Last Monday, Lithuania announced that the partial blockade of the transit of goods to the Baltic enclave of Kaliningrad, something that Russia has considered “illegal”. Something that obviously caused a reaction in Moscow, which threatened “retaliation”. “Both Lithuania and the EU have already been notified that the restrictions are inadmissible. yesIf they do not lift them, retaliatory movements will be inevitable”, explained the ministerial spokesperson, Maria Zajarova.
Kaliningrad Oblast, which has a privileged position between Poland and Lithuania, It is a part that has gone unnoticed during these months of war after the Russian invasion of Ukraine. This territory is Russian after annexation in 1945 to the country and has a prominent place at the mouth of the Pregel River. This flows into the Vistula Lake, which is connected to the Baltic Sea, something that gives Russia maritime access between countries of the European Union.
Russia is a very unique country thanks to multiple characteristics. One of the most special is having the data of being the largest country in the world, something that it has achieved after decades of expansion. A) Yes, Vladimir Putin has the power to more than 17 million square kilometers that even have some point outside the classical borders.
How did you get to be Russian?
Sometimes some nations extend their territory beyond what is known thanks to some historical curiosities. This happens with an area in the middle of the European continent whose history has led Russia to have a part of the territory that is highly coveted at the moment because of the war.
During the Second World War this territory was the site of multiple combats because the area belonged to the German region of Prussia, something that would change with the offensives of the USSR. Thus, after the fight against the Nazis in full conflict and the signing of the Potsdam agreement, the place became another part of Russia.
It is the capital of the oblast of the same name, which occupies 15,100 km² and has a population of 482,443 inhabitants. said orblast (region or province) is isolated from the rest of the Russian territory, with borders to the north and east with Lithuania and to the south with Poland, both members of the European Union (EU) and NATO.
The name chosen for the city was Kaliningrad in honor of Mikhail Kalininone of the founders of the USSR who presided over the Supreme Soviet between 1938 and 1946. After the conquest, the German residents of the area were expelled and a Russification process was carried out under the values promoted by the Soviet Union.
Centuries ago, the knights of the Teutonic Order had settled in this place and founded the city of Königsberg – today’s Kaliningrad – in the 13th century, which remained under the rule of the Order until it finally came under the Prussian orbit. from the 16th century. Later, the city became the capital of East Prussia, a prosperous region within the German Empire after its unification in the 19th century.
After the First World War, the territory of East Prussia, together with Königsberg, was isolated from Germany by the Polish corridor and the free city of Danzig, today the Polish city of Gdansk, one of the reasons that the Germans gave for invading Poland. .
During World War II, the city was occasionally bombed by the Soviet Air Force, although it was away from the development of most of the war, until the night of August 26-27, 1944, when the bombing began. Three nights later, from 29 to 30 August, a group of 189 Lancasters from the No. 5 Group dropped 480 tons of bombs on the center of the city. RAF Bomber Command estimated that 20% of all industry and 41% of housing in Königsberg were destroyed.
The historic city center was nearly destroyed, with the old 14th-century cathedral taking part in the bombardment. Königsberg Castle, all the churches of the old city, the University and the old ships suffered the same fate.
Although the strong medieval fortifications successfully repelled Soviet troops in the early 1945 offensive, eventually, the city completely cut off from the rest of Nazi Germany, German forces surrendered on April 10, just a month before the war ends and long after the rest of Prussia had fallen.
It would not be until the end of the Second World War when the current Kaliningrad would become part of the USSR. After the Soviet offensive against Nazi Germany and the signing of the Potsdam Agreement, the territory of East Prussia was divided into three parts: one for Poland, one for Lithuania —then the Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic, part of the USSR—, and one for Russia. The city of Königsberg and its surrounding area became the Kaliningrad Oblast, under the control of Moscow. The name was chosen in honor of Mikhail Kalinin, one of the founders of the USSR and Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR between 1938 and 1946.
Kaliningrad today
Over the decades, the territory has continued to be part of Russiasomething that has generated an anomaly between countries of the European Union. Its separation from the country has led to the construction of different railways or highways that pass between Lithuanian, Polish and Belarusian areas to supply the city along with the rest of the area. Thus, this site has all the Russian military advances, among which stand out different missiles that defend the area as it is surrounded by different states belonging to the NATO.
Both the Lithuanian government and the EU argue that the latest limitations on transit to and from Kaliningrad are limited only to people and goods included on the sanctions blacklist, that it is not a generalized veto as the Russian Executive would be making out. Recently, in addition, the Government of Lithuania requested additional help from the European Union to finance an increase in security in the corridor that links the Russian enclave of Kaliningrad with the rest of Russia to the south of that Baltic republic in the midst of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Lithuania’s request is linked to the concern because, after the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the sanctions imposed on Moscow by Western countries, train traffic is used for the movement of Russian troops, according to Lithuanian media. This has led to the territory being present again in the talks due to its great geostrategic position.
The area is known as the Suwalki corridor and is considered to be of strategic importance because it is the communication with Poland and the rest of the EU and NATO territory held by the Baltic countries. Any movement of troops by land to reinforce the defenses of Lithuania, Latvia or Estonia has to cross that corridor, something that could currently be at risk.
Finally, it is worth noting the presence of certain weapons in the area that can compromise security. In Kaliningrad different systems have been seen such as the Iskander-M adopted by the Russian armed forces in 2006 andequipped with various mechanisms to try to penetrate enemy defenses.
Also, from Kaliningrad, these could reach all the Baltic republics and probably two thirds of the Polish territory, something that both the European Union and NATO suspect. Furthermore, due to their range, they are also controversial because they can carry both conventional explosives and nuclear warheads.
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