Twin Cities Movement in the Development of Regional Policy: The Experience of the New Territories

Abstract

The institute of twin cities faces serious challenges due to the developing international crisis, when urban diplomacy, and successful practices of interstate civil cooperation, perceived for decades as unshakable and value-oriented, have been subjected to “suspension” or “cancellation”. On the other hand, the territorial changes of 2022, the entry of new territories into Russia, and the establishment of twinning relations between Russian cities and the cities of the Donbass region give the twin cities institute a new meaning and important political and cultural value. The formation and development of the twin cities’ axiosphere is an important factor in the development of interregional cooperation and the “linking” of Russian territories. The research is interdisciplinary. It deals with various issues of public policy, social philosophy, cultural studies, ethics, and economics. We discuss the specifics of a developing digital society and consider issues of regional governance from the standpoint of the axiological approach. The authors note the importance of civic initiatives and movements, social media, whose activities are aimed at maintaining the social sphere and forming a digital environment of trust, at intensifying urban, civic network cooperation as a counterbalance to the aggressive network practices of modern anti-Russian narratives.