O. V. Bakhlova, I. V. Bakhlov. Identity Politics in the Context of Nation Building and Integration-Oriented Interaction: The Case of the Union State of Belarus and Russia

UDК 323.1:327.3

DOI: 10.15507/2413-1407.113.028.202004.723-753

Introduction. In the processes of nation building and integration, it is particularly important to increase the consolidation potential of emerging communities through identity politics. The totality of challenges, threats and risks determines the need for a balanced combination of its dimensions, taking into account national and common interests of countries. In the post-Soviet space, the Union State of Belarus and Russia acts as a platform for dialogue. The aim of the study is to outline the contours of the construct of supranational identity within the framework of the Union State and to define the degree of its conjugation with the category of “national identityˮ in the discursive practices of the political leadership of Russia and Belarus.

Materials and Methods. The study is based on official documents representing the specifics of interpretation of identity politics by the presidents of the Russian Federation and the Republic of Belarus, as well as on materials associated with the functioning of the Union State. Content analysis, the comparative method, and scenario analysis were employed when examining the documents.

Results. The research and expert assessments of the internal and external dimensions of the identity politics of the member states, as well as the basic and derived categories of the official discourse have been analyzed; the constants and dominants, similarities and differences in the stands of Russia and Belarus have been revealed. It has also been demonstrated that there has been no fundamental contradiction in their understanding of the priorities of nation and Union building. At the same time, disagreements on a number of topical issues have been identified. The leitmotif of the official discourse is giving absolute priority to sovereignty, which has an ambiguous effect on the course of the integration of Russia and Belarus.

Discussion and Conclusion. The conducted study has confirmed the hypothesis that identity politics is multilevel for the states involved in integration-oriented interaction; at the current stage, it remains complex and incomplete. The states demonstrate prevalence of the internal dimension of identity politics and “restrictiveˮ perception of its external dimension, which affects the prospects for promoting the construct of “dualˮ identity. At the same time, the Union State remains an essential integration format for Russia from the geopolitical and civilizational perspective. The approach proposed by the authors and the results obtained, which articulate the correlation of tasks in terms of nation building and integration policy, may help to improve the efficiency of political governance.

Keywords: dual identity, civic identity, national identity, integration, supranational identity, nation building, identity politics, Union State of Belarus and Russia, civilizational identity

Funding. The study was carried out with the financial support from the Russian Foundation for Basic Research as part of the project ‘Spatial Development of Russia as a Factor in Nation Building and Formation of the National Idea’ No. 18-011-00364 A.

The authors declare that there is no conflict of interest.

For citation: Bakhlova O.V., Bakhlov I.V. Identity Politics in the Context of Nation Building and Integration-Oriented Interaction: The Case of the Union State of Belarus and Russia. Regionology = Russian Journal of Regional Studies. 2020; 28(4):723-753. DOI: https://doi.org/10.15507/2413-1407.113.028.202004.723-753

REFERENCES

1. Grishin N.V. A State as an Actor of Identity Construction Policy. Kaspijskij region: politika, ehkonomika, kultura = The Caspian Region: Politics, Economics, Culture. 2019; (3):66-72. (In Russ., abstract in Eng.) DOI: https://doi.org/10.21672/1818-510X-2019-60-3-066-072

2. Bernstein M. Identity Politics. Annual Review of Sociology. 2005; 31(1):47-74. (In Eng.) DOI: https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.soc.29.010202.100054

3. Almagro M., Andres-Cerezo D. The Construction of National Identities. Theoretical Economics. 2020; 15(2):763-810. (In Eng.) DOI: https://doi.org/10.3982/TE3040

4. Beland D. Identity, Politics, and Public Policy. Critical Policy Studies. 2016; 11(1):1-18. (In Eng.) DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/19460171.2016.1159140

5. Đorđević R., Kostadinović A. Patriotism between National Identity of People and Neoliberalism. Journal of Process Management – New Technologies, International. 2020; 8(2):12-22. (In Eng.) DOI: https://doi.org/10.5937/jouproman8-25374

6. Hayward C., Watson R. Identity Politics and Democratic Nondomination. Contemporary Political Theory. 2017; 16(2):185-206. (In Eng.) DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/cpt.2016.22

7. Lustig K.C. Equal Distribution of Inequality: Totality and the Limits of Identity Politics. Rethinking Marxism. 2020; 32(2):248-267. (In Eng.) DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/08935696.2020.1727259

8. Wrenn M. Identity, Identity Politics, and Neoliberalism. Panoeconimicus. 2014; 61(4):503-515. (In Eng.) DOI: https://doi.org/10.2298/PAN1404503W

9. Fukuyama F. Identity. The Demand for Dignity and the Politics of Resentment. New York: Farrar, Straus & Giroux; 2018. Available at: https://www.amazon.com/Identity-Demand-Dignity-Politics-Resentment/dp/03... (accessed 03.07.2020). (In Eng.)

10. Baltodano Usarov A.S., Ponomarev N., Mailis A. “Color Revolutions” and National-State Identity. PolitBook. 2019; (1):116-132. Available at: http://politbook.online/images/pdf/PolitBook2019_Issue_1.pdf (accessed 03.07.2020). (In Russ., abstract in Eng.)

11. Evstifeev R.V. Identity Crisis as a Political Challenge of the 21st Century: Theoretical Approaches to Research, Evaluating, and Understanding. Politicheskaya ekspertiza: POLITEHKS = Political Expertise: POLITEX. 2019; 15(1):108-121. (In Russ., abstract in Eng.) DOI: https://doi.org/10.21638/11701/spbu23.2019.108

12. Kumar V. Citizenship, Violence and Identity Politics. Sociology International Journal. 2018; 2(3):245-255. (In Eng.) DOI: https://doi.org/10.15406/sij.2018.02.00055

13. Lagutin O.V. Principles of the Public Policy of the Identity Formation in Modern Russia. Konfliktologiya = Conflict Resolution. 2019; 14(3):44-55. (In Russ., abstract in Eng.) DOI: https://doi.org/10.31312/2310-6085-2019-14-3-44-55

14. Ustinkin S.V., Rudakov A.V. About Perspectives of Policy for Forming and Strengthening Russian Identity. Vlast = Authority. 2018; 26(6):104-110. (In Russ., abstract in Eng.) DOI: https://doi.org/10.31171/vlast.v26i6.5897

15. Drobizheva L.M. Russian Identity: Discussions in the Political Space and Dynamics of Mass Consciousness. Polis. Politicheskie issledovaniya = Polis. Political Studies. 2018; (5):100-115. (In Russ., abstract in Eng.) DOI: https://doi.org/10.17976/jpps/2018.05.09

16. Kazban E. Russian Cultural Dominant as the Basis of Russian Political Identity in the Sociological Dimension. PolitBook. 2019; (3):32-52. Available at: http://politbook.online/images/pdf/PolitBook2019_Issue_3.pdf (accessed 03.07.2020). (In Russ., abstract in Eng.)

17. Mezhuyev B.V. “The Island of Russia” and Russia’s Identity Politics. Rossiya v globalnoj politike = Russia in Global Affairs. 2019; 17(6):162-175. Available at: https://globalaffairs.ru/articles/ostrov-rossiya-i-rossijskaya-politika-identichnosti-2/ (accessed 03.07.2020). (In Russ.)

18. Belokonev S.Yu., Titov V.V., Usmanova Z.R. Russian National-State Identity: Facing Challenges of the Early 21st Century. Vestnik RUDN. Seriya: Politologiya = RUDN Journal of Political Science. 2019; 21(1):90-98. (In Russ., abstract in Eng.) DOI: https://doi.org/10.22363/2313-1438-2019-21-1-90-98

19. Roberts K. Understanding Putin: The Politics of Identity and Geopolitics in Russian Foreign Policy Discourse. International Journal: Canada’s Journal of Global Policy Analysis. 2017; 72(1):28-55. (In Eng.) DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0020702017692609

20. Malinova O.Yu. Symbolic Politics and the Constructing of Macro-Political Identity in Post-Soviet Russia. Polis. Politicheskie issledovaniya = Polis. Political Studies. 2010; (2):90-105. Available at: https://www.politstudies.ru/article/4261 (accessed 03.07.2020). (In Russ., abstract in Eng.)

21. Shishkov V.V., Horoshev S.V. Borderlands on the Edge of Loss: Russian Policy, Ukraine, Belarus in the Context of Post-Imperial Relations. Sravnitelnaya politika = Comparative Politics Russia. 2020; 11(3):75-85. (In Russ., abstract in Eng.) DOI: https://doi.org/10.24411/2221-3279-2020-10037

22. Zemlyakov L.E., Sherys A.V. The Political Identity in the Republic of Belarus. Problemy upravleniya = Issues of Administration. 2019; (1):94-98. Available at: https://elibrary.ru/item.asp?id=39555421 (accessed 03.07.2020). (In Russ., abstract in Eng.)

23. Babosov E.M. To Preserve the Roots of our Statehood. Problemy upravleniya = Issues of Administration. 2018; (4):5-10. Available at: https://elibrary.ru/item.asp?id=36655081 (accessed 03.07.2020). (In Russ., abstract in Eng.)

24. Dashkevich V.O. Belarusian Development Model: Nationally Specific and Universal Historical. Vestnik Brestskogo universiteta. Seriya 1: Filosofiya. Politologiya. Sotsiologiya = Vesnik of Brest University. Series 1: Philosophy. Politology. Sociology. 2014; (2):36-39. Available at: http://www.brsu.by/sites/default/files/vesnik/seryya1.pdf (accessed 03.07.2020). (In Russ., abstract in Eng.)

25. Zadora A. History Teaching in Belarus: Between Europe and Russia. History Education Research Journal. 2017; 15(1):8-23. (In Eng.) DOI: https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.18546/HERJ.15.1.02

26. Baranov A.V. Turbulent Policy as Threat of the Еuroasian Integration. Natsionalnaya bezopasnost i strategicheskoe planirovanie = National Security and Strategic Planning. 2018; (2-2):86-90. Available at: https://futurepubl.ru/ru/nauka/article/36007/view (accessed 03.07.2020). (In Russ., abstract in Eng.)

27. Shimov V.V. Language Problem as a factor of Potential Political Instability in Belarus. Zhurnal Belorusskogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta. Sotsiologiya = Journal of the Belarusian State University. Sociology. 2020; (1):67-70. Available at: https://journals.bsu.by/index.php/sociology/article/view/2903 (accessed 03.07.2020). (In Russ., abstract in Eng.)

28. Fabrykant M. Russian-Speaking Belarusian Nationalism: An Ethnolinguistic Identity Without a Language? Europe-Asia Studies. 2019; 71(1):117-136. (In Eng.) DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/09668136.2018.1555796

29. Titarenko L. Post-Soviet Belarus: The Transformation of National Identity. International Studies. Interdisciplinary Political and Cultural Journal. 2011; 13(1):6-18. (In Eng.) DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/v10223-011-0002-4

30. Burkhardt F., Rohava V. Verfassungspolitik und nationale Souveränität in Belarus = Constitutional Policy and National Sovereignty in Belarus. Belarus-Analysen. 2019; (42):2-16. Available at: https://d-nb.info/1187278262/34 (accessed 07.07.2020). (In German)

31. Rohava M. Identity in an Autocratic State: Or What Belarusians Talk about When They Talk about National Identity. East European Politics & Societies. 2018; 32(3):639-668. (In Eng.) DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0888325417741343

32. Ableev S.R., Zolkin A.L., Marchenya P.P. Geopolitical Threats and Sovereign Russia: Is the Clash of Civilizations Growing? Zhurnal Belorusskogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta. Filosofiya. Psikhologiya = Journal of the Belarusian State University. Philosophy and Psychology. 2019; (1):4-9. Available at: http://elib.bsu.by/handle/123456789/218510 (accessed 03.07.2020). (In Russ., abstract in Eng.)

33. Osadchaya G.I. Eurasian Integration: Principles, Ideology, Practice. Zhurnal Belorusskogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta. Sotsiologiya = Journal of the Belarusian State University. Sociology. 2020; (1):31-43. Available at: https://journals.bsu.by/index.php/sociology/article/view/2319 (accessed 03.07.2020). (In Russ., abstract in Eng.)

34. Vatyl V.N. Globalization and Modern Integration Processes: Theoretical and Methodological Modes of Thinking. Vestnik Brestskogo universiteta. Seriya 1: Filosofiya. Politologiya. Sotsiologiya = Vesnik of Brest University. Series 1: Philosophy. Politology. Sociology. 2016; (2):86-93. Available at: http://www.brsu.by/sites/default/files/vesnik/vesnik_bresckaga_universit... (accessed 03.07.2020). (In Russ., abstract in Eng.)

35. Biketova E.A., Chernyshov Yu.G. Nation-Building in the Republic of Belarus and the European Component in Belarusian Identity. Mirovaya ehkonomika i mezhdunarodnye otnosheniya = World Economy and International Relations. 2018; 62(1):94-103. (In Russ., abstract in Eng.) DOI: https://doi.org/10.20542/0131-2227-2018-62-1-94-103

36. Shimov V.V. Belarusian Identity in the Context of Belarus and Russia Integration. Sotsiologiya = Sociology. 2015; (4):67-74. Available at: https://elibrary.ru/item.asp?id=25462265 (accessed 03.07.2020). (In Russ., abstract in Eng.)

37. Tsumarova E.Yu. Identity: Politics or Policy? Vestnik Permskogo universiteta. Seriya: Politologiya = Bulletin of Perm University. Political Science. 2012; (2):5-16. Available at: https://elibrary.ru/item.asp?id=17820451 (accessed 03.07.2020). (In Russ.)

38. Semenenko I.S. Identity Politics and Identities in Politics: Interethnic Perspectives in a European Context. Polis. Politicheskie issledovaniya = Polis. Political Studies. 2016; (4):8-28. (In Russ., abstract in Eng.). DOI: https://doi.org/10.17976/jpps/2016.04.03

Submitted 14.07.2020; accepted for publication 03.09.2020; published online 30.12.2020.

About the authors:

Olga V. Bakhlova, Professor, Department of World History, Political Science and Regional Studies, National Research Mordovia State University (68/1 Bolshevistskaya St., Saransk 430005, Russian Federation), Dr. Sci. (Political Science), ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3849-8321, olga.bahlova@mail.ru

Igor V. Bakhlov, Head of Department, Department of World History, Political Science and Regional Studies, National Research Mordovia State University (68/1 Bolshevistskaya St., Saransk 430005, Russian Federation), Dr. Sci. (Political Science), ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6886-5762, bahlov@mail.ru

Contribution of the authors:

Olga V. Bakhlova – collection, processing and analysis of information; preparation of the initial version of the text; critical analysis of the materials; critical analysis and revision of the text of the article.

Igor V. Bakhlov – examination of the conception; critical analysis and revision of the text of the article.

The authors have read and approved the final version of the manuscript

To download article