| Lithuania intends to once again tighten the rules for railway travel of Russians to Kaliningrad From January 1, 2006, the Lithuanian customs service is going to require passengers of Russian transit trains traveling to and from the Kaliningrad region to fill out cargo customs declarations for the luggage they transport.
In Kaliningrad, this innovation caused a sharply negative reaction, since this region, isolated from the main part of Russia, is too dependent on the mood of Lithuanian politicians. Some radical Kaliningrad politicians even call for stopping the consumption of Lithuanian products until the neighbors “come to their senses.” The general opinion was expressed in a statement by Vice-Speaker of the Kaliningrad Regional Duma Valery Frolov: “Lithuania’s innovation does not in any way fit with the statements of Lithuanian diplomacy that the rules of Russian passenger transit will not change for the worse.” “People do not understand whether they will include in the cargo customs declaration every jar of jam or canned food, gifts for relatives, as well as personal belongings or the same cigarettes,” the vice speaker noted.
The management of the Kaliningrad Railway is also concerned about the next Lithuanian “gift”. According to the first deputy head of the Kaliningrad Railway, Anatoly Khokhlov, this is the third complication of the rules for transit travel of Russian citizens to Kaliningrad. He recalled that earlier this year Lithuania obliged passengers to buy international medical insurance, then banned the transportation of Valocordin and Corvalol (the Lithuanian side has recently begun to consider them psychotropic substances).
The Kaliningrad transit system appeared several years ago - after Lithuania joined the European Union. Then the Lithuanian authorities swore that there would be no infringement of the freedom of movement of Kaliningrad residents. But gradually the Lithuanians created conditions under which traveling by train to or from Kaliningrad becomes not only very troublesome, but even physically difficult. The obligatory presence of a foreign passport, medical insurance, registration on the train by the UTD-ZhD, sleepless nights due to constant checks at the borders, and now also the declaration of luggage - who would like such a “tourist package”? The answer is obvious, therefore, according to Anatoly Khokhlov, it is already possible to predict that the new rules for travel through Lithuania will once again have a negative impact on passenger traffic. “The number of passengers transported over the eight months of this year decreased by 35% compared to the same period in 2004, and more than doubled compared to 2002,” he explained.
More recently, the influential Moscow politician Georgy Boos became the governor of the Kaliningrad region. While still vice speaker of the State Duma, he traveled by train to Kaliningrad to experience the delights of transit for himself. I took several packages of Corvalol with me, placing them in a visible place in my compartment. The Lithuanians somehow found out about this, but did not enter into conflict with a high-ranking Russian politician - no one paid attention to Mr. Boos’s Corvalol. Arriving in Kaliningrad, he made several loud statements that transit was inconvenient, it was necessary to look for new options and negotiate with Lithuania. More than a month has passed since then, but the new head of the region has not yet taken any specific measures (more details about Mr. Boos’s first steps as governor are on page 4 ). True, the Lithuanians “gained back” regarding Valocordin and Corvalol, allowing the free transportation of “cordial” for personal use.
However, in other respects, Lithuania, apparently, is not going to give in. Taking revenge for the grievances inflicted by Moscow, Vilnius is taming Kaliningrad through transit. Apparently, it was not for nothing that heart drops were allowed to be transported. Kaliningrad residents will still need them. Vadim SMIRNOV, Kaliningrad |
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