US policy from a realist perspective: the Ukraine case study

This thesis focuses on the analysis of the United States' foreign policy towards Ukraine in the period 2014-2022. The aim is to verify whether the US actions in this period were consistent with the assumptions of realist international relations theory, in particular the principles of power maximization and maintaining the balance of power. Since the end of World War II, the US has played a key role in European security, and as a global power in a unipolar system, it must respond flexibly to changes in the situation in previously stable regions such as Europe. The realist paradigm, which focuses on issues of power and conflict, is particularly suited to the analysis of this relationship. Research has shown that the United States did not act in full accordance with the principle of power maximization during the period under review, but its approach reflected to a large extent the desire to maintain the balance of power in the region.At the same time, it was identified that US strategic actions were partly influenced by the global context, in particular the growing influence of China, to which the United States had to respond adequately.