Russia’s soft security policy: 2000 – 2012

In the post-Soviet era, Russia has encountered several asymmetric threats which cannot be solved by using conventional forces. Especially after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 in the U.S., Russia has recognized the importance of non-military power to find a powerful place in international system under Vladimir Putin presidency. In that respect, this article seeks to analyse changing Russia’s national security strategy during Putin presidency and need to redefine its national security concept. The article aims to explain Russian soft security policy under Vladimir Putin and examines the basic soft security threats which Russia has encountered and how it fought against these threats in the post-Soviet era. Contrary to the mainstream literature suggesting that Russia has focused exclusively on hard security issues within its national security policies due to its historical background and geo-political factors, the article argues that Russia started to give more importance to soft security besides hard security in its national security policies since Putin’s presidency. Among soft security challenges, Russia prioritizes especially terrorism, transnational organized crime and energy security.