Soepelere grenscontrole bij Kaliningrad (en)

The European Parliament voted today to enable easier border crossing for people in the Kaliningrad area. The new EU rules on local border traffic foresee that the entire Kaliningrad oblast as well as a specific border area on the Polish side would be considered as a border zone. The residents could therefore travel more easily across the border and within the neighbouring area.

The Kaliningrad region of the Russian Federation with a population of almost one million inhabitants is the only enclave within the EU. Treating the entire Kaliningrad area as a border area will prevent an artificial division of that region and will enhance economic and cultural interchange.

At the same time, all provisions that guarantee the security of the entire Schengen area remain valid.