Determinants of Cross-Border Cooperation

The cities of Narva, Estonia and Ivangorod, Russia are separated physically by the Narva River—and by an imposing border regime. By contrast, prior to 1991 they were joined by abridge and shared resources. Before the end of the Cold War and the independence of Estonia, Narva and Ivangorod functioned as one city, with a shared transit system,water and emergency resources. People moved freely across the border for work, family and social functions. Functionally, there was no border. Similarly, as consecutive American governments have sought to stem the tide of drugs, immigrants and terrorists, the cities of El Paso and Ciudad Juarez along the border between the United States and Mexico have been adversely affected by a border security regime that has imposed significant costs on communities that straddle the border: social, political and economic costs imposed by central governments far afield but borne by local communities.