Sub-national Governance Structures in the Northern Dimension and the Black Sea Synergy: Perspectives for European Regionalism

This paper investigates the emergence and effects of European regionalism and the European Union’s (EU) external governance in the Northern Dimension (ND) and the Black Sea Synergy (BSS), two regional cooperation partnerships within the European Neighborhood Policy. In particular, it explores the evolution, development, configuration, and structural properties of the regional interorganizational cooperation systems and examines their effects on democratic governance and policymaking in the Russian northwestern and southern regions that participate in the ND and BSS initiatives. The paper also examines local factors that account for the resistance to or acceptance of EU norms and standards. The results of the analysis indicate that the intensity and effectiveness of regional cooperation and regional convergence of policies and approximation to EU norms and standards depend on the degree of decentralization, density, and cohesiveness of regional cooperation networks, and also on the regional ethno-cultural, historical, and geopolitical contexts.