IDENTITY AND FUNCTIONALITY IN THE BARENTS REGION

The idea of transnational integration in Europe has gained an enormous momentum in the last few years, both as a development project among p olitical actors, and as an object of analysis among scholars. The Euro -Arctic Barents Region is an example of a transnational regional co-op eration <<in the making>>. This co-operation aims at reducing the mili tary tension, the threat towards the environment, and the gap in livin g standard between East and West in the European North. In order to re ach these superior goals, one aims at creating an identity region and a functional region. The similarities and common history of the popula tions of the area are emphasised as a force capable of enhancing this process. In the article, the possibility of reaching these goals throu gh active region-building is discussed. Special notice is given to the different cultural heritage of the Russian and Nordic populations of the area. The claim is made that the <<differentness>> of Russians, as opposed to people in the Nordic countries, is not primarily the resul t of 70 years of Communist rule. Russian identity has been formed in a cultural context quite different from that of Western Europe. The wor ld view of Orthodox Christianity, the heritage of the Mongolian Yoke, the absence of a Renaissance, and centuries of autocratic rule are all foundation stones in the formation of a specific Russian identity, Th e consequences of this for the region-building project are by no means obvious, but the assertion is made that insufficient consideration is given to the mentioned cultural gap in the existing literature of the Barents region.