Political Transition in Ethiopia and Renewed Trajectory of Ethio-Russian Relations

Ethiopia has external relations with Russian. The relation between the two countries was strengthened with Cold War superpower rivalry and regime changes in Ethiopia in 1974. Their relation again revived after the 2018 political transition in Ethiopia. Hence, this research aimed to address whether the political transition in Ethiopia has opened new avenues for strategic partnership with Russia or recalibrated an existing relationship within a changing geopolitical context. To achieve this objective, the researcher employed a cases study approach with geopolitical and foreign policy analysis and theoretical perspectives. Accordingly, this research revealed that the Ethio-Russia relation is complex and multidimensional in nature. This is because the relation between the two countries encompasses historic, military, cultural, diplomatic, economic, balance of power, geopolitics, long-term structural question, sovereignty risks and playing-off outcomes, diversifying strategic partnership and each other’s non-alignment positions.