Relationship status: it is complicated; The interaction between transnational American NGOs operating in Russia and the U.S. government during the Reset Policy 2009-2014
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2015-08-15
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en
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The work and impact of NGOs has been widely studied and recognized. However, most of these acknowledgements are based upon perceptions, anecdotal evidence, and on mostly nonscientific assessments of NGOs work and impact. Currently, there is a rise in studies, by scholars studying NGOs and their behavior and interaction with states in the field of international relations, assessing the performances, effectiveness, and ultimate impact of NGOs on international relations and world politics. The best way to measure and establish the impact of the interaction between NGOs and government is by means of case studies. Studying the interaction between American NGOs and the U.S. government during the Reset Policy in Russia teaches us that NGOs can have a positive impact on the Reset Policy by supporting and implementing its democracy and human rights objectives through its activities, information sharing, agenda setting, and polic! y advice. However, the interaction also has a negative impact on the Reset Policy, which affects its main objective of improving U.S.-Russian bilateral relations. Due to their close interaction with the U.S. government the NGOs were perceived as agents for the U.S. whose goal was to undermine Russian authority and sovereignty. The NGOs lost their objectivity and credibility and the Russian government reacted by implementing NGO-laws to curtail the NGOs’ activities. This made it difficult for them to reach their own objectives and the democracy and human rights objectives of the U.S. government’s Reset Policy. Even worse, the works of the NGOs and their interaction with the U.S. government in Russia caused the further deterioration of the U.S.-Russian bilateral relations and played a part in the failure of the Reset Policy.
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