Home – Home – Jornals – "Philosophy of Education" 2015 number 4

Geopolitics is a science about large spaces, the global political, economic and other processes and the art of their management. The term «geopolitics» is composed of two parts: «geo» and «politics». The word «geo» (earth, territory) suggests that geopolitics considers the influence of geographic factors on the policy of the state. The main such factor is considered to be the location of the state on a continent. In addition, it should be noted that among the significant factors there are not only the length of borders, their location on the natural or artificial boundaries, but also the population, the population density, social structure and, what is important, the level of education, mentality, specificities of the national character and others. The root «geo» has acquired today a second meaning, denoting not only the «global» dimension of politics that characterizes relations between the superpowers or military blocks, but also the «clash of civilizations» (Toynbee, Samuel Huntington), or the change of the overall configuration of the world system (e.g. from the bipolar to the mono- or polycentric ones). The modern actors of geopolitics, rather than yearn to conquer new territories, seek to control as much spaces as possible: not to control the territory as a whole but the lines of communication and various flows in these areas (financial, trade, labor and so on), thereby maintaining the most favorable conditions for their own development and prosperity. In 1916, the Swedish scientist Rudolf Challen (1864-1922) in his work «The state as a form of life» introduced into science the term «geopolitics», defining it as «doctrine, considered the state as a geographical organism or spatial phenomenon». The German theorist Friedrich Ratzel (1844-1904) studied the state mainly from the standpoint of its relationship to the environment, space, taking as the main criterion the spatial relationships. A. G. Dugin considers geopolitics as an ideology: «the world-view of power, the science about power and for power», «the science of ruling». We present geopolitics as a world-view, ideological doctrine justifying the direction of international policy of the state in the living space. It is a practical strategy of international policies of nations and states of the Contemporary history. Geopolitical relations are a relative unity and struggle of various forces in the world, it is a balance of power. After the destruction of the Soviet Union as a result of the Belavezha Accords, the balance of power in the world has changed significantly, the world ceased to be bipolar. The West, taking advantage of the situation, tries to impose its own rules on Russia imposes, trying to create a new world order on Russia’s expense. This threatens unpredictable consequences for the whole world. Note that the expansion against Russia is taking place; this is clearly shown by the events in Ukraine. This expansion has essentially «soft character», its other forms could entail active resistance from the Russians (a deterrent factor is that Russia has a formidable nuclear weapons). We must understand that in the XXI century, as the recourse crisis, especially concerning energy, is aggravating, population is growing, fertile land is being depleted and lost, a «hard version» of territorial expansion cannot be excluded in the world affairs.