Post-Soviet ports and the geopolitical evolution of the contemporary world. Critical analysis of the 1993–2023 period

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The study investigates the transformation of post-Soviet port systems under shifting geopolitical pressures. In the initial section, the legacy of a Soviet port network designed to serve domestic circulation is traced, and its fragmentation through privatisation, institutional crisis and strategic decrees aimed at reviving a national merchant fleet is documented. The second section positions the 1991 collapse as the pivotal moment that disrupted inherited trade corridors, stimulated new state-backed port investments and redirected transit dynamics in the Baltic, Black, Pacific and Arctic regions. Finally, an analysis of vessel tracking data, utilising the Automated Identification System (AIS) from 2021 to 2024, has revealed a significant shift in the strategic orientation of Russian ports towards the Asia-Pacific region. This transition is characterised by a notable expansion of the Pacific seaboard and a substantial growth in Arctic operations, despite the prevailing economic sanctions imposed by the West. This phenomenon stands in contrast to the observed decline in connectivity of the Black Sea and the Baltic regions. These findings emphasise the potential of data-driven analysis of real-time maritime flows to expose Russia’s strategic redirection of export and to inform broader debates on infrastructure sovereignty, regional resilience, and the geoeconomics of post-Soviet transport networks.