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exist as city-pairs cooperating across a shared border (Schultz, 2002: 3). In general, twinning is seen
by local actors as an adequate and preferable response to the numerous challenges that they face in
their day-to-day life. It is pursued by many European, including some Russian, municipalities not
only as an efficient instrument for solving local problems; twinning is also employed in efforts to
ensure their sustainable development. The municipalities depart from the assumption that various
border-related resources can be utilized more effectively with cooperation extending beyond state
borders, although the efficiency and scale of twinning varies considerably across Europe (Ploszaj,
2012; Schultz, 2005).
It should be noted that the very concept of ―twin cities‖ figures as a rather vexed question in the
research literature. Different schools suggest different interpretations and use various synonyms
(often of a misleading character). To summarize the ongoing academic discussion, the following
definitions of the concept can be identified.
In the domestic context,
twin cities are a special case of two cities or urban centers founded in close
geographic proximity and then growing into each other over time. Originally, this concept referred
specifically to the cities Minneapolis and Saint Paul located in Minnesota (Twin cities, 2011), but
with time it was used to describe the same phenomenon in other countries. It should be noted,
however, that with some exceptions (e.g. Porsgrunn and Skien, Fredrikstad and Sarpsborg in
Norway), northern Europe lacks this kind of twin cities. Instead, there are a number of the so-called
―satellite‖ cities in the region that have emerged in order to ―groom‖ larger urban centers and/or
fulfill specific functions (to host university campuses, techno-parks, industries, transport
infrastructure, military bases, etc.): Sandnes–Stavanger (Norway), Espoo-Helsinki (Finland),
Severomorsk–Murmansk and Severodvinsk–Arkhangelsk (Russia) are cases in point. The craving for
larger and more competitive entities is bound to increase pressures towards mergers.
In the
international sense,
there are two – broad and narrow – definitions of the concept ―twin
cities/towns.‖ Under the
broader understanding,
the term ―twin cities‖ has been employed to connote
cooperative agreements between cities, towns, and even counties that are not neighbors but located
at a considerable distance and even in separate countries to promote economic, commercial, and
cultural ties (Stephen, 2008). Most town twinning unfolds between cities facing similar social,
economic, and political situations or sharing historical links. In Europe, a variety of terms are used,
although ―twin cities‖ appears to be the most common one. However, other terms such as sister,
fraternal, connected, double, transborder, bi-national, neighbored, coupled, partner, and friendship
are utilized in naming the city-pairs (Buursink, 2001; Schultz, 2002). In the case of Russia (similar to
the Soviet time), along with twin-towns concept, the terms of brother/fraternal (
pobratimy
) or related
(
porodnennye
) cities are used.
In the
narrow sense,
twin cities are border towns adjacent to each other. According to Buursink (1994),
there are two sub-categories of neighbored border towns: double towns that aim at cooperation and
supplementing each other, and town couples that often compete with each other. Schultz (2002)
asserts that only double towns can be seen as real twins and sets a number of criteria for selecting
twin towns. They should not only consist of border towns but also have the following
characteristics: