Counterbalancing, accommodation, and hedging: NATO Eastern flank countries’ political strategies towards Russia

The aim of the article is to diagnose the diversity of political strategies among NATO eastern flank countries towards Russia. The author identifies three major approaches: counterbalancing, which may take the form of containment, accommodation, and hedging. By analysing official security strategies and governmental actions, the article demonstrates the differences between each approach and considers their final consequences. The structure is as follows: firstly, to understand the essence of each political strategy and to consider the consequences as categories of international politics. Secondly, the article illustrates each approach by specific cases: Poland’s counterbalancing, Hungary’s accommodation and Bulgaria’s hedging. The article concludes with the domestic and foreign conditions of these strategies, their costs, and their effectiveness.