Russia’s role in regional cooperation and the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region (EUSBSR)

ABSTRACT

This article examines EU–Russian relations in the Baltic Sea region (BSR) utilizing the concepts of counter-hegemonic socialization and soft power. The implications of the Ukrainian crisis for regional cooperation in the BSR are also taken into account. The compatibility of EU and Russian regional strategies are considered, as well as how these can often be mutually unaware of one another, or even confrontational. It argues that BSR regional institutions on the one hand face multiple challenges but, on the other, assume a vital role in the promotion of EU–Russian dialogue, offering some potential of bridging the differences in regional strategy.

KEYWORDS:

• Counter-hegemonic socialization
• European Union (EU)
• EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region
• regional cooperation
• Russian strategy for the Baltic Sea Region

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank the St. Petersburg State University, University of Tartu, the Latvian National University, the University of Groningen, and the University of Stockholm for providing them with financial support and a creative academic environment to conduct this research.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the St. Petersburg State University, University of Tartu, Latvian National University, University of Groningen, and University of Stockholm through the research grant IUT-20-39 of Estonian Ministry of Education.

Notes on contributors

Andrey Makarychev

Andrey Makarychev is Guest Professor of Johan Skytte Institute of Political Science, University of Tartu, Estonia. His areas of expertise include Russia’s neighborhood policies and EU–Russia studies. Previous institutional affiliations include George Mason University, ETH Zürich, and the Danish Institute of International Studies. Among his recent publications is the coedited volume ‘Mega Events in Post-Soviet Eurasia: Shifting Borderlines of Inclusion and Exclusion’ (Palgrave Macmillan, 2016).

Alexander Sergunin is Professor at the St. Petersburg State University and Higher School of Economics. He holds a Ph.D. (history) from Moscow State University (1985) and a Habilitation (political science) from St. Petersburg State University (1994). His recent books include Contemporary International Relations Theories and Military Strategy of the Contemporary State .