KALININGRAD: The European Commission has proposed a special travel pass for residents of Russia's Baltic enclave, Kaliningrad, in an attempt to end a dispute between Brussels and Moscow. If Lithuania and Poland join the European Union in 2004, Kaliningrad will be entirely surrounded by EU member-states.
The Commission's proposal would allow the enclave's almost one million residents to travel easily through EU territory to other parts of Russia. Under normal EU rules, all Russian citizens would require a visa to travel through the EU, which Moscow calls a violation of its citizens' human rights.
Introducing the proposal in Brussels yesterday, the Commission President, Mr Romano Prodi, said it addressed Kaliningrad's special circumstances while respecting the sovereignty of Poland and Lithuania.
"We are proposing a package of measures which will make the direct transit of goods and people between Kaliningrad and the rest of Russia as easy as possible after enlargement. Russian citizens who travel frequently by road or by rail will get a simplified transit document which will allow them to carry out several direct trips between Kaliningrad and the rest of Russian territory. You could call it a Kaliningrad pass," he said.
Mr Prodi suggested that the pass, which would be issued by Lithuanian and Polish consulates in Kaliningrad, would be free of charge or at a minimum cost. Until the end of 2004, the pass could be used in conjunction with an internal Russian travel document. After that, travellers would need an international passport - something only one in four Kaliningrad citizens own.
Moscow's special representative for Kaliningrad, Mr Dmitri Rogozin, responded cautiously to the proposal, emphasising that Russia and the EU remained far apart on the issue. "Now we must try to move these positions closer to one another," he said.
The Commission says it will consider Moscow's proposal to introduce a high-speed rail link between Kaliningrad and the rest of Russia, on which no visas would be required. Mr Prodi said yesterday that the EU would also consider President Vladimir Putin's call for a visa-free travel arrangement between Russia and the EU.
The EU is worried that, unless it controls transit through Lithuania and Poland, Kaliningrad could become a gateway for illegal immigration into the EU. Moscow fears that any special arrangements for the enclave could undermine Russia's territorial integrity, which is already under threat in the Caucasus and the far east.
EU foreign ministers will consider the Commission's proposal later this month before sending it to heads of state and government on October 24th. The EU hopes to agree a deal with Russia at a meeting in Copenhagen in November.
