Russia Diplomatic Profile
Anchored by Belarus, China, North Korea, and Iran, with a deep partnership with India and growing reliance on Global South energy customers; isolated from the European Union, the United Kingdom, the Nordics, and most of the Western alliance.
Russia is a nuclear-armed permanent member of the UN Security Council waging the largest land war in Europe since 1945 and trying to lock in its gains through a US-brokered settlement. Its economy runs on oil and gas exports rerouted to Asia, especially India and China, after Western markets closed. The Kremlin has built an axis of convenience with North Korea, Iran, and Belarus, and a deeper strategic alignment with Beijing, while keeping a foothold in Africa through the Africa Corps. At home, Vladimir Putin's authority remains unchallenged, the security services have absorbed most domestic dissent, and the war economy is the central organizing fact of public life.
Key Interests
- Locking in territorial gains in Ukraine and forcing recognition of a neutral, non-NATO Kyiv
- Sustaining oil and gas revenues by selling discounted crude to India, China, and Turkey despite Western sanctions
- Splitting the transatlantic alliance by cultivating direct channels with Washington and dialogue-friendly capitals like Paris, Rome, and Budapest
Russia Allies and Enemies
Russia's closest allies: Belarus (87), North Korea (80), Tajikistan (73), China (72), Kyrgyzstan (58).
Russia's top rivals: Ukraine (-95), Lithuania (-88), Poland (-86), Latvia (-84), Estonia (-83).
Of 202 countries, Russia has 26 allies, 123 neutral relationships, and 53 enemies.
Russia Relations by Dimension
Russia's closest military partners are North Korea (96), Belarus (93), Tajikistan (71). Most adversarial military relationships: Ukraine (-100), Poland (-92), Lithuania (-92).
Russia's closest diplomatic partners are Belarus (84), North Korea (80), China (78). Most adversarial diplomatic relationships: Lithuania (-95), Ukraine (-94), Poland (-91).
Russia's closest regime relations partners are North Korea (94), Belarus (91), Tajikistan (88). Most adversarial regime relations relationships: Ukraine (-100), Lithuania (-95), Poland (-93).
Russia's closest societal relations partners are Belarus (72), Serbia (64), Kazakhstan (59). Most adversarial societal relations relationships: Ukraine (-100), Lithuania (-80), Kosovo (-76).
Russia's closest economic interdependence partners are Belarus (91), Kazakhstan (80), Tajikistan (77).
Russia's closest economic policy partners are North Korea (85), Belarus (80), Iran (65). Most adversarial economic policy relationships: Ukraine (-98), United Kingdom (-93), Italy (-92).
Russia’s Allies & Enemies
Closest Allies
5Russia's closest allies are Belarus, North Korea, Tajikistan, China, and Kyrgyzstan. Russia's most adversarial relationships are with Ukraine, Lithuania, Poland, Latvia, and Estonia.
Global Relations
Diplomatic Profile
Anchored by Belarus, China, North Korea, and Iran, with a deep partnership with India and growing reliance on Global South energy customers; isolated from the European Union, the United Kingdom, the Nordics, and most of the Western alliance.
Key Interests
Russia is a nuclear-armed permanent member of the UN Security Council waging the largest land war in Europe since 1945 and trying to lock in its gains through a US-brokered settlement. Its economy runs on oil and gas exports rerouted to Asia, especially India and China, after Western markets closed. The Kremlin has built an axis of convenience with North Korea, Iran, and Belarus, and a deeper strategic alignment with Beijing, while keeping a foothold in Africa through the Africa Corps. At home, Vladimir Putin's authority remains unchallenged, the security services have absorbed most domestic dissent, and the war economy is the central organizing fact of public life.
Anchored by Belarus, China, North Korea, and Iran, with a deep partnership with India and growing reliance on Global South energy customers; isolated from the European Union, the United Kingdom, the Nordics, and most of the Western alliance.
Of 202 countries, Russia has 26 allies, 123 neutral relationships, and 53 enemies.
By Dimension
Military
Russia’s closest military partners are North Korea, Belarus, and Tajikistan. Most adversarial: Ukraine, Poland, and Lithuania.
Diplomatic
Russia’s closest diplomatic partners are Belarus, North Korea, and China. Most adversarial: Lithuania, Ukraine, and Poland.
Regime Relations
Russia’s closest regime relations partners are North Korea, Belarus, and Tajikistan. Most adversarial: Ukraine, Lithuania, and Poland.
Societal Relations
Russia’s closest societal relations partners are Belarus, Serbia, and Kazakhstan. Most adversarial: Ukraine, Lithuania, and Kosovo.
Economic Interdependence
Russia’s closest economic interdependence partners are Belarus, Kazakhstan, and Tajikistan.
Economic Policy
Russia’s closest economic policy partners are North Korea, Belarus, and Iran. Most adversarial: Ukraine, United Kingdom, and Italy.
Key Questions
Russia's alliance network has narrowed dramatically since the invasion. Belarus is the closest partner, with military cooperation at near-total alignment — essentially a joint military command. North Korea has become critical, supplying ammunition and reportedly troops in exchange for technology transfers. China provides the economic lifeline through strong diplomatic cooperation. After these three, the drop-off is steep: Tajikistan and Kazakhstan maintain ties through the CSTO but resist full alignment.
No. The fall of the Assad regime ended Russia's most significant Middle Eastern partnership. Russia had maintained military bases in Syria (Tartus naval base, Hmeimim air base) since intervening in the civil war, but Assad's collapse removed Russia's only Mediterranean military foothold. The new Syrian government has not maintained the same level of cooperation, significantly diminishing Russian power projection capability in the region.
Russia has by far the highest adversary count among major powers — roughly a quarter of all countries scored have a negative relationship with Moscow. Compare that to the US, China, or India, which each have far fewer adversaries. Only a small handful of countries have a positive relationship with Russia. The negative cluster is concentrated in Europe: the Baltic states, Finland, and the UK all score deeply adversarial. Ukraine is at the theoretical minimum across all four dimensions.
Strong but asymmetrical. Military cooperation and diplomatic alignment are solid — Beijing provides crucial economic support as Western sanctions bite. However, the relationship is increasingly unequal: Russia has become a resource-exporting junior partner to China's industrial economy. Regime relations reflect shared authoritarian governance models but distinct ideological frameworks. The societal dimension is notably weak, showing limited people-to-people affinity.
Russia-Ukraine sits at the absolute floor on every single dimension — military, diplomatic, regime relations, and societal. This is the only bilateral relationship in the entire dataset at the theoretical minimum across all four measures. The conflict has also reshaped Russia's relationships with dozens of other countries: Finland and Sweden joined NATO, and former neutral states across Europe shifted to deeply negative scores with Moscow.
Russia courts the 'Global Majority' through cheap oil, grain exports, and the Africa Corps (formerly Wagner Group) paramilitary operations. However, these relationships mostly register as neutral rather than positive — most African and Latin American nations hedge rather than align. Russia's positive relationships are concentrated in the former Soviet space (Belarus, Central Asian states) and a handful of fellow pariah states (North Korea, Iran). Iran shows strong military and regime relations alignment with Russia.
North Korea has become Russia's second-most important military partner, scoring near the top of the scale on both military cooperation and regime relations. Pyongyang supplies artillery shells and reportedly personnel for the Ukraine front, while Moscow provides technology, energy, and diplomatic cover at the UN Security Council. The relationship has deepened rapidly, with Putin visiting Pyongyang and signing a mutual defense pact. However, societal relations remain very weak, reflecting the near-total isolation of North Korean society.