Hcss report

HCSS REPORT
41
Assertiveness is mostly a subject found across official doctrines in foreign policy.
Judging by the tone and substance of the Russian core principles of foreign policy
110
, 
and by the article “Russia in the Changing World” written by Vladimir Putin, the head 
of the Russian government at the time,
111
one can more easily associate both rhetorical 
and factual Russian attitudes with assertive features: clear, assured, demanding, 
permanent, value and interest-driven. The word ‘aggression’ itself is often avoided, 
which does not however imply that such statements have a fully peaceful and 
cooperative nature.
In Putin’s article, ensuring security comes first, followed by the promotion of economic 
interests, while the ‘humanitarian sphere’ is placed towards the end. The article avoids 
aggression-related topics, unless one looks at it from another angle, and it is full of 
elements connoting assertiveness. As Putin claimed, it is impossible to achieve global 
security without Russia.
Putin stressed that NATO actions undermine trust and threaten future global 
cooperation, and accuses NGOs of destabilizing the situation in countries using ‘soft 
power’ instruments.
The 
rise of China
, however, is verbally assessed quite positively by the Russian leader, 
who sees it as bringing “enormous potential for business cooperation”. He also calls 
for continuing political cooperation in the international arena, as both countries share a 
common vision of the future world system. He verbally expresses intentions to 
cooperate economically with emerging continents (Asia, Latin America and Africa), 
and emphasizes Russia’s interest in a strong 
European Union
and its powerful 
cooperation potential”.
But Russia also considers 
US
stereotypes of Russia to be the cause of unsuccessful 
Russian-American relations, and Putin refutes accusations that Russia has poor human 
rights record and that it has crossed all existing boundaries.