The Determinants of Kenya’s Foreign Policy Towards the Russian Federation, 1992-2013

Abstract

The formulation and conduct of Kenya’s foreign policy towards the Russian Federation is a function of several factors, both domestic and systemic. Like all countries, Kenya’s foreign policy is formulated in the domestic milieu, an environment that is shaped and defined by various attributes including socio-economic, political, geographical factors. These factors influence the domestic policy environment, the result of which diverse array of policies and priorities emerge that eventually find their way into the foreign policy that the country pursues. At the systemic level, Kenya exists within an international system that like the universe, is characterized by laws, different entities, each with its own set of desires, characteristics, capabilities. These systemic attributes condition, by either providing opportunities or constraints, condition what type of foreign policy Kenya pursues towards the Russian Federation. Using the neoclassical theory, this study has found that while Kenya pursues national interest as the primary goal of its foreign policy in its asymmetrical dyadic relations with the Russian Federation, it does so under the influence of not only its domestic attributes but also of the systemic determinants. By utilizing the qualitative analysis of primary and secondary sources through documentary and survey research methods, this study found that Kenya’s foreign policy towards the Russian Federation is a function of both domestic and systemic determinants, with the domestic decision-making structures acting as the transmission belt that reconciles both sets of determinants. This results in rational foreign policy choice pursued using various instruments to yield maximum gain for the country.