THE POTENTIAL AND PRACTICE OF CONTEMPORARY PARADIPLOMACY IN THE PAVLODAR AND OMSK REGIONS

Abstract

Paradiplomacy, as a form of foreign policy practice carried out by
subnational actors amid contemporary geopolitical and geoeconomic challenges,
has become a notable phenomenon in international relations. As participants in
international cooperation, subnational actors develop their activities within the
framework of national legislation. This article analyzes the paradiplomacy of
the Omsk and Pavlodar regions, which complements the policies of the central
governments of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Russian Federation. The
mechanisms for promoting international cooperation and the experience of
interaction between the two regions in the economic sphere are examined. The
theoretical framework is based on the interpretations of paradiplomacy developed
by leading scholars such as I. Duchacek, P. Soldatos, S. Paquin, and others.
Quantitative and qualitative methods, as well as content analysis, were employed.
The study draws on documents from the State Archive of the Pavlodar Region,
monographs and scholarly articles on paradiplomacy, and periodical publications.
The article highlights the active role of local governments in advancing
paradiplomacy through mutual visits, consultations, and the organization of
meetings between the business communities of the two regions, which possess
comparable levels of industrial development. Their paradiplomatic potential and
the internal challenges they face are also explored. The study demonstrates that the
two regions, being integrated into the state strategies of their respective countries,
play an important role in promoting paradiplomacy through coordinated actions.
The recommendations proposed are aimed at improving the paradiplomatic
activities of both regions, including the intensification of industrial cooperation.