Russia’s Domestic and International Situations and Development Dynamics in the Eurasian Region

Speaker

Li Ziguo, Director of the Institute of Eurasian Studies at the China Institute of International Studies (CIIS), Secretary-General of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Research Center. A leading expert on Eurasian issues, SCO affairs, China-Russia relations, and regional security and economic integration, he has been deeply involved in providing consultancy for major national foreign policy initiatives. He has advanced systematic propositions on critical issues such as the Ukraine crisis, the practice of the Global Security Initiative, and the construction of the "Greater Eurasian Partnership," and has repeatedly represented China in major international think tank dialogues.

Lecture Content

Director Li Ziguo highlights that, in response to Western sanctions and NATO’s dual-line pressure, Russia has accelerated its "pivot eastward" strategy, marking a definitive departure from the "Great Europe illusion" by withdrawing from the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty. It is reshaping its geo-economic pivot through the integration of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) with the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). The current Eurasian security landscape is undergoing ongoing reconfiguration due to NATO expansion and the prolonged Ukraine crisis. While SCO enlargement has strengthened counter-terrorism cooperation, it has also increased complexity in decision-making. Economically, the region faces challenges from the de-Westernization of energy supply chains and competition in green transition, with urgent needs to break through bottlenecks in regional payment systems and mutual recognition of standards.

In this context, China-Russia collaboration must transcend the "anti-US narrative," taking energy ties as an anchor to jointly build a "dual-line defense" against NATO expansion. It should innovate multilateral governance by phased construction of an SCO free trade zone and promote the implementation of an "inclusive security concept," while leveraging Russia’s strategic pivot toward the Middle East to expand energy-infrastructure layouts. Professor Sheng Li further notes that Russia’s strategic pivot and the upgrading of SCO mechanisms are driving the Eurasian order toward a "development-oriented" transformation, converting risks of regional fragmentation into sustainable momentum and offering the Global South a new governance paradigm to resist hegemonic intervention.

Moderator

Sheng Li, Distinguished Professor at the School of Politics and Public Administration, Shandong University; Executive Dean of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Research Institute, Shandong University.

Time

10:00-12:00, Friday, August 29, 2025

Venue

Central Hall Conference Room, 5th Floor, South Building, Huagang Yuan

Organizers

School of Politics and Public Administration, Shandong University

Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Research Institute, Shandong University

Institute of Public Security, Shandong University

China-SCO Institute of Economy and Trade