Kaliningrad Oblast
Encyclopedia
Kaliningrad Oblast is a federal subject
of Russia
(an oblast
) situated on the Baltic
coast. It has a population of
The oblast forms the westernmost part of the Russian Federation, but it has no land connection to the rest of Russia. Since its creation it has been an exclave of the Russian SFSR and then the Russian Federation. The fall of the Soviet Union
left it isolated from the 'mainland'. It is surrounded by Lithuania
, Poland
, and the Baltic Sea
. Borderless travel to the main part of Russia is only possible by sea or air. This political isolation became more pronounced when Lithuania and Poland both became members of the European Union
and NATO, and entered the Schengen Zone
, which means that the oblast is surrounded by the territories of these organizations as well.
The oblast's largest city and the administrative center is Kaliningrad
(formerly known as Königsberg
), which has historical significance as both a major city of the historical state of Prussia
and the capital of the former German
province of East Prussia
, partitioned after World War II
between the USSR and Poland, and renamed after the Soviet Head of State Mikhail Kalinin
.
The territory of the Kaliningrad Oblast coincides with that of the northern part of historical East Prussia
(German: Nord-Ostpreussen), which was an exclave of Germany from World War I
until 1945. In that year, it was occupied by the Soviet Union and annexed according to the Potsdam Agreement
. It was attached to the Russian SFSR. Most of its German population had fled to the "mainland" of Germany during the war; the rest were expelled from 1945 to 1950. Russian settlers moved in, and the population has been Russian ever since.
Currently it is one of Russia's best performing regional economies, bolstered by a low manufacturing tax rate, as set by its 'Special Economic Zone' [SEZ] status, given by Moscow. As of 2006, one in three televisions in Russia are made in Kaliningrad, and its population is one of few in Russia which is expected to show strong growth.
surrounded by Lithuania
, Poland
, and the Baltic Sea
. The biggest river is the Pregolya
. It starts as a confluence
of the Instruch and the Angrapa
and drains into the Baltic Sea through Vistula Lagoon. Its length under the name of Pregolya is 123 km (76 mi), 292 km (181 mi), including the Angrapa
.
Notable geographical features include:
The current governor (since 2010) of Kaliningrad Oblast is Nikolay Tsukhanov, who succeeded Georgy Boos
.
The EU and Russia have had a serious political debate over the oblast territory. The enlargement of the EU in 2004, which saw Poland and Lithuania become member states, meant that the oblast now has land borders only with the EU. Issues of security have been at the forefront of debate, with high relevance to the Schengen Agreement
.
After the collapse of the Soviet Union, some intellectuals and government officials in the oblast openly discussed the region separating from Russia. In the mid-1990s, Yuri Matochkin
, the oblast's first post-Soviet governor, demanded a special relationship with the EU and threatened a referendum on secession, abetting fears in Moscow about the centrifugal forces of separatism. His attempts at elevating the oblast's status to that of a sovereign republic associated with the Russian Federation yielded no results. Around the same time, the secessionist Baltic Republican Party, banned in 2005, aimed at establishing the oblast as the "fourth Baltic state". However, an organized secessionist movement has never emerged there and surveys indicate strong support for remaining a part of Russia.
The region of what is now Kaliningrad Oblast was inhabited during the Middle Ages
by tribes of Old Prussians
in the western part and Lithuanians
in the eastern part by the Pregolya and Alna Rivers. The Teutonic Knights
conquered the region and established a monastic state
. On the foundations of a destroyed Prussian settlement known as Tvanksta, the Order founded the major city of Königsberg
(modern Kaliningrad
). Germans
and Poles
resettled the territory and assimilated the indigenous Old Prussians. The Lithuanian
-inhabited areas became known as Lithuania Minor
. In 1525, Grand Master Albert of Brandenburg
secularised
the Prussian branch of the Teutonic Order and established himself as the sovereign of the Duchy of Prussia, the Polish fief, later inherited by the Margravate of Brandenburg. The region was reorganized into the Province of East Prussia
within the Kingdom of Prussia
in 1773.
East Prussia was an important center of German culture. Many important figures, such as Immanuel Kant
and E. T. A. Hoffmann, have their origins in this region. The cities of Kaliningrad Oblast, despite being heavily damaged during World War II
and thereafter, still contain some typical German architecture, such as the Jugendstil, showcasing the rich German history and cultural importance of the area. The Lithuanian-speaking community in East Prussia was diminished due to organic Germanization and cultural assimilation
; in the early 20th century Lithuanian still made up a majority only in rural parts of the far northeast corner of East Prussia (Memelland and Minor Lithuania), the rest of the area (with exception of the Slavic Masurians in southern East Prussia), being overwhelmingly German-speaking. However, in 1918 Prussians who spoke German joined Lithuanian speaking Prussians and claimed that whole Prussia should join with Lithuania because the majority of inhabitants of this land were of Lithuanian-Prussian ethnic descent. In November 1918 they signed the declaration of independence from Germany and unification with motherland Lithuania.
The Memel Territory (Klaipėda region
), formerly part of northeastern East Prussia, was annexed by Lithuania in 1923 after World War I
. In 1938, Nazi Germany
radically altered about a third of the place names of this area by replacing names of Old Prussian or Lithuanian origin with newly invented German names.
, Soviet troops reached the border of East Prussia on August 29, 1944. In January 1945, Soviet forces overran all of East Prussia except the area around Konigsberg. Many Germans fled west at this time. During the last days of the war, over two million Germans were evacuated by sea
. The remaining German population was deported after the war, and the area was repopulated primarily by Russians and, to a lesser extent, Ukrainians and Belarusians.
The Potsdam Agreement
among the Allied powers
assigned northern East Prussia to the Soviet Union, pending the final determination of territorial questions at the peace settlement:
In 1957, an agreement was signed and later came into force which delimited the boundary between Poland and the Soviet Union,
According to some accounts from the 1950s and 1960s, the Soviet government had planned to make the rest of the area a part of the Lithuanian SSR
immediately after World War II. The area was administered by the planning committee of the LSSR, although the area had its own Communist Party committee. However, the leadership of the Lithuanian SSR (especially Antanas Sniečkus
) refused to take the territory, mainly because of its devastation during the war. Some modern nationalistic Lithuanian authors say that the reason for the refusal was the Lithuanians' concern to find themselves on equal demographic terms with the Russian population within the Lithuanian SSR. Instead the region was added as an exclave to the Russian SFSR, and since 1946 it has been known as Kaliningrad Oblast. According to some historians, Joseph Stalin
created it as an oblast separate from the LSSR because it further enclosed the Baltic states from the West. Names of the cities, towns, rivers, and other geographical objects were changed into newly-created Russian ones.
The collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 and the independence of the Baltic states caused Kaliningrad Oblast to be separated from the rest of Russia by other countries instead of other Soviet republics. Some ethnic Germans began to return to the area, such as Volga Germans from other parts of Russia and Kazakhstan
, especially after Germany stopped granting free right of return to ethnic Germans from the former Soviet Union. The economic situation has been badly affected by the geographic isolation (and the significant reduction in the size of the Russian military garrison which had previously been one of the major employers), especially when neighboring nations imposed strict border controls when they joined the European Union
. Russian proposals for visa-free travel between the EU and Kaliningrad have so far been rejected by the EU. Travel arrangements based on the Facilitated Transit Document (FTD) and Facilitated Rail Transit Document (FRTD) have been made.
In recent times, the situation has begun to change, if slowly. Germany and Lithuania have renewed contact with Kaliningrad Oblast through town twinning
and other projects. This has helped to promote interest in the history and the culture of the East Prussian and Lietuvininkai
communities.
circled by Chernyakhovsk (air base)
, Donskoye (air base)
, and Kaliningrad Chkalovsk
(naval air base).
The Washington Times
claimed on January 3, 2001, citing anonymous intelligence reports, that Russia had transferred tactical nuclear weapons into a military base in Kaliningrad for the first time since the Cold War ended. Russian top-level military leaders denied those claims. A Pentagon spokesperson stated that deployment would violate Russian pledge that Russia was removing nuclear weapons from the Baltics. Russia and the United States announced in 1991 and 1992 a non-binding agreement to reduce arsenals of tactical nuclear weapons. On the eve of the reunification of Germany, Helmut Kohl
promised Mikhail Gorbachev
that NATO's military infrastructures would not move eastward into the territory of East Germany, a fact since confirmed by the former U.S. Ambassador to Moscow Jack Matlock. Later Russia was privately assured that Eastern European states would not seek membership in NATO. Today, while NATO has not established any military infrastructure in Eastern Germany yet, both Central European and Baltic countries are NATO members.
On November 5, 2008, Russian President Dimitry Medvedev said that Russia would deploy Iskander missiles in the oblast as a response to U.S. plans for basing missile defense
missiles in Poland. Equipment to electronically hamper the operation of future U.S. missile facilities in Poland and the Czech Republic also would be deployed, he said.
However, on January 28, 2009, a Russian defense official stated that the deployment of short-range missiles into Kaliningrad Oblast would cease due to perceived changes in the attitude of the United States government towards the Russian Federation following the election of United States President Barack Obama
. In September 2009, Russia fully scrapped plans of sending short-range missiles into the Kaliningrad Oblast in response to President Obama's decision to cancel the missile defense system. In November 2011, Dmitry Medvedev issued another stern warning that Russia will deploy new missiles aimed at U.S. missile defense sites in Europe if Washington goes ahead with the planned shield.
. The 1989 Census
recorded 871,283 inhabitants.
Kaliningrad Oblast is the fourth most densely populated federal subject in Russia, with 62.5 persons/km2 (162 persons/sq mi).
Almost none of the pre–World War II Lithuanian population (Lietuvininks) or German population remain in Kaliningrad Oblast.
, the national composition included:
as well as other groups of less than three hundred persons each. An additional 0.93% of residents declined to state their nationality or ethnocultural identity on the census questionnaire.
deposits and proximity to European countries. The region also has a developed tourist infrastructure, unique museums and monuments, and tourist attractions such as the famous Curonian Spit
.
In order to combat the oblast's economic problems such as high unemployment, in 1996 the Russian authorities granted Kaliningrad special economic status and tax advantages intended to attract investors. Oblast's economy has since benefited substantially, and in recent years experienced a boom. A US$45 million airport terminal has been opened, and the European Commission provides funds for business projects under its special program for the region. The oblast has begun to see increasing trade with the countries of the EU as well as increasing economic growth and rising industrial output.
According to official statistics, the Gross Regional Product
in 2006 was 115 billion roubles. GRP per capita in 2007 was 155,668.9 rubles.
) plants. Car and truck assembly (GM
, BMW
, Kia
, Yuejin), and production of auto parts are growing industries. There are shipbuilding facilities in Kaliningrad and Sovetsk
. Food processing is a mature industry in the region. OKB Fakel
, a world leader in the field of Hall thruster development and a leading Russian developer and manufacturer of electric propulsion systems, is based in Neman
. The company employs 960 people.
deposits. Most of the mined amber is processed outside of the region, in Russia and in other countries.
There are small oil reservoirs beneath the Baltic Sea not far from Kaliningrad's shore. Small-scale offshore exploration started in 2004 and some Baltic countries (Poland and Lithuania), as well as local NGOs voiced concerns regarding possible environmental impact.
(formerly Neukuhren) and lesser ones in Svetly
and Rybachy.
in the eastern part of Kaliningrad.
Federal subjects of Russia
Russia is a federation which, since March 1, 2008, consists of 83 federal subjects . In 1993, when the Constitution was adopted, there were 89 federal subjects listed...
of Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
(an oblast
Oblast
Oblast is a type of administrative division in Slavic countries, including some countries of the former Soviet Union. The word "oblast" is a loanword in English, but it is nevertheless often translated as "area", "zone", "province", or "region"...
) situated on the Baltic
Baltic Sea
The Baltic Sea is a brackish mediterranean sea located in Northern Europe, from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from 20°E to 26°E longitude. It is bounded by the Scandinavian Peninsula, the mainland of Europe, and the Danish islands. It drains into the Kattegat by way of the Øresund, the Great Belt and...
coast. It has a population of
The oblast forms the westernmost part of the Russian Federation, but it has no land connection to the rest of Russia. Since its creation it has been an exclave of the Russian SFSR and then the Russian Federation. The fall of the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
left it isolated from the 'mainland'. It is surrounded by Lithuania
Lithuania
Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark...
, Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, and the Baltic Sea
Baltic Sea
The Baltic Sea is a brackish mediterranean sea located in Northern Europe, from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from 20°E to 26°E longitude. It is bounded by the Scandinavian Peninsula, the mainland of Europe, and the Danish islands. It drains into the Kattegat by way of the Øresund, the Great Belt and...
. Borderless travel to the main part of Russia is only possible by sea or air. This political isolation became more pronounced when Lithuania and Poland both became members of the European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
and NATO, and entered the Schengen Zone
Schengen Agreement
The Schengen Agreement is a treaty signed on 14 June 1985 near the town of Schengen in Luxembourg, between five of the ten member states of the European Economic Community. It was supplemented by the Convention implementing the Schengen Agreement 5 years later...
, which means that the oblast is surrounded by the territories of these organizations as well.
The oblast's largest city and the administrative center is Kaliningrad
Kaliningrad
Kaliningrad is a seaport and the administrative center of Kaliningrad Oblast, the Russian exclave between Poland and Lithuania on the Baltic Sea...
(formerly known as Königsberg
Königsberg
Königsberg was the capital of East Prussia from the Late Middle Ages until 1945 as well as the northernmost and easternmost German city with 286,666 inhabitants . Due to the multicultural society in and around the city, there are several local names for it...
), which has historical significance as both a major city of the historical state of Prussia
Prussia
Prussia was a German kingdom and historic state originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. For centuries, the House of Hohenzollern ruled Prussia, successfully expanding its size by way of an unusually well-organized and effective army. Prussia shaped the history...
and the capital of the former German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
province of East Prussia
East Prussia
East Prussia is the main part of the region of Prussia along the southeastern Baltic Coast from the 13th century to the end of World War II in May 1945. From 1772–1829 and 1878–1945, the Province of East Prussia was part of the German state of Prussia. The capital city was Königsberg.East Prussia...
, partitioned after World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
between the USSR and Poland, and renamed after the Soviet Head of State Mikhail Kalinin
Mikhail Kalinin
Mikhail Ivanovich Kalinin , known familiarly by Soviet citizens as "Kalinych," was a Bolshevik revolutionary and the nominal head of state of Russia and later of the Soviet Union, from 1919 to 1946...
.
The territory of the Kaliningrad Oblast coincides with that of the northern part of historical East Prussia
East Prussia
East Prussia is the main part of the region of Prussia along the southeastern Baltic Coast from the 13th century to the end of World War II in May 1945. From 1772–1829 and 1878–1945, the Province of East Prussia was part of the German state of Prussia. The capital city was Königsberg.East Prussia...
(German: Nord-Ostpreussen), which was an exclave of Germany from World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
until 1945. In that year, it was occupied by the Soviet Union and annexed according to the Potsdam Agreement
Potsdam Agreement
The Potsdam Agreement was the Allied plan of tripartite military occupation and reconstruction of Germany—referring to the German Reich with its pre-war 1937 borders including the former eastern territories—and the entire European Theatre of War territory...
. It was attached to the Russian SFSR. Most of its German population had fled to the "mainland" of Germany during the war; the rest were expelled from 1945 to 1950. Russian settlers moved in, and the population has been Russian ever since.
Currently it is one of Russia's best performing regional economies, bolstered by a low manufacturing tax rate, as set by its 'Special Economic Zone' [SEZ] status, given by Moscow. As of 2006, one in three televisions in Russia are made in Kaliningrad, and its population is one of few in Russia which is expected to show strong growth.
Geography
Kaliningrad Oblast is an exclave of RussiaRussia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
surrounded by Lithuania
Lithuania
Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark...
, Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, and the Baltic Sea
Baltic Sea
The Baltic Sea is a brackish mediterranean sea located in Northern Europe, from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from 20°E to 26°E longitude. It is bounded by the Scandinavian Peninsula, the mainland of Europe, and the Danish islands. It drains into the Kattegat by way of the Øresund, the Great Belt and...
. The biggest river is the Pregolya
Pregolya
The Pregolya or Pregola is a river in the Russian Kaliningrad Oblast exclave.It starts as a confluence of the Instruch and the Angrapa and drains into the Baltic Sea through Vistula Lagoon. Its length under the name of Pregolya is 123 km, 292 km including the Angrapa. The basin has an...
. It starts as a confluence
Confluence
Confluence, in geography, describes the meeting of two or more bodies of water.Confluence may also refer to:* Confluence , a property of term rewriting systems...
of the Instruch and the Angrapa
Angrapa
Angrapa is a river in northeastern Poland and Russia . It originates in Masuria and flows into the Pregolya, of which it is a main tributary.The Angrapa has a length of 172 km and a basin area of 3,639 km²...
and drains into the Baltic Sea through Vistula Lagoon. Its length under the name of Pregolya is 123 km (76 mi), 292 km (181 mi), including the Angrapa
Angrapa
Angrapa is a river in northeastern Poland and Russia . It originates in Masuria and flows into the Pregolya, of which it is a main tributary.The Angrapa has a length of 172 km and a basin area of 3,639 km²...
.
Notable geographical features include:
- Curonian LagoonCuronian LagoonThe Curonian Lagoon is separated from the Baltic Sea by the Curonian Spit. Its surface area is . The Neman River supplies about 90% of its inflows; its watershed consists of about 100,450 square kilometers in Lithuania and the Kaliningrad Oblast.-Human history:In the 13th century, the area around...
(shared with Lithuania) - Vistula LagoonVistula LagoonThe Vistula Lagoon is a fresh water lagoon on the Baltic Sea separated from Gdańsk Bay by the Vistula Spit. It is sometimes known as the Vistula Bay or Vistula Gulf. The modern German name, Frisches Haff, is derived from an earlier form, Friesisches Haff. Both this term and the earlier Polish...
(shared with Poland)
Politics
Georgy Boos
Georgy Valentinovich Boos is a Russian businessman and politician, and was the governor of Kaliningrad Oblast.Boos was born in Moscow into a Crimean German family. His parents were both engineers...
.
The EU and Russia have had a serious political debate over the oblast territory. The enlargement of the EU in 2004, which saw Poland and Lithuania become member states, meant that the oblast now has land borders only with the EU. Issues of security have been at the forefront of debate, with high relevance to the Schengen Agreement
Schengen Agreement
The Schengen Agreement is a treaty signed on 14 June 1985 near the town of Schengen in Luxembourg, between five of the ten member states of the European Economic Community. It was supplemented by the Convention implementing the Schengen Agreement 5 years later...
.
After the collapse of the Soviet Union, some intellectuals and government officials in the oblast openly discussed the region separating from Russia. In the mid-1990s, Yuri Matochkin
Yuri Matochkin
Yuri Matochkin, also spelled Yury Matochkin, was a Russian politician. He was the first post-Soviet governor of Kaliningrad Oblast, having been appointed to that position by Boris Yeltsin in September 1991. Matochkin was elected to the Federation Council in 1993 and served on the International...
, the oblast's first post-Soviet governor, demanded a special relationship with the EU and threatened a referendum on secession, abetting fears in Moscow about the centrifugal forces of separatism. His attempts at elevating the oblast's status to that of a sovereign republic associated with the Russian Federation yielded no results. Around the same time, the secessionist Baltic Republican Party, banned in 2005, aimed at establishing the oblast as the "fourth Baltic state". However, an organized secessionist movement has never emerged there and surveys indicate strong support for remaining a part of Russia.
East Prussia
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
by tribes of Old Prussians
Old Prussians
The Old Prussians or Baltic Prussians were an ethnic group, autochthonous Baltic tribes that inhabited Prussia, the lands of the southeastern Baltic Sea in the area around the Vistula and Curonian Lagoons...
in the western part and Lithuanians
Lithuanians
Lithuanians are the Baltic ethnic group native to Lithuania, where they number around 2,765,600 people. Another million or more make up the Lithuanian diaspora, largely found in countries such as the United States, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Russia, United Kingdom and Ireland. Their native language...
in the eastern part by the Pregolya and Alna Rivers. The Teutonic Knights
Teutonic Knights
The Order of Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem , commonly the Teutonic Order , is a German medieval military order, in modern times a purely religious Catholic order...
conquered the region and established a monastic state
Monastic State of the Teutonic Knights
The State of the Teutonic Order, , also Monastic State of the Teutonic Knights or Ordensstaat , was formed in 1224 during the Northern Crusades, the Teutonic Knights' conquest of the pagan West-Baltic Old Prussians in the 13th century....
. On the foundations of a destroyed Prussian settlement known as Tvanksta, the Order founded the major city of Königsberg
Königsberg
Königsberg was the capital of East Prussia from the Late Middle Ages until 1945 as well as the northernmost and easternmost German city with 286,666 inhabitants . Due to the multicultural society in and around the city, there are several local names for it...
(modern Kaliningrad
Kaliningrad
Kaliningrad is a seaport and the administrative center of Kaliningrad Oblast, the Russian exclave between Poland and Lithuania on the Baltic Sea...
). Germans
Germans
The Germans are a Germanic ethnic group native to Central Europe. The English term Germans has referred to the German-speaking population of the Holy Roman Empire since the Late Middle Ages....
and Poles
Poles
thumb|right|180px|The state flag of [[Poland]] as used by Polish government and diplomatic authoritiesThe Polish people, or Poles , are a nation indigenous to Poland. They are united by the Polish language, which belongs to the historical Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages of Central Europe...
resettled the territory and assimilated the indigenous Old Prussians. The Lithuanian
Lithuanians
Lithuanians are the Baltic ethnic group native to Lithuania, where they number around 2,765,600 people. Another million or more make up the Lithuanian diaspora, largely found in countries such as the United States, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Russia, United Kingdom and Ireland. Their native language...
-inhabited areas became known as Lithuania Minor
Lithuania Minor
Lithuania Minor or Prussian Lithuania is a historical ethnographic region of Prussia, later East Prussia in Germany, where Prussian Lithuanians or Lietuvininkai lived. Lithuania Minor enclosed the northern part of this province and got its name due to the territory's substantial...
. In 1525, Grand Master Albert of Brandenburg
Albert I, Duke of Prussia
Albert of Prussia was the 37th Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights and, after converting to Lutheranism, the first duke of the Duchy of Prussia, which was the first state to adopt the Lutheran faith and Protestantism as the official state religion...
secularised
German Mediatisation
The German Mediatisation was the series of mediatisations and secularisations that occurred in Germany between 1795 and 1814, during the latter part of the era of the French Revolution and then the Napoleonic Era....
the Prussian branch of the Teutonic Order and established himself as the sovereign of the Duchy of Prussia, the Polish fief, later inherited by the Margravate of Brandenburg. The region was reorganized into the Province of East Prussia
East Prussia
East Prussia is the main part of the region of Prussia along the southeastern Baltic Coast from the 13th century to the end of World War II in May 1945. From 1772–1829 and 1878–1945, the Province of East Prussia was part of the German state of Prussia. The capital city was Königsberg.East Prussia...
within the Kingdom of Prussia
Kingdom of Prussia
The Kingdom of Prussia was a German kingdom from 1701 to 1918. Until the defeat of Germany in World War I, it comprised almost two-thirds of the area of the German Empire...
in 1773.
East Prussia was an important center of German culture. Many important figures, such as Immanuel Kant
Immanuel Kant
Immanuel Kant was a German philosopher from Königsberg , researching, lecturing and writing on philosophy and anthropology at the end of the 18th Century Enlightenment....
and E. T. A. Hoffmann, have their origins in this region. The cities of Kaliningrad Oblast, despite being heavily damaged during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
and thereafter, still contain some typical German architecture, such as the Jugendstil, showcasing the rich German history and cultural importance of the area. The Lithuanian-speaking community in East Prussia was diminished due to organic Germanization and cultural assimilation
Cultural assimilation
Cultural assimilation is a socio-political response to demographic multi-ethnicity that supports or promotes the assimilation of ethnic minorities into the dominant culture. The term assimilation is often used with regard to immigrants and various ethnic groups who have settled in a new land. New...
; in the early 20th century Lithuanian still made up a majority only in rural parts of the far northeast corner of East Prussia (Memelland and Minor Lithuania), the rest of the area (with exception of the Slavic Masurians in southern East Prussia), being overwhelmingly German-speaking. However, in 1918 Prussians who spoke German joined Lithuanian speaking Prussians and claimed that whole Prussia should join with Lithuania because the majority of inhabitants of this land were of Lithuanian-Prussian ethnic descent. In November 1918 they signed the declaration of independence from Germany and unification with motherland Lithuania.
The Memel Territory (Klaipėda region
Klaipeda Region
The Klaipėda Region or Memel Territory was defined by the Treaty of Versailles in 1920 when it was put under the administration of the Council of Ambassadors...
), formerly part of northeastern East Prussia, was annexed by Lithuania in 1923 after World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. In 1938, Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
radically altered about a third of the place names of this area by replacing names of Old Prussian or Lithuanian origin with newly invented German names.
Kaliningrad Oblast
During World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, Soviet troops reached the border of East Prussia on August 29, 1944. In January 1945, Soviet forces overran all of East Prussia except the area around Konigsberg. Many Germans fled west at this time. During the last days of the war, over two million Germans were evacuated by sea
Evacuation of East Prussia
The evacuation of East Prussia refers to the evacuation of the German civilian population and military personnel in East Prussia and the Klaipėda region between 20 January, and March 1945, as part of the evacuation of German civilians towards the end of World War II...
. The remaining German population was deported after the war, and the area was repopulated primarily by Russians and, to a lesser extent, Ukrainians and Belarusians.
The Potsdam Agreement
Potsdam Agreement
The Potsdam Agreement was the Allied plan of tripartite military occupation and reconstruction of Germany—referring to the German Reich with its pre-war 1937 borders including the former eastern territories—and the entire European Theatre of War territory...
among the Allied powers
Allies of World War II
The Allies of World War II were the countries that opposed the Axis powers during the Second World War . Former Axis states contributing to the Allied victory are not considered Allied states...
assigned northern East Prussia to the Soviet Union, pending the final determination of territorial questions at the peace settlement:
VI. CITY OF KOENIGSBERG AND THE ADJACENT AREA
The Conference examined a proposal by the Soviet Government that pending the final determination of territorial questions at the peace settlement the section of the western frontier of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics which is adjacent to the Baltic SeaBaltic SeaThe Baltic Sea is a brackish mediterranean sea located in Northern Europe, from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from 20°E to 26°E longitude. It is bounded by the Scandinavian Peninsula, the mainland of Europe, and the Danish islands. It drains into the Kattegat by way of the Øresund, the Great Belt and...
should pass from a point on the eastern shore of the Bay of GdanskGdansk BayGdańsk Bay or the Bay of Gdańsk or Danzig Bay is a southeastern bay of the Baltic Sea. It is named after the adjacent port city of Gdańsk in Poland and is sometimes referred to as a gulf.-Geography:...
to the east, north of BraunsbergBraniewoBraniewo is a town in northeastern Poland, in the Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship, with a population of 18,068 . It is the capital of Braniewo County...
and Goldap, to the meeting point of the frontiers of LithuaniaLithuaniaLithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark...
, the Polish RepublicPolandPoland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
and East Prussia.
The Conference has agreed in principle to the proposal of the Soviet Government concerning the ultimate transfer to the Soviet Union of the city of Koenigsberg and the area adjacent to it as described above, subject to expert examination of the actual frontier.
The President of the United StatesHarry S. TrumanHarry S. Truman was the 33rd President of the United States . As President Franklin D. Roosevelt's third vice president and the 34th Vice President of the United States , he succeeded to the presidency on April 12, 1945, when President Roosevelt died less than three months after beginning his...
and the British Prime MinisterClement AttleeClement Richard Attlee, 1st Earl Attlee, KG, OM, CH, PC, FRS was a British Labour politician who served as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1945 to 1951, and as the Leader of the Labour Party from 1935 to 1955...
have declared that they will support the proposal of the Conference at the forthcoming peace settlement.
In 1957, an agreement was signed and later came into force which delimited the boundary between Poland and the Soviet Union,
According to some accounts from the 1950s and 1960s, the Soviet government had planned to make the rest of the area a part of the Lithuanian SSR
Lithuanian SSR
The Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic , also known as the Lithuanian SSR, was one of the republics that made up the former Soviet Union...
immediately after World War II. The area was administered by the planning committee of the LSSR, although the area had its own Communist Party committee. However, the leadership of the Lithuanian SSR (especially Antanas Sniečkus
Antanas Snieckus
Antanas Sniečkus was First Secretary of the Lithuanian Communist Party from August 1940 to January 22, 1974.- Biography :Antanas Sniečkus was born in 1903, in the village of Būbleliai, near Šakiai. During the First World War, his family fled to Russia where he observed the Russian revolution of 1917...
) refused to take the territory, mainly because of its devastation during the war. Some modern nationalistic Lithuanian authors say that the reason for the refusal was the Lithuanians' concern to find themselves on equal demographic terms with the Russian population within the Lithuanian SSR. Instead the region was added as an exclave to the Russian SFSR, and since 1946 it has been known as Kaliningrad Oblast. According to some historians, Joseph Stalin
Joseph Stalin
Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin was the Premier of the Soviet Union from 6 May 1941 to 5 March 1953. He was among the Bolshevik revolutionaries who brought about the October Revolution and had held the position of first General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union's Central Committee...
created it as an oblast separate from the LSSR because it further enclosed the Baltic states from the West. Names of the cities, towns, rivers, and other geographical objects were changed into newly-created Russian ones.
The collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 and the independence of the Baltic states caused Kaliningrad Oblast to be separated from the rest of Russia by other countries instead of other Soviet republics. Some ethnic Germans began to return to the area, such as Volga Germans from other parts of Russia and Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan , officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country in Central Asia and Eastern Europe. Ranked as the ninth largest country in the world, it is also the world's largest landlocked country; its territory of is greater than Western Europe...
, especially after Germany stopped granting free right of return to ethnic Germans from the former Soviet Union. The economic situation has been badly affected by the geographic isolation (and the significant reduction in the size of the Russian military garrison which had previously been one of the major employers), especially when neighboring nations imposed strict border controls when they joined the European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
. Russian proposals for visa-free travel between the EU and Kaliningrad have so far been rejected by the EU. Travel arrangements based on the Facilitated Transit Document (FTD) and Facilitated Rail Transit Document (FRTD) have been made.
In recent times, the situation has begun to change, if slowly. Germany and Lithuania have renewed contact with Kaliningrad Oblast through town twinning
Town twinning
Twin towns and sister cities are two of many terms used to describe the cooperative agreements between towns, cities, and even counties in geographically and politically distinct areas to promote cultural and commercial ties.- Terminology :...
and other projects. This has helped to promote interest in the history and the culture of the East Prussian and Lietuvininkai
Prussian Lithuanians
The term Prussian Lithuanians or Lietuvininkai refers to a Western Lithuanian ethnic group, which did not form a nation and inhabited a territory in East Prussia called Prussian Lithuania or Lithuania Minor in contrast to the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and later the Republic of Lithuania .Unlike most...
communities.
Military
For some years after the fall of the Soviet Union, Kaliningrad Oblast was one of the most militarized areas of the Russian Federation, and the density of military installations was the highest in Europe, as much of the Soviet equipment pulled out of Eastern Europe was left there. As of 2009, there are 11,600 Russian ground troops based in the oblast, plus additional naval and air force personnel. Thus military troops amount to less than 2% of the oblast's population. Kaliningrad is a headquarters of Russian Baltic FleetBaltic Fleet
The Twice Red Banner Baltic Fleet - is the Russian Navy's presence in the Baltic Sea. In previous historical periods, it has been part of the navy of Imperial Russia and later the Soviet Union. The Fleet gained the 'Twice Red Banner' appellation during the Soviet period, indicating two awards of...
circled by Chernyakhovsk (air base)
Chernyakhovsk (air base)
Chernyakhovsk – – is a naval air base located 4 km southwest of the city of Chernyakhovsk in the Kaliningrad Oblast of Russia...
, Donskoye (air base)
Donskoye (air base)
Donskoye is an air base in Kaliningrad Oblast, Russia, located 1 km east of Donskoye . It is a very old airfield probably dating back to World War II, nearly at Russia's most extreme western point. The facility contains 25 aircraft pads, and appears to be in a severe state of decay...
, and Kaliningrad Chkalovsk
Kaliningrad Chkalovsk
Kaliningrad Chkalovsk is a naval air base in Kaliningrad Oblast, Russia located 9 km northwest of Kaliningrad. Most instances in Russian aviation literature of Chkalovsk or Chkalovskoye refer specifically to this large airfield...
(naval air base).
The Washington Times
The Washington Times
The Washington Times is a daily broadsheet newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States. It was founded in 1982 by Unification Church founder Sun Myung Moon, and until 2010 was owned by News World Communications, an international media conglomerate associated with the...
claimed on January 3, 2001, citing anonymous intelligence reports, that Russia had transferred tactical nuclear weapons into a military base in Kaliningrad for the first time since the Cold War ended. Russian top-level military leaders denied those claims. A Pentagon spokesperson stated that deployment would violate Russian pledge that Russia was removing nuclear weapons from the Baltics. Russia and the United States announced in 1991 and 1992 a non-binding agreement to reduce arsenals of tactical nuclear weapons. On the eve of the reunification of Germany, Helmut Kohl
Helmut Kohl
Helmut Josef Michael Kohl is a German conservative politician and statesman. He was Chancellor of Germany from 1982 to 1998 and the chairman of the Christian Democratic Union from 1973 to 1998...
promised Mikhail Gorbachev
Mikhail Gorbachev
Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev is a former Soviet statesman, having served as General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1985 until 1991, and as the last head of state of the USSR, having served from 1988 until its dissolution in 1991...
that NATO's military infrastructures would not move eastward into the territory of East Germany, a fact since confirmed by the former U.S. Ambassador to Moscow Jack Matlock. Later Russia was privately assured that Eastern European states would not seek membership in NATO. Today, while NATO has not established any military infrastructure in Eastern Germany yet, both Central European and Baltic countries are NATO members.
On November 5, 2008, Russian President Dimitry Medvedev said that Russia would deploy Iskander missiles in the oblast as a response to U.S. plans for basing missile defense
Missile defense
Missile defense is a system, weapon, or technology involved in the detection, tracking, interception and destruction of attacking missiles. Originally conceived as a defence against nuclear-armed Intercontinental ballistic missiles , its application has broadened to include shorter-ranged...
missiles in Poland. Equipment to electronically hamper the operation of future U.S. missile facilities in Poland and the Czech Republic also would be deployed, he said.
However, on January 28, 2009, a Russian defense official stated that the deployment of short-range missiles into Kaliningrad Oblast would cease due to perceived changes in the attitude of the United States government towards the Russian Federation following the election of United States President Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
. In September 2009, Russia fully scrapped plans of sending short-range missiles into the Kaliningrad Oblast in response to President Obama's decision to cancel the missile defense system. In November 2011, Dmitry Medvedev issued another stern warning that Russia will deploy new missiles aimed at U.S. missile defense sites in Europe if Washington goes ahead with the planned shield.
Administrative divisions
Population
According to the preliminary results of the 2010 Census, the oblast population is 941,474; down from 955,281 recorded in the 2002 CensusRussian Census (2002)
Russian Census of 2002 was the first census of the Russian Federation carried out on October 9 through October 16, 2002. It was carried out by the Russian Federal Service of State Statistics .-Resident population:...
. The 1989 Census
Soviet Census (1989)
The 1989 Soviet census, conducted between January 12-19 of that year, was the last one conducted in the former USSR. It resulted in a total population of 286,730,819 inhabitants...
recorded 871,283 inhabitants.
Kaliningrad Oblast is the fourth most densely populated federal subject in Russia, with 62.5 persons/km2 (162 persons/sq mi).
Almost none of the pre–World War II Lithuanian population (Lietuvininks) or German population remain in Kaliningrad Oblast.
Ethnic groups
According to the 2002 CensusRussian Census (2002)
Russian Census of 2002 was the first census of the Russian Federation carried out on October 9 through October 16, 2002. It was carried out by the Russian Federal Service of State Statistics .-Resident population:...
, the national composition included:
- 786,885 RussiansRussiansThe Russian people are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Russia, speaking the Russian language and primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries....
(82.37%) - 50,748 BelarusiansBelarusiansBelarusians ; are an East Slavic ethnic group who populate the majority of the Republic of Belarus. Introduced to the world as a new state in the early 1990s, the Republic of Belarus brought with it the notion of a re-emerging Belarusian ethnicity, drawn upon the lines of the Old Belarusian...
(5.31%) - 47,229 UkrainiansUkrainiansUkrainians are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Ukraine, which is the sixth-largest nation in Europe. The Constitution of Ukraine applies the term 'Ukrainians' to all its citizens...
(4.94%) - 13,937 LithuaniansLithuaniansLithuanians are the Baltic ethnic group native to Lithuania, where they number around 2,765,600 people. Another million or more make up the Lithuanian diaspora, largely found in countries such as the United States, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Russia, United Kingdom and Ireland. Their native language...
(1.46%) - 8,415 ArmeniansArmeniansArmenian people or Armenians are a nation and ethnic group native to the Armenian Highland.The largest concentration is in Armenia having a nearly-homogeneous population with 97.9% or 3,145,354 being ethnic Armenian....
(0.88%) - 8,340 GermansGermansThe Germans are a Germanic ethnic group native to Central Europe. The English term Germans has referred to the German-speaking population of the Holy Roman Empire since the Late Middle Ages....
(0.87%) - 4,729 TatarsTatarsTatars are a Turkic speaking ethnic group , numbering roughly 7 million.The majority of Tatars live in the Russian Federation, with a population of around 5.5 million, about 2 million of which in the republic of Tatarstan.Significant minority populations are found in Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan,...
(0.50%) - 3,918 PolesPolesthumb|right|180px|The state flag of [[Poland]] as used by Polish government and diplomatic authoritiesThe Polish people, or Poles , are a nation indigenous to Poland. They are united by the Polish language, which belongs to the historical Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages of Central Europe...
(0.41%) - 2,959 AzerisAzeris in RussiaAside from the large Azeri community native to Russia's Dagestan Republic, the majority of Azeris in Russia are fairly recent immigrants. Azeris started settling in Russia around the late 19th century, but their migration became intensive after World War II. It rapidly increased with the collapse...
(0.30%) - 2,320 Mordvins (0.24%)
- 2,027 ChuvashChuvash peopleThe Chuvash people are a Turkic ethnic group, native to an area stretching from the Volga Region to Siberia. Most of them live in Republic of Chuvashia and surrounding areas, although Chuvash communities may be found throughout all Russia.- Etymology :...
(0.21%) - 1,599 JewsJewsThe Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...
(0.17%) - 1,447 Roma (0.15%)
- 1,116 MoldovansMoldovansMoldovans or Moldavians are the largest population group of Moldova...
(0.12%) - 738 Chechens (0.08%)
- 709 LatviansLatviansLatvians or Letts are the indigenous Baltic people of Latvia.-History:Latvians occasionally refer to themselves by the ancient name of Latvji, which may have originated from the word Latve which is a name of the river that presumably flowed through what is now eastern Latvia...
(0.07%) - 681 GeorgiansGeorgiansThe Georgians are an ethnic group that have originated in Georgia, where they constitute a majority of the population. Large Georgian communities are also present throughout Russia, European Union, United States, and South America....
(0.07%) - 631 KazakhsKazakhsThe Kazakhs are a Turkic people of the northern parts of Central Asia ....
(0.07%) - 631 UzbeksUzbeksThe Uzbeks are a Turkic ethnic group in Central Asia. They comprise the majority population of Uzbekistan, and large populations can also be found in Afghanistan, Tajikstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, Russia, Pakistan, Mongolia and the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China...
(0.07%) - 562 BashkirsBashkirsThe Bashkirs are a Turkic people indigenous to Bashkortostan extending on both parts of the Ural mountains, on the place where Europe meets Asia. Groups of Bashkirs also live in the republic of Tatarstan, Perm Krai, Chelyabinsk, Orenburg, Tyumen, Sverdlovsk, Kurgan, Samara and Saratov Oblasts of...
(0.06%) - 504 Yezidi (0.05%)
- 448 Mari (0.05%)
- 433 OssetiansOssetiansThe Ossetians are an Iranic ethnic group of the Caucasus Mountains, eponymous of the region known as Ossetia.They speak Ossetic, an Iranian language of the Eastern branch, with most also fluent in Russian as a second language....
(0.05%) - 382 Udmurts (0.04%)
- 359 LezginsLezginsThe Lezgians are an ethnic group living predominantly in southern Dagestan and northeastern Azerbaijan and who speak the Lezgian language.- Historical concept :While ancient Greek historians, including Herodotus, Strabo, and Pliny the Elder, referred...
(0.04%) - 346 BulgariansBulgariansThe Bulgarians are a South Slavic nation and ethnic group native to Bulgaria and neighbouring regions. Emigration has resulted in immigrant communities in a number of other countries.-History and ethnogenesis:...
(0.04%) - 309 Tajiks (0.03%)
- 305 AmericansUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
(0.02%),
as well as other groups of less than three hundred persons each. An additional 0.93% of residents declined to state their nationality or ethnocultural identity on the census questionnaire.
Economy
Kaliningrad Oblast's economy is positively influenced by several factors, such as ice-free ports, the world's largest amberAmber
Amber is fossilized tree resin , which has been appreciated for its color and natural beauty since Neolithic times. Amber is used as an ingredient in perfumes, as a healing agent in folk medicine, and as jewelry. There are five classes of amber, defined on the basis of their chemical constituents...
deposits and proximity to European countries. The region also has a developed tourist infrastructure, unique museums and monuments, and tourist attractions such as the famous Curonian Spit
Curonian Spit
The Curonian Spit is a 98 km long, thin, curved sand-dune spit that separates the Curonian Lagoon from the Baltic Sea coast. Its southern portion lies within Kaliningrad Oblast, Russia and its northern within southwestern Lithuania...
.
In order to combat the oblast's economic problems such as high unemployment, in 1996 the Russian authorities granted Kaliningrad special economic status and tax advantages intended to attract investors. Oblast's economy has since benefited substantially, and in recent years experienced a boom. A US$45 million airport terminal has been opened, and the European Commission provides funds for business projects under its special program for the region. The oblast has begun to see increasing trade with the countries of the EU as well as increasing economic growth and rising industrial output.
According to official statistics, the Gross Regional Product
Gross Regional Product
A metropolitan area's gross regional product, i.e. GMP or GRP, is one of several measures of the size of its economy. Similar to GDP, GRP is defined as the market value of all final goods and services produced within a metropolitan area in a given period of time.-See also:*List of European...
in 2006 was 115 billion roubles. GRP per capita in 2007 was 155,668.9 rubles.
Industry
The oblast has transport (railcars) and heavy equipment (craneCrane (machine)
A crane is a type of machine, generally equipped with a hoist, wire ropes or chains, and sheaves, that can be used both to lift and lower materials and to move them horizontally. It uses one or more simple machines to create mechanical advantage and thus move loads beyond the normal capability of...
) plants. Car and truck assembly (GM
General Motors
General Motors Company , commonly known as GM, formerly incorporated as General Motors Corporation, is an American multinational automotive corporation headquartered in Detroit, Michigan and the world's second-largest automaker in 2010...
, BMW
BMW
Bayerische Motoren Werke AG is a German automobile, motorcycle and engine manufacturing company founded in 1916. It also owns and produces the Mini marque, and is the parent company of Rolls-Royce Motor Cars. BMW produces motorcycles under BMW Motorrad and Husqvarna brands...
, Kia
Kia Motors
Kia Motors , headquartered in Seoul, is South Korea's second-largest automobile manufacturer, following the Hyundai Motor Company, with sales of over 1.4 million vehicles in 2010...
, Yuejin), and production of auto parts are growing industries. There are shipbuilding facilities in Kaliningrad and Sovetsk
Sovetsk, Kaliningrad Oblast
Sovetsk , known by its historical German name of Tilsit in East Prussia before 1946, is a town in Kaliningrad Oblast, Russia, located on the south bank of the Neman River. Population: -History of Tilsit:...
. Food processing is a mature industry in the region. OKB Fakel
OKB Fakel
OKB Fakel is a Russian electric propulsion system development company. It is located in Neman in Kaliningrad Oblast.- Overview :Fakel specializes in spacecraft attitude control thrusters, ion engines and plasma sources. It is a world leader in the field of Hall thruster development and a leading...
, a world leader in the field of Hall thruster development and a leading Russian developer and manufacturer of electric propulsion systems, is based in Neman
Neman (town)
Neman is a town and the administrative center of Nemansky District of Kaliningrad Oblast, Russia. It is located in the historic Prussia region, east of the town of Sovetsk, on the steep southern bank of the Neman River, where it currently forms the border with the Klaipėda Region in...
. The company employs 960 people.
Natural resources
Kaliningrad Oblast possesses more than 90% of the world's amberAmber
Amber is fossilized tree resin , which has been appreciated for its color and natural beauty since Neolithic times. Amber is used as an ingredient in perfumes, as a healing agent in folk medicine, and as jewelry. There are five classes of amber, defined on the basis of their chemical constituents...
deposits. Most of the mined amber is processed outside of the region, in Russia and in other countries.
There are small oil reservoirs beneath the Baltic Sea not far from Kaliningrad's shore. Small-scale offshore exploration started in 2004 and some Baltic countries (Poland and Lithuania), as well as local NGOs voiced concerns regarding possible environmental impact.
Fishing
Fishing is one of the important regional industries, with big fishing ports in Kaliningrad and PionerskyPionersky, Kaliningrad Oblast
Pionersky is a town in Kaliningrad Oblast, Russia, located along the Baltic Sea on the Sambian Peninsula, between Zelenogradsk and Svetlogorsk. The town is under direct jurisdiction of the oblast administration. Population:...
(formerly Neukuhren) and lesser ones in Svetly
Svetly, Kaliningrad Oblast
Svetly , prior to 1945 known by its German name Zimmerbude, is a town in Kaliningrad Oblast, Russia, located on the coast of Vistula Bay west of Kaliningrad. Population: 21,745 ;...
and Rybachy.
Power generation
Average yearly power consumption in the Kaliningrad Oblast was 3.5Bn kWh in 2004 with local power generation providing just 235M kWh. The balance of energy needs required was imported from neighbouring countries. A new Kaliningrad power station was built in 2005, covering 50% of the oblast's energy needs. A second power station was scheduled to enter service in 2010, making the oblast independent from electricity imports. There are plans to build two nuclear power reactorsKaliningrad Nuclear Power Plant
The Kaliningrad Nuclear Power Plant is a nuclear power plant under construction 13 kilometers south-east of Neman, in Kaliningrad Oblast, Russia...
in the eastern part of Kaliningrad.
External links
- Official website of Kaliningrad Oblast
- A. Liucija Arbusauskaité "The Soviet Policy Towards the "Kaliningrad Germans" 1945-1951" chapter in "Themenheft: Eingliederung und Ausgrenzung. Beiträge aus der Historischen Migrationsforschung. Hrsg.: Jochen Oltmer Osnabrück: IMIS, 1999. ISSN 0949-4723
- Master's thesis by Sergey Naumkin on the possibility of Kaliningrad integrating with the EU as a special economic zoneSpecial Economic ZoneA Special Economic Zone is a geographical region that has economic and other laws that are more free-market-oriented than a country's typical or national laws...
- Life in Kaliningrad Oblast
- Spuren der Vergangenheit / Следы Пρошлого (Traces of the past) This site by W.A. Milowskij, a Kaliningrad resident, contains hundreds of interesting photos, often with text explanations, of architectural and infrastructural artifacts of the territory's long German past.
- City and Reagen News