PETROZAVODSK - DULUTH: FROM THE HISTORY OF TWINNING OF SOVIET AND AMERICAN CITIES IN THE 1970s - 1980s
This article dwells on the establishment of twin city relations between the USA and the Soviet Union in the 1970s - 1980s. The research is based on the materials from the National Archives of the Republic of Karelia, local periodicals and memoirs of the participants. The history of the first contacts between the cities is presented here. Tashkent and Seattle were the first to become twin cities in 1973. However, due to complicated relations between the Soviet Union and the USA, it was not until the second half of the 1980s that large-scale twinning began. In should be noted that the relations between Soviet and American cities were under state control. This article pays special attention to the development of twin city relations between Petrozavodsk and Duluth. The history of these relations provides insight into the mutual understanding between the two countries and their involvement in the initiative. The Friendship and Cooperation Agreement between Petrozavodsk and Duluth was initiated by the American people and was signed in 1987. The role of individual persons in the development of these relations was so great that we can speak about twinning as a manifestation of people’s diplomacy. The twin city movement created opportunities for cooperation of businesses and educational institutions, such as Petrozavodsk State University and the University of Minnesota Duluth or Karelian State Pedagogical Institute and the College of St. Scholastica. Various exchange programmes as well as tourist and academic trips facilitated information exchange, mutual trust and understanding.