ABSTRACT
This chapter analyses the Kondopoga conflict and the debate that followed the incident as a process which is informed by questions of citizenship, identity and belonging. It identifies the ways in which the government in Karelia, during the aftermath of the conflict, constructed particular structural positions for residents to occupy and asks whether these positions were inclusive of the needs and experiences of those inhabitants who had migrated to North-West Russia from the North Caucasus. Ethnicities, cultures and religions have co-existed in Russia for centuries. Karelia, being part of Russia, shares this historical destiny. The tolerant and compromising attitudes of citizens were understood as factors contributing towards economic success and socio-economic development. The dominant discourse concerning civic identity in Karelia is centred on the notion of citizenship. The concept of soglasie is ambiguous when translated into English. The term can mean reconciliation, harmony, understanding, unanimity and consensus, which can all be depicted as distinct aims of the post-Kondopoga national policy.
