Everyday practices at the Russia - China - Mongolia border

This paper moves from the usual focus on mobile people crossing borders (migrants, traders, tourists, etc.) to examine more closely the activities of the various state agencies found at the international border. It is argued, focussing on the Russian side, that these agencies need to be disaggregated and that the relations both between and within them are incoherent. The actions of state agencies are not merely reactive but dynamic and unpredictable. Their incoherence and and predictability give rise to wide ranging shifts in the patterns of activity of the mobile people crossing the border.