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Introduction. The importance of economic security issues for migration-attractive regions, especially the exclave Kaliningrad region, is growing. Increasing migration gain from Russia’s regions both brings obvious benefits and poses additional challenges. These include those related to the influx of workers whose professional qualifications do not suit the needs of the regional labour market. Thus, the article aims to analyze the compliance of the mechanisms for regulating internal migration with the work-related pull factors to ensure the Kaliningrad region’s economic security. Materials and Methods. The study relies on Kaliningradstat’s regional migration data for 2014–2021 and the interviews with representatives of various sectors of the regional economy, including migrants, conducted by the authors in the summer of 2022. The paper provides systematized and structured results of the content analysis of various sources on the implementation of labour policy and, in particular, the policy of attracting workforce (information and reference portals and websites of international, national and regional institutions, official statistical data by IOM and Rosstat). Results. Drawing on the example of the Kaliningrad region, the study considers several understaffed fields of occupation, including medicine, research and education, ICT, and small and medium-sized enterprises. Based on international and Russian research it analyses work-related mobility factors for each of them. It also classifies the practice of using external and internal migration selection mechanisms. Discussion and Conclusion. Based on the survey of migrants and employers in the Kaliningrad region, the study develops and discusses a list of pull factors and mechanisms for each considered workforce group that can be used to design policies for attracting workforce to the Kaliningrad region. The study results can be used in Russian regions willing to attract in-demand specialists.

The study of the ranges, habitats and current state of rare and threatened species of plants is a relevant task of ecological research. The paper presents the results of the study of habitats and current state of populations of two rare species of Ukrainian flora Aconitum lasiocarpum (Rchb.) Gáyer and A. variegatum L. (Ranunculaceae) in the lowlands of Ukraine. These species are members of the mountain element of the flora of lowlands of Ukraine and glacial relics, which descended from the Carpathians Mountains to the lowlands of Ukraine during glaciation. Aconitum lasiocarpum is a rare species of European flora, included to the Red Data Books of the Czech Republic and Slovakia, Poland and Ukraine. Unlike the well studied A. lasiocarpum populations in the main part of the range in the Carpathian Mountains, local populations of this species near the eastern limit of the range in the lowlands of Ukraine remain undescribed. In these exclaves of the range in the lowlands of Ukraine A. lasiocarpum is a glacial relic. Here it grows in alder forests Ribo nigri-Alnetum ordo Alnion glutinosa alliance. Lowland A. lasiocarpum populations consist of 1000–10000 adults with a significant number of young individuals. In the past lowland A. lasiocarpum populations occupied a much large area. Deforestation and drainage melioration led to reduction of the populations. Taking into account the low number of glacial relic populations at the eastern limit of the range of A. lasiocarpum, all localities of this species in the lowland part of the range in Ukraine must be taken under protection in situ. Aconitum variegatum L. grows in wet alder and oak forest and in areas with hazel shrubs. The populations of this species in lowlands of Ukraine occupy a very small area and are characterized by low numbers of individuals. In the past populations of this species in the lowlands of Ukraine occupied a larger area. As a rare species of the Ukrainian flora A. variegatum deserves to be included to the Red Data Book of Ukraine. We propose to protect the unique population of A. variegatum near Susk village in Rivne region as a botanical reserve.

Enclaves and exclaves have special roles in geography and are of particular importance to fields such as (geo)politics and economy. However, enclaves and exclaves have not been defined with sufficient formality for automatic identification yet. To identify enclaves and exclaves more generally by computational means than current definitions existing in the literature, this article proposes expressive and generalized mathematical definitions of enclaves and exclaves based on point-set topology. A novel Boundary Extended 16-Intersection Model is developed in this article to identify enclaves, and 74 possible spatial configurations of enclaves are distinguished according to conditions of intersections for polygons in partitions and enclaves. The classic Dimensionally Extended 9-Intersection Model is employed to identify exclaves, and two possible spatial configurations of exclaves are distinguished according to conditions of intersections for polygons in partitions and exclaves. Applications of the proposed definitions are exemplified by the identification of enclaves and exclaves in prototypes and in the real world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents a brief but informative examination of the Kaliningrad region in order to find out the mysteries of a geographical territory that belongs to Northern Europe, but currently represents Russia's only European trophy after winning the Second World War. The paper contains general elements, as well as data that may seem new, through which the geography and history of the region are analysed in the first part. After understanding the natural state and the secular heritage of this territory, we will portray the policies of the Russian Federation imposed on its exclave, determine whether Kaliningrad is an important commercial actor on the international stage and investigate the evolution of the population from an ethnic, cultural and religious point of view. All these elements described previously represent an essential body of knowledge in our attempt to ultimately determine the importance of the Kaliningrad Oblast as a first-line geopolitical bastion in the eternal East-West confrontation in Europe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Ferghana Valley is the most densely populated part of Central Asia. The borders of Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan intersect across the Valley. The state lines of these three post-Soviet states were determined during the national-territorial land division in the 1920s. Borders of these three post-Soviet states were drawn during the 1920s, which was a period of territorial land divisions in the early Soviet period. The boundaries drawn at that time have not been universally accepted by these modern post-Soviet states, and have thus become the subject of fierce debate since the time of their independence. This region has a high population density and a high growth rate. These facts, along with the water policies and the objectives of each state, has caused the Ferghana Valley to become a geographical focus of regional conflicts. Enclave problems appear as one of the factors leading to local conflicts at the interstate level. The purpose of this article is to classify Ferghana enclaves in accordance with international scientific definitions and to assess their impact in the context of relations between the kin- and surrounding states. This problem will be discussed from the perspective of interethnic and interstate relations in the Valley. The article shows the evolution of enclaves in Ferghana, their problems, the history of interstate relations in the post-Soviet period, the position and role of the Ferghana states in resolving disputes about the state borders.

The ongoing technological development leads to the emergence of a new value-creation paradigm that calls for changes and structural transformations in economic systems at different levels. Structural transformations are prompted by growing economic complexity. In this context, the selection of industrial strategies and the validation of key regional industrial policies is of paramount importance. Economic complexity (EC) analysis is a new effective tool to address the issue. Its application at a subnational level is, however, limited by methodological problems. To analyse economic complexity at a subnational level, a basic methodology and special software were developed within this study. The object of the research is the exclave Kaliningrad region, whose location makes it possible to capture accurate and comprehensive data on international and interregional trade. Based on the EC analysis theory and practice, the study involved the development of methods, algorithms, and software to form a source database and measure economic complexity. The findings may guide the use of EC analyses in regional policies. The article suggests activities for sequential upgrading of the industry in the Kaliningrad region. These activities will facilitate the development of the existing and new capabilities, improve the business environment, and increase the complexity of products, productions, and industries.

Geographical distribution, habitats and current state of populations of a rare species in the Ukrainian flora, Galanthus elwesii (Amaryllidaceae), are considered. Populations of this species grow near the northeastern limits of its range in the southwestern part of Ukraine, in Odessa and Mykolaiv regions. Along with single Moldavian and Romanian localities, the Ukrainian sites of G. elwesii are formed in the Bessarabian Upland and the Black Sea Lowland northeastern exclave of the Black Sea shore range, and are separated from the main part of the range in the Balkan Mountains by a disjuncture in the Lower Danube Lowland. Eight out of 11 known sites of G. elwesii in Ukraine are contributed now as new floristic records. The localities of G. elwesii in Ukraine are associated with extrazonal oak, elm, elm-maple, and ashmaple forests of Quercetalia roboris ordo, and poplar forest of Salicetalia purpurea ordo, resulting from the shrub and forest plantations in the steppe zone. The optimal coenotical conditions for G. elwesii are in the anthropogenically undisturbed forests, where it formed homeostatic populations. Cutting of forest trees in the steppe zone of Ukraine has led to substitution of forests by shrubs, replacement by steppe communities and degradation of G. elwesii populations. Recommendations are proposed for the improvement of G. elwesii conservation in situ and ex situ in Ukraine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The recent geopolitical shifts and Russia’s response to them have had a significant impact on the Kaliningrad region. This has created new challenges and warranted a revision of the old ones. The article investigates the reaction of the region’s economy to the challenges of its exclave position and considers possible measures to offset related problems in the current geopolitical situation. The article employs statistics, regional strategies, cross-border cooperation programmes, and expert interviews conducted by the authors in Kaliningrad in 2012—2014. The vast body of empirical data is instrumental in analysing the views of different stakeholders and estimating the problems and prospects of the region’s development as either Russia’s military outpost in Europe or as a ‘cooperation laboratory.’ The analysis takes into account collaborations with the neighbouring states. In striving to identify the preferable regional development conception, the authors reveal low susceptibility of local cross-border cooperation actors to the belligerent rhetoric of national authorities on either side of the border. The study of the state of affairs in tourism, a promising area of regional specialization, demonstrates a dual effect of the exclave position, which can be considered both as a challenge and an opportunity.

In international relations literature, the enclaves and exclaves can be considered as an anomalous objects and exception to the norm. It can be defined as a region separate from the main body of the state or a region that can only be reached by passing through the territory of another country or a region that is clearly incompatible of administrative and economical life. It clearly manifests itself as a region that contradicts the idea of a contiguous nation-state. In other words, enclaves and exclaves, as both geographical and political phenomena, are described in international relations literature as small splinters in the flesh of the surrounding country or a stone in ne's shoe or archaic remnants and anomalous objects as an exception to the norm of world political geography. On the other hand, it can be stated that enclaves are irrelevant with the dimensions of their own land and population in terms of security policies both in bilateral relations between the countries surrounding them and the motherland and generally in international relations. In this context, enclaves and exclaves in the the world have some differences both in terms of their political, economical structures and their size, population and location, but they have similarities in terms of causing security problems. As in the examples of Gibraltar, Nagorno-Karabakh, Cabinda and Kaliningrad, enclaves can become active volcanoes at any time as an independent space-political object category in the international arena. Therefore, although most of enclaves or exclaves have a micro-area and a population of several thousand, it can be stated that these entities are extremely important for political geography. In this study, enclaves and exclaves are introduced and their relationship with the concept of security is clarified. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Kaliningrad's post-Soviet economic interconnection with Europe is encountering obstacles due to specific Russian governmental idiosyncrasies as well as its particular regional challenges. In essence, the Kremlin's direct control from afar and European misgivings have influenced the territory's economic development in relation to Europe. The distance of the region from Russia, exclave status, large size for an exclave, and conflicted history subject the area to contradictory forces. On the one hand, it links Kaliningrad to Europe because of a shared history and geography. On the other, it promotes a sense of political instability and geographical isolation that discourages economic integration with Europe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The economy of the Kaliningrad exclave is not sufficiently stable and is heavily affected by external factors. This work aims to estimate the current economic situation in the region and explore possible ways to increase the stability of regional economy. The study employs economic statistical methods and identifies factors affecting regional development. The author analyses the dependence of the manufacturing industry on customs and tax privileges under the law On the Special Economic Zone in the Kaliningrad region and federal programmes supporting the development of manufacturing and social infrastructure. The article stresses that the abolition of customs privileges in 2016 will result in a significant reduction in industrial output, since a lot of production is heavily dependent on imported raw materials and components. It is expected that the companies enjoying customs privileges to produce goods for the national market will receive government support for reequipment. Effective use of the allocated funds would require setting up a regional programme identifying priority areas of regional economic development thus ensuring economic stability. There is also a need to support companies ensuring the economic — including food — security of the region.

The economy of the Kaliningrad exclave is not sufficiently stable and is heavily affected by external factors. This work aims to estimate the current economic situation in the region and explore possible ways to increase the stability of regional economy. The study employs economic statistical methods and identifies factors affecting regional development. The author analyses the dependence of the manufacturing industry on customs and tax privileges under the law On the Special Economic Zone in the Kaliningrad region and federal programmes supporting the development of manufacturing and social infrastructure. The article stresses that the abolition of customs privileges in 2016 will result in a significant reduction in industrial output, since a lot of production is heavily dependent on imported raw materials and components. It is expected that the companies enjoying customs privileges to produce goods for the national market will receive government support for reequipment. Effective use of the allocated funds would require setting up a regional programme identifying priority areas of regional economic development thus ensuring economic stability. There is also a need to support companies ensuring the economic — including food — security of the region.

In the article, the authors build a balance model for an exclave region. The aim of the work is to explore the unique properties of exclaves to evaluate the possibility of development of a more complex model for the economy of a region. Exclaves are strange phenomena in both theoretical and practical regional economy. There is lack of comparative models, so it is typically quite challenging to study exclaves. At the same time, exclaves produce better statistics, which gives more careful consideration of cross-regional economic flows. The authors discuss methodologies of model-based regional development forecasting. They analyze balance approach on a more general level of regional governance and individually, on the example of specific territories. Thus, they identify and explain the need to develop balance approach models fitted to the special needs of certain territories. By combining regional modeling for an exclave with traditional balance and simulation-based methods and event-based approach, they come up with a more detailed model for the economy of a region. Having taken one Russian exclave as an example, the authors have developed a simulation event-based long-term sustainability model. In the article, they provide the general characteristics of the model, describe its components, and simulation algorithm. The approach introduced in this article combines the traditional balance models and the peculiarities of an exclave region to develop a holistic regional economy model (with the Kaliningrad region serving as an example). It is important to underline that the resulting model helps to evaluate the degree of influence of preferential economic regimes (such as Free Customs Zone, for example) on the economy of a region.

In this article the authors detail the methodology of regional development forecasting with the balance method. They provide with an overview and assessment of the existing models and systems, and their use for the purposes of public administration at the regional level. The article underlines the need to develop a balance approach models for specific territorial conditions. In particular, the authors identify the possibilities of studying the connections between the proportions of material and cash flows within the regional system, and reconciling the needs of a regional economy with the production and resource potentials. The long-term sustainability balance model – a simulation of event-based forecasting – has been developed for the Russian exclave. The authors provide a general description of the balance model, its elements and simulation algorithm. The results of calculations using the balance model for forecasting regional development are provided for three alternative scenarios for the Kaliningrad region for the period until 2018.

In this article the authors detail the methodology of regional development forecasting with the balance method. They provide with an overview and assessment of the existing models and systems, and their use for the purposes of public administration at the regional level. The article underlines the need to develop a balance approach models for specific territorial conditions. In particular, the authors identify the possibilities of studying the connections between the proportions of material and cash flows within the regional system, and reconciling the needs of a regional economy with the production and resource potentials. The long-term sustainability balance model – a simulation of event-based forecasting – has been developed for the Russian exclave. The authors provide a general description of the balance model, its elements and simulation algorithm. The results of calculations using the balance model for forecasting regional development are provided for three alternative scenarios for the Kaliningrad region for the period until 2018.

This article focuses on a commodity flow model for an exclave region (CFMER). The CFMER development is aimed at identifying aggregate proportions of the exclave’s economy in the transitional period of the special economic zone (SEZ) functioning. The key method of analysis is the comparison of data on the generation of gross regional product and regional foreign economic activities (including export and import of goods and moving goods from/into the Kaliningrad region to other Russian regions). It results in a conceptual CFMER, which is assessed as of 2011. The availability of additional — as compared to a regular region — data on commodity flows in the framework of the SEZ transitional period makes it possible to identify structural disproportions in the economy. It is shown that the introduction of the SEZ transitional period did not result in a change in the conceptual model of the regional economy’s functioning merely increasing the opportunities for rent extraction. The authors predict structural imbalances in the exclave economy at the microlevel, in particular, the article analyses the conceptual model of rent extraction in the SEZ transitional period. The CFMER can be used for forecasting the development of exclave’s economy under different scenarios of the evolution of SEZ in the Kaliningrad region.

This article focuses on a commodity flow model for an exclave region (CFMER). The CFMER development is aimed at identifying aggregate proportions of the exclave’s economy in the transitional period of the special economic zone (SEZ) functioning. The key method of analysis is the comparison of data on the generation of gross regional product and regional foreign economic activities (including export and import of goods and moving goods from/into the Kaliningrad region to other Russian regions). It results in a conceptual CFMER, which is assessed as of 2011. The availability of additional — as compared to a regular region — data on commodity flows in the framework of the SEZ transitional period makes it possible to identify structural disproportions in the economy. It is shown that the introduction of the SEZ transitional period did not result in a change in the conceptual model of the regional economy’s functioning merely increasing the opportunities for rent extraction. The authors predict structural imbalances in the exclave economy at the microlevel, in particular, the article analyses the conceptual model of rent extraction in the SEZ transitional period. The CFMER can be used for forecasting the development of exclave’s economy under different scenarios of the evolution of SEZ in the Kaliningrad region.

With its exclave status, the Kaliningrad region has been drawing attention of many researchers in different fields. Yet the prospects for cooperation between the region and neighbouring communities in Poland and Lithuania, which once constituted an integrated social, economic and political space, remain unclear. Media analysts and scholars alike tend to view the Kaliningrad region as “double periphery”, since it is excluded from major modernisation processes both in the European integration zone and in the Russian Federation. However, a detailed study involving polyscale socioeconomic indices, expert interviews, and surveys run contrary to this viewpoint. A look at the key indices of the Kaliningrad region and the neighbouring communities of Poland and Lithuania showed that both socioeconomic situation and standards of living are comparable in these areas, which indicates the prerequisites for mutually beneficial interregional cooperation. We have analysed factual information on socioeconomic development of cross-border regions and surveyed the students from the leading universities of Gdansk, Kaliningrad and Klaipeda. We were thus able to conclude that the reasons behind the delapidated cross-border relations are rather subjective and lie in the field of geopolitical orientation, information and institutional policy, as well as persistent stereotypes that shape public opinion. In this light, integration between the Kaliningrad region and mainland Russia is seen not only as an economic, but also as a sociocultural objective. An analysis of the stages of the region’s exclavisation, and policies of social support stemming from the uniqueness of the economic and geographical position of the region substantiate this conclusion.

This article focuses on the genesis of and correlation between the related concepts of enclave and exclave and the scope of their use in different sciences, fields of knowledge, and everyday speech. The author examines the circumstances of their emergence in the reference and professional literature in the Russian language. Special attention is paid to the typology of the world’s enclave territories as objects of political geography; at the same time, their new categories and divisions (international enclave, overseas exclaves, internal enclaves of different levels) are extended and introduced. The author offers a new classification of contemporary and historical enclaves and exclaves. The article identifies the specific features of the Kaliningrad region in comparison to other enclave territories. The difference between the exclavity of the Kaliningrad region in the Soviet and post-Soviet periods is emphasised. The author shows the evolution of the use of concepts of enclave and exclave for describing the fe atures of the Kaliningrad region’s positions from the perspective of the mother and surrounding states. The article introduces the concept of dividing states and stresses the need to take their interests into account to ensure the functioning of the Russian exclave. The author substantiates the thesis that the Russian region is an enclave of the European Union (but not NATO) and an exclave of the Russian Federation and a number of political and economic intergovernmental alliances with Russian participation. The article offers a generalised characteristic of the Kaliningrad region from the perspective of its enclavity / exclavity.

This article focuses on the genesis of and correlation between the related concepts of enclave and exclave and the scope of their use in different sciences, fields of knowledge, and everyday speech. The author examines the circumstances of their emergence in the reference and professional literature in the Russian language. Special attention is paid to the typology of the world’s enclave territories as objects of political geography; at the same time, their new categories and divisions (international enclave, overseas exclaves, internal enclaves of different levels) are extended and introduced. The author offers a new classification of contemporary and historical enclaves and exclaves. The article identifies the specific features of the Kaliningrad region in comparison to other enclave territories. The difference between the exclavity of the Kaliningrad region in the Soviet and post-Soviet periods is emphasised. The author shows the evolution of the use of concepts of enclave and exclave for describing the fe atures of the Kaliningrad region’s positions from the perspective of the mother and surrounding states. The article introduces the concept of dividing states and stresses the need to take their interests into account to ensure the functioning of the Russian exclave. The author substantiates the thesis that the Russian region is an enclave of the European Union (but not NATO) and an exclave of the Russian Federation and a number of political and economic intergovernmental alliances with Russian participation. The article offers a generalised characteristic of the Kaliningrad region from the perspective of its enclavity / exclavity.

This article considers the origin, development, change in the status, and extinction of enclave and exclave formations in the territory of the modern Kaliningrad region. The author offers information on their socio-economic and political features. The article identifies enclave (exclave) problems peculiar to them, including the land access (passenger and cargo transit) of the metropolis to the isolated territory, as well as the issues relating to the origins of state border, border control, visa regime, and political and economic relations to neighbouring states and the mainland. The author reviews cases of evolutional development of enclavity and peaceful and military methods of eliminating enclave formations. Actions towards the solution of political and socioeconomic problems taken in East Prussia are compared to those taken in the Kaliningrad region. The author emphasizes the need to solve the problems of the only Russian exclave region in view of the experience of its historical “predecessors”.

This article considers the origin, development, change in the status, and extinction of enclave and exclave formations in the territory of the modern Kaliningrad region. The author offers information on their socio-economic and political features. The article identifies enclave (exclave) problems peculiar to them, including the land access (passenger and cargo transit) of the metropolis to the isolated territory, as well as the issues relating to the origins of state border, border control, visa regime, and political and economic relations to neighbouring states and the mainland. The author reviews cases of evolutional development of enclavity and peaceful and military methods of eliminating enclave formations. Actions towards the solution of political and socioeconomic problems taken in East Prussia are compared to those taken in the Kaliningrad region. The author emphasizes the need to solve the problems of the only Russian exclave region in view of the experience of its historical “predecessors”.

This paper offers mathematical definitions of enclave and exclave using a graph theoretical framework, and gives some applications of the definitions. Some basic properties of enclave and exclave are also verified by using the definitions. Though there are numerous enclaves and exclaves in the world, they have not been analyzed mathematically so far. Giving them mathematical definitions is useful for the problems of political boundaries, e.g. the drawing of the boundaries of single member electoral districts and the economic analysis of political integration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The results of the study of Iris sibirica L. coenopopulations in the Crimean Mountains are elucidated. The Iris sibirica localities in the peninsula are supposed to be an exclave in the whole area. The coenotic conditions of localities, spatial and age structures of coenopopulations, morphometric parameters of Iris sibirica specimens are presented.

After Lithuania's secession from the USSR and the ensuing disintegration of the Union, the Kaliningrad region, which was a part of the Soviet Union in 1945-1991, became a Russian exclave. Its administrative land border turned out to coincide with the state border of the Russian Federation. The barrier function of the border of the Kaliningrad region started to increase, which became especially pronounced after the accession of Poland and Lithuania first to NATO and then to the European Union. As a result of successful international negotiations, Russian cooperation with Poland and Lithuania, as well as NATO and the EU, the contact function of the Russian-Lithuanian and Russian-Polish borders is gradually increasing. The most indicative examples are the Russian-Lithuanian agreement on the simplified transit document, which is issued instead of a visa for the travel of Russian citizens from the Kaliningrad region to other Russian regions via Lithuania, as well as the Russian-Polish agreement on local border traffic, which has simplified the travel of the residents of the Kaliningrad region to the neighbouring Polish voivodships and that of the residents of the latter to the Kaliningrad region. The development of the Kaliningrad region as a "development corridor" between the Russian Federation and the European Union will contribute to a further decrease in the barrier and an increase in the contact function of the Russian-Polish and Russian-Lithuanian borders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article addresses the European Union's claim to establish transnational spaces through co-operation across its internal borders. Focusing on the Dutch-German borderland as an example, people's practices towards this border and their perceptions of it are introduced. It is underscored that these practices are influenced by popular representations, which (re)produce bounded spaces and the barrier effect of the border, thus making it difficult to imagine a transnational space. This observation is complemented by the phenomenon that—due to a housing shortage in the Netherlands—Dutch people have recently begun to move to German places directly on the border, although they maintain their jobs in the Netherlands. Concentrating specifically on one of these German villages, Kranenburg, the emergence of a community of transmigrants is highlighted in order to reflect upon the question of whether this form of frequent short-distance border crossing fosters a European transnational sphere. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]