CULTURAL TIES BETWEEN RUSSIA’S SVERDLOVSK REGION AND THE REGIONS OF KAZAKHSTAN: KEY ASPECTS
This article examines the cultural exchanges between Russia’s Sverdlovsk region and the regions of Kazakhstan. Interregional cooperation is an essential area of Russia - Kazakhstan relations at current stage. The author studies the legal basis of the cooperation and traces how the ties have been developing since 2015 (after the Eurasian Economic Union Treaty entry into force) up to 2020, including the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic. Sverdlovsk region is taken for the analysis as an example of a large industrial region of Russia, situated in the middle of the country, far from borders, but with well-developed infrastructure and connectivity, providing vast experience of external economic and cultural contacts. The following main areas of interregional cultural cooperation are defined: education ties (the most intensive cooperation), art exchanges, tourism, media contacts and youth policies. The research demonstrates that the key partners of Sverdlovsk region among the Kazakh counterparts are Kostanay region, Akmola region, North Kazakhstan region, Astana and Almaty. Regarding the structure of cooperation, the article displays the role of both state and non-state institutions in it. It is concluded that the structure and contents of the cooperation point out that its process is not somehow unilaterally imposed by the states, but is rather developed from within, due to the long cooperation experience and demand from Russian and Kazakh societies. The author argues that, taking into account the necessity of cultural cooperation for bilateral relationship, for integration processes and for mutual understanding, these interregional ties still should be improved in terms of structure diversification and widening their geographical scope.