition Dugin’s program prescribes
Contested claims:
- Whether Putin himself is a “Eurasianist” in Dugin’s sense is disputed; Putin has used Eurasianist vocabulary instrumentally without committing to the full doctrinal framework
- Dugin’s direct policy influence has been overstated in Western media; he is more accurately described as a doctrinal entrepreneur whose frameworks permeate Russian strategic discourse without direct policy authority
Analytical rule: When analyzing Russian strategic communications, identify Eurasianist framing as such — distinguish it from state-official claims, and note where Eurasianist language is used in official documents (which indicates influence) vs. Dugin’s own publications (primary doctrinal source).
Key Connections
- Alexander Dugin — primary theorist of Neo-Eurasianism
- Halford Mackinder — Heartland Theory as structural source
- Heartland Theory — geographic framework underlying Eurasianist geopolitics
- Multipolarity — Eurasianist preferred international order
- Clash of Civilizations — civilizational framing parallel; Dugin and Huntington use similar vocabulary for opposed purposes
- Russian Federation — primary state vehicle for Eurasianist geopolitics
- Ukraine War — Ukraine’s existence as a state is denied by Eurasianist doctrine; the 2022 invasion as Eurasianist prescription enacted
Sources
- Dugin, Alexander. Osnovy Geopolitiki [Foundations of Geopolitics]. Arktogeia, 1997. [Primary — Russian-language, High; EN summaries available]
- Dugin, Alexander. The Fourth Political Theory. Arktos, 2012 [English trans. of 2009 Russian original]. [Primary, High]
- Laruelle, Marlène. Russian Eurasianism: An Ideology of Empire. Johns Hopkins University Press, 2008. [Secondary, High — authoritative academic analysis]
- Clover, Charles. Black Wind, White Snow: The Rise of Russia’s New Nationalism. Yale University Press, 2016. [Secondary, High — contextualizes Neo-Eurasianism in Putin-era Russia]
- Trubetzkoy, Nikolai. “Europe and Mankind.” In The Legacy of Genghis Khan and Other Essays on Russia’s Identity. Michigan Slavic Publications, 1991. [Primary — historical Eurasianism, Medium-High]