Bilateral relations between Peru and Russia in the 21st century: a Peruvian perspective

Abstract

Since the beginning of the 21^st century, Russia has tried to regain its status as a great power in world politics, leaving behind its ideological profile that characterized it during the Soviet era. Although it is true that Russian influence in Latin America is still far from reaching the levels of the United States, the European Union or China, Moscow has recently managed to increase its presence in the region. In turn, Peru aspires to position itself as an “emerging regional power”, with an important economic projection towards Asia-Pacific, although maintaining – for now – its strategic alignment with the West. After describing the main milestones of the historical relationship between Peru and Russia –as an empire, a Soviet republic and a post-Soviet republic –, this article seeks to identify the dynamics, as well as the main dimensions of the bilateral relationship in the 21^st century. It concludes that, with the exception of the historical supply of Russian weapons to Peru, the links between the two states have been of a relatively low intensity, as a result of Peru’s international identity, convergent with theWest; a generally unfavorable and/or erroneous image of Russia among the country’s elites; as well as the economizing trend in its contemporary foreign policy.