Rusya’nın Kafkasya Siyaseti Üzerindeki Stalin Gölgesi
Stalin's Shadow on Russia’s Caucasus Politics

Summary/Abstract: The aim of this work is to underline the fact that the historical origins ofethnic and political problems in the Caucasus region were partially laid by Jozef Stalin. It also aims to demonstrate that Russia uses these inherited problems to legitimize its military, political and cultural presence in the region. This study discusses analitically Russia's policies that persist from Tsarist and Soviet era up to now in the Caucasus. Thus, we will try to show that Russia has policies with historical background rather than conjunctural policies of the Caucasus. After the World War II, Jozef Stalin, who constantly intervened in the ethnical structure and natural borders of the Caucasus, turned this region into a convolute set of problems. A key role in solving these artifically created problems has given to the Soviet Union(today’s Russia). According to this scenario, autonomous republics should be convinced that the problems in the region could not be solved without the Soviet Union. The old Soviet elites, who never imagined that the Soviet Union could collapse, has made the present-day Russia open to foreign intervention, but gave Russia a useful tool in foreign relations as long as it kept its military strength.

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