Russia’s Plans for New World Order Leaked

Russia plans to exert long-term regional dominance by establishing a trading bloc to counter the likes of the EU, but Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine has hampered that vision, a leaked Kremlin report alleged.

The report also acknowledged Western sanctions have driven the Kremlin’s former allies away from its grasp.

The Financial Times (FT) said the details were outlined in a presentation “shown at a strategy session led by Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin last April,” with high-level figures in attendance that included “several dozen senior government officials and top executives at some of Russia’s largest state companies,” as well as some Kremlin hardliners such as far-right philosopher Aleksandr Dugin.

The FT did not disclose how it obtained the documents, and Kyiv Post cannot independently verify the authenticity of the content.

Moscow-led ‘macroregion’

According to the FT, Russia sought to create a Moscow-led, trade-oriented Eurasian “macroregion” to restore its global influences – a bloc that would also connect the Global South by granting each side access to raw materials, as well as developing financial and transport ties.

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The envisioned bloc would also have an ideological element, which would share a common “world view... where we write rule for the new world [and have] our own sanctions policy,” the report allegedly states.

The bloc, as per the Kremlin’s vision, would eventually counter other economic blocs, including those of the US, the EU, and Moscow-ally China.

Hurdles resulting from sanctions

The Kremlin also acknowledged its dwindling influences over the post-Soviet space, in part due to Western sanctions on Russia.

The presentation asserted that the West has both coerced and motivated central Asian nations – most of them once part of the USSR – into steering away from Russian influence.

According to the presentation, the means of steering away from Russian influence has included access to global markets, transport corridors, and supply chains that bypass Moscow to encourage them to adhere to Western sanctions.

In addition, the presentation asserted that the nations have used the sanctions as leverage to demand better conditions from Moscow when they aided the latter to bypass the sanctions.

“Russia’s allies, meanwhile, have profited from the sanctions by driving Russian businesses out of their home jurisdiction, taking control of import and export flows, and relocating production from Russia, according to the report. It adds that central Asian countries have also sought extra commissions to compensate for the risks of violating sanctions,” the FT reported.

Addressing the hurdles

The presentation acknowledged that, due to the sanctions, exerting influence over those nations would be difficult, even were Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine to result in a Russian victory.

However, the Kremlin sought to “play the long game” in maintaining influence over the post-Soviet space in central Asia by appealing to their shared history and acting as if it respected their independence.

It is unclear if the Kremlin has implemented the visions outlined in the alleged presentation on its post-Soviet allies, as evidenced by its handling of the downed Azerbaijani airliner that caused outrage in the Caucasian nation.

Current Moscow-led blocs and their dwindling influence

The presentation also acknowledged Moscow’s dwindling influence in some of its alliances.

It said there are “systemic problems” in the Eurasian Economic Union, which includes Belarus, Armenia, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, evidenced by the preference of Western payment systems when Russia’s banking access became limited.

It highlighted neighboring Belarus – a vassal state – as one of the few successful examples of Moscow’s ongoing efforts – an alliance partially fueled by Minsk’s own isolation by the West.

Armenia, one of Moscow’s former allies, announced its withdrawal from the Moscow-led military alliance, Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), in June 2024. This year, Armenia signed a strategic partnership agreement with the US, with clauses to bolster bilateral cooperation in economic, defensive and social developmental spheres.

Kazakhstan has also condemned Russia’s invasion of Ukraine as a sign of Russia’s dwindling influence, the FT reported.