Leonid Karabeshkin, Christian Wellmann
The Russian Domestic Debate on Kaliningrad
Integrity, Identity and Economy
Reihe: Kieler Schriften zur Friedenswissenschaft
The book investigates into the domestic background of Russia's policy with respect to its Baltic... mehr
The book investigates into the domestic background of Russia's policy with respect to its Baltic exclave, the EU and NATO encircled Kaliningrad region. Based solely on Russian sources, the book strives for deepening the understanding of Russia's Kaliningrad policy by non-Russian actors and of why it quite often appears to be unsuitable, eruptive or offensive. The policy issues studied in-depth concern identity formation, economic development and the visa regime. Common to all is that the respective federal policies are strongly affected by worries about the territorial integrity of Russia and the possibility of alienation of the exclave from the mainland. The book concludes with lessons to be learned on how to respond constructively to the mode of Russia's Kaliningrad policy.
Leonid Karabeshkin is chairman of the Baltic Club, St Petersburg.
Christian Wellmann is deputy director of the Schleswig-Holstein Institute for Peace Research, Kiel.