The External Relations of Tatarstan: In Pursuit of Sovereignty, or Playing the Sub-Nationalist Card?

Abstract

This article deliberates on the effects of sub-nationalism on the profile of a region in external relations. The questions under consideration in the present contribution are: (1) does nationalism make the external relations of a region conflictual vis-à-vis the federal centre?; and (2) to what extent can its alleged ill effect be counter-balanced by the well-elaborated mechanism of centre-regional coordination? This article aims to contest the assumptions of mainstream thinking in the literature on paradiplomacy, which suggests that sub-nationalism might have a negative effect and that strong institutions are indispensable for a positive outcome. Relying on an analysis of external relations in Tatarstan, a republic in the Russian Federation, this contribution illustrates the crucial role of the ‘manipulative’ form of nationalism as a key factor shaping the functional character of paradiplomacy.