The conspiracy theory of the Anaconda plan or the Anaconda loop allegedly describes a Western strategy aimed at completely isolating Russia by creating a belt of “hostile states” along Russia’s borders. This concept is based on the American tactics of the Civil War of the 1860s, when the North blockaded the South to destroy its economy and win. The modern version of the plan in this theory is attributed by conspiracy theorists to American political scientist Zbigniew Brzezinski, who in his book The Grand Chessboard noted the importance of “geopolitical control” to weaken Russia. The theory is now being spread by Kremlin-affiliated think tanks and research institutions.

According to conspiracy theorists, the strategy involves two main stages:

The Intermarium Project: the formation of a bloc of Eastern European states that would unite Poland, the Baltic States, Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova and the Balkans. The goal of this bloc would be to create a buffer zone between Russia and Western Europe, completely isolating Russia in the Baltic and Black Sea region.

Great Turan: An idea that would unite Turkey, the Turkic countries and the Central Asian regions (Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan, Northern Iran, Kyrgyzstan and Turkmenistan) in a cultural and political union that would, in theory, join NATO. This would form a second “belt” around Russia to the south.

However, this theory is not based on confirmed facts and is the result of Russian propaganda. Zbigniew Brzezinski did discuss geopolitical strategies in his works, but he never proposed creating a ring of hostile states around Russia. Real initiatives of international cooperation, intersecting in their features with the description in the theory or cooperation of Eastern European countries, are aimed at supporting sovereignty and security, and not at isolating or blockading Russia. In essence, this theory is a classic example of conspiracy thinking, seeking to find “hidden” explanations in the broad strategic plans of the West, exaggerating the threat and forming an image of the enemy for domestic consumption.

Propagandists use this theory to justify aggression, particularly against Ukraine, by emphasizing that Moscow is supposedly forced to “defend itself” against an artificially created threat from the West and South. They use this conspiracy theory to increase anti-Western sentiments among Russians, strengthen authoritarian measures at home, and strengthen unity in confronting the enemy created by propagandists.