Brussels, 05/02/2003 (Agence Europe) - On Wednesday, the European Commission presented two proposals for a resolution aimed at establishing facility transit papers between continental Russia and the Russian enclave of Kaliningrad. After lengthy and difficult talks, the European Union and Russia reached an agreement on transit arrangements over the Lithuanian territory at the EU/Russia Summit last November, agreeing on the principle of such papers, that should take effect this year, on 1 July (see EUROPE of 13 November). The regulations proposed will only apply to Member States, but Lithuania has to adopt a similar text in its national legislation. The EU and Russia, however, did not decide to introduce these transit facilities for passage through Poland, which is only concerned by a small proportion of the transit.
The two regulations proposed by the Commission set out the characteristics and conditions for granting facilitating transit documents (FTDs) and the facilitating rail transit document (FRTD). The Commission proposes that the FTD cost 5 euro, and that the FRTD be free. The FTD, valid for up to three years, would give right to an unlimited number of trips by all forms of transport during that period. Passage by the EU territory may not exceed 24 hours. The document should be requested of the consular authorities of the Member state through which transit is to take place. To receive one, people will have to be able justify the need for frequent trips. The validity of the FRTD would not exceed that of the train ticket, transit anyway not being allowed to exceed 6 hours. This document could a priori be requested of the consular authorities of all Member States. Neither the FTD nor the FRTD could be requested at the border. It would, moreover, be compulsory to possess a travel document (passport) valid until expiry of the facilitating transit document. A Member State will refuse to grant a transit document to a person it considers could jeopardise its public order or security. The procedures, appeals, and penalties in case of the abusive use of these documents would be governed by the domestic law of the Member State concerned. The second regulation sets out the technical characteristics of the two documents.
In accordance with the decisions of the EU-Russia Summit, while waiting for these documents to take effect, Lithuania has strengthened controls at its border with Kaliningrad (since 1 February, instead of 1 January, as initially planned). Now, the Lithuanian authorities demand the possession of an official passport and n longer accept military documents. Over the weekend of 1 and 2 February, 35 people were thus refused access to Lithuanian territory. At the European Council of Copenhagen, Lithuania secure an undertaking of principle that the EU would take on the extra costs resulting from the EU/Russia transit agreement over Kaliningrad.
Although the regulations are intended to settle the Kaliningrad issue, they could also be used for other enclaves, in the very hypothetical case that the EU would face the same situation with other third countries. Likewise, nor does anything prevent the regulations being applied for transit between Russia and Kalinngrad, by other Baltic States of Poland.