Black sea-Caspian region as the "Great game": the classification system analysis

Abstract

Black sea-Caspian region as the "Great game": the classification system analysis

Rozin M. D., Ryabcev V.N., Svechkarev V. P.

Incoming article date: 22.09.2016

The object of system analysis is increasingly becoming a geopolitical constructs. The part of the system analysis is to focus on the classification aspects of the structural elements of such a geopolitical entity as the Black Sea-Caspian region. Classification analysis is focused on actors (players), initiating "the Great game" in the political field of the region. We propose consideration of the morphological (elementwise) of the Black Sea-Caspian region, followed by the ranking of "local" actors and building of the "crystal lattice" on a regional scale. For the study of actors we are propose to use additive and integrative approaches. First is to involve sequential consideration of three geographical sub-regions "Black Sea – Caucasus – Caspian" as sites of "place-action". The second approach comes from the impossibility of a clear definition of natural boundaries "of the Black Sea, Caucasus and Caspian basin", taken separately. The authors propose for the boundaries in a purely geographical sense to understand some of the transition area between environments and/or spaces with qualitatively and quantitatively different properties and parameters. Actually there is "overlay" above three sub-regions, their intersection, fact that "stay" of some States of this zone in several of these subregions.

Keywords: geopolitics, "the Great game", the Black Sea-Caspian region, system analysis, classification, ranking