ABSTRACT
Writing on the Arctic region, Keskitalo observes that region-building or regional development consists of two “‘dimensions” that she explains as: “‘regionalism,’ assumed to proceed top-down and driven by national elites, and ‘regionalization,’ seen as a bottom-up expression”. The Gorbachev era in the 1980s and early 1990s marked a turning point to open the border and to forge normalized relations between Norway and the West, and the Soviet Union and then Russia. Although the idea and creation of the Barents Region was very much rooted in ideals of promotion of peace, people-to-people contact, and normalization of relations, economic development to bridge the wealth gap between Russia and the Nordic states was also top of mind for those who forged the region. Whether it be people-to-people cooperation, cross-border exercises, international theatre performances, city twinning across national boundaries, or tourism, para- and public diplomacy have been and are instrumental in all transnational region-building ambitions.
