Conflict and co-operation on Polish borders: the example of the Polish-German, Polish-Ukrainian and Polish-Russian border regions

Abstract

Using the example of the Polish border, the article will examine the phenomenon of borders and border regions in connection with neighbourhood relations from the end of the Second World War until 2011. At what point does a border become a border region? How did neighbourhood relations develop in the course of Polish history? How far have the respective neighbours progressed in overcoming prejudice and stereotypes? These questions will be discussed within the context of Poland’s western border with Germany and her eastern borders with Russia and Ukraine.

The article analyses different perceptions of the Polish western and eastern border regions by its inhabitants. How did the perceptions of the border change in the periods of a closed and open border? How did popular narratives of the border and border region develop amidst the contexts of the Cold War and the end of Communism?