The Prospects for Socio-Humanitarian Field as Russian-Iraqi Relations Development in the Context of the Current Transformation of the International System

The article examines the potential of socio-humanitarian cooperation as one of the promising areas for Russia-Iraq relations development under the ongoing transformation of the international system. The author analyzes the limitations of traditional fields of bilateral cooperation primarily based on political, energy, and military-technical interaction, and substantiates the need to diversify Russia-Iraq relations. Particular attention is paid to the advantages of socio-humanitarian cooperation, which is marked by less dependency on changes in the international environment, capability to form a human capital, institutional ties, and public confidence. The experience of Saudi Arabia in promoting the tourism and international humanitarian cooperation is considered as an example of the long-term state policy effectiveness in this area. In view of the conducted research, the article proposes the most promising growth directions of Russia-Iraq cooperation including academic mobility, joint research activities, professional training, language education progress, medical cooperation, youth and cultural exchanges, and the establishment of sustainable expert platforms. It is concluded that the socio-humanitarian cooperation extension is in with a chance to turn into an important factor in strengthening the sustainability and long-term effectiveness of Russia-Iraq relations.