“The surest and most peaceful means to mutual rapprochement”: S.Yu. Witte and the issue of the customs borders between Russia and the Grand Duchy of Finland in 1892 - 1903

The article reconstructs the position of the Russian Minister of Finance S.Y. Witte on the issue of limiting the customs privileges of the Grand Duchy of Finland in 1896 - 1903. The archival documents ofthe State Council, the projects of Witte and the staff of his ministry, his correspondence with the Minister-State Secretary for the Grand Duchy of Finland V.K. Plehve are analyzed. Attention is drawn to the fact that the presence of Finnish customs privileges on the borders with European states by the end of the 19th century contradicted the Russian protectionist policy in trade and industry. The history of the development and adoption of draft new customs tariffs for Finland is considered against the background of events related to the customs war between Russia and Germany, the position of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Finance on this issue. Based on the analysis of the draft new customs tariffs of 1897, it is concluded that both sides initially followed the path of mutual concessions, which allowed Witte to gradually promote the idea of customs unification. Preparation by the Ministry of War of the Statute of Military service in Finland and the publication of the Manifesto of1899 complicated the process of customs settlement. But Witte was ready to use the legal possibilities of the manifesto of1899 to eliminate the customs border between the Grand Duchy of Finland and the Empire. The author suggests that Witte’s attempts to fail the draft of the Minister of War General A.N. Kuropatkin were not connected only with contradictions between the two ministers on the issue of the size of the military budget: the outcome of the discussion of the draft of new customs duties for Finland could be affected by the sharply negative attitude of the Finnish public toward Kuropatkin’s project. It is concluded that the economic integration of the Grand Duchy of Finland by the beginning of the 20th century was largely hampered by the presence of non-coordinated departmental positions on the Finnish issue.