Balancing Alliance Commitments and Economic Dependence: Faroese-Russian Relations in an Era of Great Power Rivalry: Faroese-Russian Relations in an Era of Great Power Rivalry

Amid growing geopolitical instability and competition in the Arctic and North Atlantic region, this article investigates how the
Faroe Islands – a self-governing territory within the Kingdom of Denmark – has pursued a sophisticated and opportunistic
balancing act between economic cooperation with Russia and broader alliance commitments vis-à-vis Denmark, EU and
NATO. Focusing on the period from 2014 to 2024, the article examines how the Faroe Islands deepened its cooperation with
Russia in the field of trade and fishery in the wake of the Russian annexation of Crimea and subsequently benefited from
Russian sanctions against EU products. This period illustrates how sub-sovereign entities with extensive self-governing authority
can pursue their own national interests that might run against broader Western alliance interests. However, after the full-scale
Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Faroese policies towards Russia drastically changed and aligned with broader
Western alliance commitments. Drawing on alliance theory and the concept of hedging, the article examines the complexities
facing small, autonomous entities within larger political unions when alliance commitments and domestic economic imperatives
collide. Furthermore, the article exemplifies how small, self-governing regions can assert meaningful strategic autonomy in a
polarised global order. However, as the period after the full-scale Russian invasion in February 2022 reveals, there are definite
limits to such autonomy.