Friends or Foes? Changes in Cross-Border Practices and Attitudes Toward Neighbors along the Russian-Ukrainian Border after 2014

This article examines how the armed conflict in eastern Ukraine and the sharp deterioration of official relations between Russia and Ukraine have affected the environment and everyday life of the population of the border towns of the Rostov (Gukovo, Donetsk, Matveyev Kurgan) and Belgorod (Graivoron, Shebekino) regions of the Russian Federation. Based on a series of indepth interviews with local residents and representatives of municipal authorities, our article studies the dynamics of cross-border practices after 2014, as well as people's attitudes toward the border, the border regime, neighbors, and neighboring states. Our research shows that a radical change in cross-border practices and (formerly good) neighborly relations occurred, which contributed to the peripheralization of small border towns and complicated communication. Such changes have transformed the border from being simply a symbolic line on a map, separating the territories of the two states, into an actual border that is perceived and felt in everyday life. In the localities we analyzed, we found transformations of what had once been an integrated border area into coexisting yet independent sections of borderland. However, these processes took place for different reasons: in the Belgorod region, it was the tightening of the border regime and tensions in Russian-Ukrainian relations; in the Rostov region, it was refugees, the unrecognized status of the LPR and DPR, and fear of war.