Description

Born amid the politics of the Cold War, Bangladesh has long been maintaining cordial relations with world’s powerful countries. The Soviet Union’s all-out support was crucial for the existence and recognition of Bangladesh. Still, Bangladesh started to follow a capitalist path of development with the support from the United States (US) and its European and Asian followers to find a place in the global economy. Its growing dependency on the West and the Middle-eastern countries for aid, foreign direct investment (FDI) and remittances weakened its ties with the Soviet Union. The gradual restoration of its relations with Russia-the successor of the Soviet Union was, however, evident since the 1990s. Is it a sign of Bangladesh’s endeavour to maintain a balance against growing pressure and dominance of the bearers of world capitalism and democracy, or is it an effort to continue a historical relationship with great power? How prospective or uncertain is the relation for Bangladesh? This chapter seeks to answer these questions by examining Bangladesh-Russia relations through a small-state and great-power relations prism.