Enlarge image
The "King's Gate" in the city of Kaliningrad
Photo: Vitaly Nevar / ITAR-TASS / IMAGO
Citing EU sanctions, Lithuania has banned the rail transit of certain goods between Russia's Baltic Sea exclave of Kaliningrad and mainland Russia.
The Kremlin has criticized the EU member state's actions as "illegal" and has threatened to take action.
Four questions and answers about the westernmost oblast of the Russian Federation.
Where is Kaliningrad located?
The Kaliningrad exclave around the former Königsberg lies between Lithuania and Poland.
It is about 500 kilometers from Berlin and almost 1100 from Moscow.
It is the smallest oblast in Russia and has access to the Baltic Sea.
With an area of 15,125 square kilometers, Kaliningrad is slightly smaller than Schleswig-Holstein.
Why does it belong to Russia?
The former German capital of East Prussia (then known as Königsberg) was assigned to the Soviet Union after World War II.
It is named after the Soviet head of state Mikhail Kalinin, who died in 1946.
Kaliningrad was incorporated into the Russian Soviet Union and not into occupied Lithuania, which was then part of the Soviet Union.
As a result, Kaliningrad remained Russian even after the collapse of the Soviet Union.
who lives there
Almost 950,000 inhabitants, about half live in the capital, which is also called Kaliningrad.
In the days of the Soviet Union, many Russians settled in the region; today, the majority of Kaliningrad's residents come from Russia.
Why is Kaliningrad important for Moscow?
Russia operates a military base in Kaliningrad.
Since the war in Eastern Europe, Kaliningrad's position has therefore become even more important.
In May, Kremlin forces used the Iskander-M nuclear-capable missile system to simulate a nuclear attack.
The armed forces practiced attacking military targets of an imaginary enemy and responding to a counterstrike, according to the Russian Defense Ministry.
Due to its geographical location, Kaliningrad would be an obvious starting point in the event of an attack on the west.
svs
