Typology of Russia’s Western borderland regions by level of economic security: risks and threats

Abstract

Nowadays the development of the methodology for studying economic security of border regions is an emerging scientific issue. It is closely connected with the escalation of geopolitical turbulence. A change in Russia’s foreign policy and foreign economic relations with other countries produces an increase in potential and real threats and risks. The article describes and evaluates types of the regions of Russia’s western borderlands according to their economic security level in order to elucidate their peculiarities and establish a relation to the border factor. The experimental typology of the Russia’s western border regions was elaborated in 2000-2017 on the basis of estimated values of economic security integral indexes using the clustering method. Accelerated positive dynamics of changes in economic security has been found on general indicators related to the state support for regional infrastructure development and improvement of the socio-demographic situation. Such dynamics has not been found in the group of special indicators, which reflects specific features of ensuring economic security and take into account the influence of the border factor. Special attention is devoted to the correspondence of typologies of the border regions in terms of their socio-economic development and economic security.