Transnationalism and attitudinal integration: Russian-speaking youth and Estonian security and defence policy

Abstract

In the context of increasing geopolitical tensions, the identities and political loyalties of Russian-speaking minorities living outside of the historical homeland has become the focus of a growing body of research. Questions about the identities and political orientations of Russian-speakers are particularly pertinent in Estonia and Latvia, former Soviet republics that are now members of the EU and NATO, where Russian-speakers constitute a large share of the population. This research examines attitudes towards Estonian security and defence policy among the Russian-speaking youth in Estonia through the theoretical lens of transnationalism and triadic nexus models. The central hypothesis is that young Russian-speakers’ attitudes toward security and defence vary as a function of citizenship, level of identification with Estonia (as opposed to the ethnocultural homeland) and individual integration into Estonian society. This hypothesis is tested with qualitative analysis based on interviews of the target group. The interviews cover 25 members of the Russian-speaking community in Estonia, collecting information about their affinity to Estonia and Russia and measuring attitudes toward the key aspects of Estonian security and defence policy. The examination of the attitudes and personal reasons of the respondents show that self-identity, social and cultural background of Estonian young Russian-speaker can significantly determine one’s attitudes toward security and defence policy. Respondents with stronger affinity to Estonia show more supportive attitudes toward national security and defence, than their counterparts with stronger affinity to Russia. The results of this research shed light on the weaknesses of Estonian societal resilience and can help governmental actors to redirect integration policy in the more effective way.