(; ) is a Seaport and the administrative center of Kaliningrad Oblast , the Russia n Exclave between Poland and Lithuania on the Baltic Sea . The territory borders on NATO and EU members Poland and Lithuania, and is geographically separated from the rest of Russia.
As of the 2002 Census , its population was 430,003, an increase from the 401,280 recorded in the 1989 Census . Its ethnic composition consists of 77.9% Russians , 8.0% Belarusians , and 7.3% Ukrainians . Kaliningrad Oblast
Under its Original German name of , it was a capital of the Monastic State Of The Teutonic Knights , the Duchy Of Prussia , and the German province of East Prussia . Before being renamed to Kaliningrad, it was briefly Russified as ''Kyonigsberg'' ().
Kaliningrad is located at the mouth of the Navigable Pregolya River , which empties into the Vistula Lagoon , an inlet of the Baltic Sea .
Sea vessels can access Gdańsk Bay and the Baltic Sea by way of the Vistula Lagoon and the Strait Of Baltiysk .
Until circa 1900 ships drawing more than 2 m of water could not pass the bar and come into town, so that larger vessels had to anchor at Pillau (now Baltiysk ), where merchandise was moved onto smaller vessels. In 1901 a ship Canal between Königsberg and Pillau was completed at a cost of 13 million Marks , which enabled vessels of a 6.5 m draught to moor alongside the town. (See also Ports Of The Baltic Sea .)
Khrabrovo Airport is located 24 km north of Kaliningrad, and has a few scheduled/charter services to several destinations throughout Europe. There is the smaller Kaliningrad Devau Airport for general aviation. Kaliningrad is also home to Kaliningrad Chkalovsk naval air base.
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Due to the Collapse Of The Soviet Union , the Kaliningrad Oblast became a Russia n Exclave , separated from the rest of Russia . Kaliningrad is the only Russia n Baltic Sea port that is ice-free all year.
When Poland and Lithuania became members of the European Union in 2004 , the region became completely surrounded by the EU. Special travel arrangements for the territory's inhabitants have been made.
Today, there is some debate about giving the city its old name back, as has happened in several Russian cities like St. Petersburg and Tver , which were known as ''Leningrad'' and ''Kalinin'', respectively, during much of the Soviet time period. However, the continued use of "Kaliningrad", at least for the next few years, seems certain. "Kyonig" (shortened Russian form of "Königsberg") is often used in advertisements for tourism companies in this region.
In July 2007, Russian First Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov declared that if US-controlled Missile Defense systems were deployed in Poland that nuclear weapons may be deployed in Kaliningrad.
- or ''Konigsberg''
- Greek : ''Καινιξβέργη'' (Ancient: ''Kainixberge'', Modern: ''Kenixveryi'')
- , ''Karaļauči''
- (Kyonigsberg)
- Sorbian : ''Kralowc''
Kaliningrad is home to the Association Football (soccer) club FC Baltika Kaliningrad , which plays in the Russian First Division .
- Hannah Arendt (1906-1975), political theorist
- Erich Von Drygalski (1865-1949), explorer
- Josef Hirsch Dunner (1913-2007), Chief Rabbi of East Prussia
- Oleg Gazmanov (born 1951), Russian singer
- Pavel Pabst (1854-1897), pianist/composer and professor at the Moscow Conservatory
- Lyudmila Putina (born 1958), wife of Vladimir Putin and First Lady of Russia (since December 31 , 1999 )
- Gustavus Von Tempsky , (1828-1868) soldier, adventurer, artist, writer
- Tvangeste , black metal rock band
- Michael Wieck (born 1928), musician and author
- Heinrich August Winkler (born 1938), historian
Kaliningrad is Twinned with:
- Baedeker, Karl, ''Northern Germany'', 14th revised (English-language) edition, Leipzig, London, and New York, 1904, pps: 176-7.
- Vesilind, Priit J. ''Kaliningrad: Coping with a German Past and a Russian Future.'' National Geographic , March 1997.
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