Uneven spatial development of municipalities in the Far Eastern borderland
One of the principles of territorial development is functional correspondence, when territories are involved in the economic activities in line with their natural properties and resources. The paper explores the impact of heterogeneity of municipalities with explicit specialisation in agriculture on their uneven spatial development. The authors justify the need to apply a differentiated approach to the territorial planning of the municipalities' development, i.e. to allow for natural, climatic, economic and social factors in order to improve spatial policy. The study tests the hypothesis that municipalities' position in the system of settlement and differentiation of living conditions exerts a significant impact on their uneven socioeconomic development. The researchers examine the differentiation of the municipalities' socioeconomic development using the proposed typologies of municipal districts (a type of municipalities in the system of local government of the Russian Federation). The typology takes into consideration the municipalities' location in natural and climatic zones and their position in the settlement structure, which determines the availability of services provided in regional centers of public services. For the purposes of the study, general research and statistical methods are used. Testing the developed method at the example of Amur oblast enabled the authors to compare the existing intraregional differentiation and draw conclusions about the need to take into account the specifics of the territories' development in the spatial policy. The results of the study can be a guide for regional development strategies.