In the article the authors make an attempt to explore the paradiplomatic activities of the federal state of Bavaria on the example of cooperation with the Russian Federation. The authors analyze the institutional component of the Bavarian paradiplomacy, highlight the general principles of building relations between Bavaria and Russia, and consider the features of bilateral cooperation. An attempt is made to characterize the personal factor of the Prime Minister of Bavaria in the formation of the paradiplomatic activity of the land. A special contribution of the authors to the study of the topic is a detailed description of the institutional component of Bavaria's paradiplomacy, as well as the impact of the position of the Bavarian Prime Minister as a key figure of the CSU party on the development of the land's ties with the top leadership of Russia.