The integration policies of Belarus and Ukraine vis-à-vis the EU and Russia : a comparative case study through the lenses of a two-level games approach

After the break-up of the Soviet Union, the escalating rivalry between the EU and Russia in their shared neighbourhood created major economic, political and security challenges for the two states that border them: Belarus and Ukraine. Both countries were made integration offers by the EU and Russia. Their responses, and the consequences of these choices, were driven by a complex range of domestic and foreign policy factors. Drawing widely on extensive empirical research, Dr Leukavets shows how the EU’s and Russia’s rival integration projects challenged the leaders of Belarus and Ukraine to make major strategic choices while aiming to ensure the independence and sovereignty of their countries. The study sheds important light on the genesis of the 2020 Belarus crisis and the 2022 Russia-Ukraine war.