Post-Soviet Conflicts

This edited book offers an overview of how political structures, ethnic tensions, and emerging warfare continue to shape the region within the borders of the former Soviet Union.

Bringing together Israeli, European, and US scholars, the volume traces decades of conflict dynamics across Eastern Europe, South Caucasus, and Central Asia, with particular emphasis on the implications of recent regional and global geopolitical developments, such as the Russian-Ukrainian war. Through detailed case studies and theoretical observations, the chapters illustrate the intersections between nationalism, identity politics, inter-ethnic grievances, state-building, sovereignty-seeking, and battlefield dynamics. Combining both macro- and micro-levels of analysis, the chapters draw attention not only to political interactions between governments and countries but also to a more individual and socio-oriented understanding of conflict effects. Overall, the volume demonstrates how old grievances, new geopolitical developments, and contested national narratives continue to fuel instability across post-Soviet states.

This book will be of much interest to students of Post-Soviet Studies, War and Conflict Studies, Eastern European Studies and International Relations.

Vladimir (Ze'ev) Khanin is a Professor of Political Science and heads the Post-Soviet Conflicts Research Program at the Begin-Sadat Centre for Strategic Studies, Bar-Ilan University, Israel. He is author/editor of nine academic books, including, most recently, The Jews of Contemporary Post-Soviet States (2023) and Russian Speaking Jews as a Political Body: A Global Perspective (co-edited with Olaf Glöckner, 2025).

Petr Oskolkov is a postdoctoral researcher at the School of Communication and the Department of Middle Eastern Studies and Political Science, Ariel University, and an affiliated researcher at the Post-Soviet Conflicts Research Program, Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies, Bar-Ilan University, Israel.