Paul Goble, former Special Advisor to the Secretary of State and professor at The Institute of World Politics, recently wrote an article for the Jamestown Foundation, “Izborsky Club Says Moscow Must Block Alliance of Baltic-Black Sea States,” a summary of the Izborsky Club’s report on Russia’s relationship with the Intermarium — countries located between the Baltic and Black Seas. At the outset, Mr. Goble’s February 23 paper mentions Dr. Marek Jan Chodakiewicz, professor at The Institute of World Politics, and his detailed book on this region of Eastern Europe, Intermarium: The Land between the Black and Baltic Seas. Both Dr. Chodakiewicz and Mr. Goble emphasize the strength of the Intermarium and the threat it poses to Moscow’s internal and external vulnerabilities.
The Izborsky Club is a group of Russian intellectuals and writers who promote Russian nationalist and traditionalist views. Mr. Goble also points out that the Izborsky Club states that Moscow must take steps to block any further formation of the Intermarium, and that the threat of some kind of Baltic aggression against Russia is already recognized as a real possibility. The Intermarium would also cripple Moscow’s leverage over many eastern NATO countries and has already made an impact in Ukraine and Belarus. Mr. Goble concludes that the Izborsky Club’s report on this matter is an indication that Russia will attempt to dismantle the idea of the Intermarium.
Paul Goble is a longtime specialist on ethnic and religious questions in Eurasia and most recently, he was director of research and publications at the Azerbaijan Diplomatic Academy. He writes frequently on ethnic and religious issues and has edited five volumes on ethnicity and religion in the former Soviet space. His blog is at: http://www.windowoneurasia.blogspot.com/
The full article can be read here.