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62-645: The restricted access zone (generally 7.5 kilometres (4.7 mi) width, but running as much as 90 kilometres (56 mi) deep along the Estonian border ) was established in the Soviet Union in 1934, and later expanded, at times including vast territories. In 1935–36, in order to secure the western border of the Soviet Union, many nationalities considered unreliable ( Poles , Germans , Ingrian Finns , Estonians , Latvians ) were forcibly transferred from

124-565: A sham trial in a Russian court in the Pskov region , the Russians sentenced Kohver to 15 years on espionage charges; Estonia and the EU denounced Kohver's detention. The next month, Kohver was freed in a prisoner exchange , in which he was swapped for Aleksei Dressen . After increasing tensions, Estonia increased its border security measures. In 2018, Estonia began planning for the constructing of

186-707: A Russian border guard MI-8 helicopter violated Estonian airspace. In September 2022, the Baltic countries (Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania) closed their borders to most Russians in response to the Russia's invasion of Ukraine , launched in February 2022. Exceptions to the ban allowed for entry of Russian dissidents , Russians who held residence permits or long-term visas from a Schengen Area country, transportation workers and active diplomats, and Russian family members of European Union citizens . Entry for humanitarian reasons

248-650: A decision by the European Union . Until the 13th century no strict borders existed between the Slavic and Finnic peoples that populated northeastern Eurasia . Their mutual relationships relied on the military and dynastic alliances, tributes and religious proselytism , occasionally interrupted by military raids. Major powers in the region were Livonian Order and Novgorod Republic that encompassed Pskov , Karelia and Izhora that conducted trade i.a. via Estonian lands seeing them as tributaries. Yaroslav

310-684: A permanent steel fence along the 135 km land border with Russia. The first section a 23.5 km section that includes the Luhamaa border checkpoint was built between 2020 and 2022. A second section 39.5 km section was completed earlier than planned, in December 2023. Estonia also fortified its coastal defenses, announcing plans in 2020 for additional sea mines and anti-ship missiles to deter Russian aggression. In 2021, Estonia reported five violations of Estonian airspace by Russian military and civilian aircraft. In June 2022, Estonia said that

372-623: A portion of Karelia to Russia. The Treaty of Åbo in 1743 between Sweden and Russia then ceded South Karelia to Russia. After Finland had been occupied by Russia in the Finnish War , parts of the ceded provinces ( Old Finland ) were incorporated into the Grand Duchy of Finland in 1812. In 1917, Finland became independent and the border was confirmed by the Treaty of Tartu in 1920. Finnish partisans were involved in attempts to overthrow

434-517: Is a historical province of Finland and is now divided between Finland and Russia, often called just Karjala in Finnish. The eastern part of this chiefly Lutheran area was ceded to Russia after the Winter War of 1939–40. The Republic of Karelia is a Russian federal subject, including East Karelia , with a chiefly Russian Orthodox population. Within present-day Finland, Karjala refers to

496-704: Is an area around St. Petersburg, between the Estonian border and Lake Ladoga. Ingrian Finns settled in the region in the 17th century after the Swedish conquest of the area. The settlers spoke Karelian and Savonian dialects of Finnish. The older inhabitants of the Ingria, the Ingrians, have their own language which is related to the Karelian language and the south-eastern dialects of Finnish. Karelians evacuated from

558-596: Is an area in Northern Europe of historical significance for Russia (including the Soviet era), Finland , and Sweden . It is currently divided between northwestern Russia (the federal subjects of the Republic of Karelia and Leningrad Oblast ) and Finland (the regions of South Karelia , North Karelia , and the eastern portion of Kymenlaakso ). Various subdivisions may be called Karelia. Finnish Karelia

620-629: Is located between the Gulf of Finland and Lake Ladoga . The highest point of Karelia, the 576 metres (1,890 ft) high Nuorunen , is located on the Russian side of the Maanselka hill region. The border between Karelia and Ingria , the land of the closely related Ingrian people , had originally been the Neva River itself but later on it was moved northward into the Karelian isthmus to follow

682-459: Is sometimes divided into East Karelia and West Karelia, which are also called Russian Karelia and Finnish Karelia respectively. The area to the north of Lake Ladoga which belonged to Finland before World War II is called Ladoga Karelia, and the parishes on the old pre-war border are sometimes called Border Karelia. White Karelia (sometimes the Finnish or Karelian term "Viena Karelia", or in some English-language sources, "White Sea Karelia",

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744-663: Is used) is the northern part of East Karelia and Olonets Karelia is the southern part. Tver Karelia denotes the villages in the Tver Oblast that are inhabited by Tver Karelians . During the Early Middle Ages , settlers from western Finland mixed with the local population to form the Karelian ethnic group. Possible migration from elsewhere may also have contributed to the Karelian ethnic composition. Archeological evidence indicates that Karelian inhabitation

806-561: Is visited by tourists in both summer and winter when possible activities include riding in a sled behind a dog team and running from the banya to an ice hole and back. Summer hikers can visit the Kivach waterfall or the Demon's Chair plateau. In South Karelia , Lappeenranta is a popular destination for Russian tourists, with 1.5 million visiting annually. Imatrankoski in Imatra has been

868-676: The Bolsheviks in Russian Karelia ( East Karelia ) in 1918–21, as in the failed Aunus expedition . They also wanted to incorporate the rest of Karelia into Finland and cooperated with the short-lived Republic of Uhtua . These mainly private expeditions ended after the signing of the Treaty of Tartu. After the end of the Russian Civil War and the establishment of the Soviet Union in 1922, the Russian part of Karelia became

930-539: The Conservative People's Party of Estonia (EKRE) proposed to again reference the 1920 Treaty in the border agreement. In 2019, Estonian Prime Minister Jüri Ratas said he was willing to discuss ratification of the border treaty if the Russians were willing to do so, but said that Estonian coalition government must have realistic expectations, referencing differences between his Center Party and its coalition partners, EKRE and Isamaa . As of August 2020,

992-792: The Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic and the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic . According to the Internal Affairs People's Commissariat decree No. 867 of 6 December 1940, the Barrage Zone was created along the former borderline to prevent "…intrusion of spies, terrorists and anti-revolutionary elements" into the USSR mainland. Border guards were assigned to allow restricted passage through

1054-725: The Karjalan Liitto (Karelian League) and ProKarelia . On the Finnish side, the area is Finnish-speaking. The South Karelian dialects of the Finnish language (closely related to the Karelian language) are spoken in South Karelia. The eastern Savonian dialects are spoken in North Karelia, part of the group of dialects spoken in Eastern and Central Finland. Ingrian Finnish dialects are spoken in Ingria, which

1116-453: The Republic of Karelia , Leningrad Oblast , and Primorsky Krai . In 2007, pressured by the public, the FSB curtailed the zone in some places. This Russia -related article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Estonia%E2%80%93Russia border The Estonia–Russia border is the international border between the Republic of Estonia ( EU and NATO member) and

1178-467: The Russian Federation ( CIS and CSTO member). The border is 294 kilometres (183 mi) long. It emerged during World War I , in 1918, as Estonia declared its independence from the then warring Russian and German Empires. The border goes mostly along the national, administrative and ethnic boundaries that have gradually formed since the 13th century. The exact location of the border

1240-725: The Sestra River ( Russian : Сестра ), today in the Saint Petersburg metropolitan area, but in 1812–1940 the Russo-Finnish border. On the other side of Lake Ladoga , the River Svir is usually thought of as the traditional southern border of Karelian territory while Lake Onega and the White Sea mark the Eastern border. The River Kymi marks the historic western border of Karelian territory as it served as

1302-526: The Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union authorized a small exchange of territories in the administrative border area south of Lake Peipus, forming the now Russian semi-exclave of Dubki and the Estonian so-called " Saatse Boot ". By that time the borders of the Soviet republics became fully transparent and no border control was enforced. Schools for Russian- and Estonian-speaking populations existed on

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1364-763: The early 16th century turmoil in Russia , the Kingdom of Sweden conquered the whole Novgorodian coastline of the eastern Baltics and formed Swedish Ingria . Its border with Swedish Estonia went along the Narva River, leaving the town of Narva part of Ingria . The Livonian–Russian border south of the lake was restored. After the Great Northern War Russia regained the lost territory in the Baltics and further expanded, conquering Swedish Estonia which

1426-536: The regions of South and North Karelia , although parts of historical Karelia also lie within the region of Kymenlaakso (east of the River Kymi ), Northern Savonia ( Kaavi , Rautavaara and Säyneinen ), and Southern Savonia ( Mäntyharju ). Karelia stretches from the White Sea coast to the Gulf of Finland . It contains the two largest lakes in Europe, Lake Ladoga and Lake Onega . The Karelian Isthmus

1488-558: The Bolshevik government initiated peace talks with Estonia. The British government, however, pressed to continue the war and in May and October 1919 Estonian and White Russian troops attempted two major offensives towards Petrograd . As both of them failed, peace talks continued and the issue of the border was brought up on 8 December 1919. The Estonian party proposed Russian counterpart to cede about 10,000 km (3,900 sq mi) from

1550-679: The Estonian territory by that time, Russia relinquished its claims to Estonia and determined that the border between the Grand Duchy of Livonia and Russia should have followed the Narva River. In late 1918, a war broke out between Soviet Russia and Estonia supported by the White Russian Northwestern Army and the British Navy . By February 1919, Estonians repelled the Red Army back to Russia and, in April 1919,

1612-541: The German military administration area of Leningrad , where Reichsgau Ingermanland was planned, but never established. In 1944 the Nazi German forces were driven out of, and the Soviet Union reinvaded and occupied, Estonia. On 23 August 1944, the Soviet government formally annexed the large majority of borderland areas that had been ceded to Estonia by the 1920 treaty (including Pechory, Izborsk, and area east of

1674-761: The Karelian Autonomous republic of the Soviet Union (ASSR) in 1923. At the beginning of the Second World War in 1939, the Soviet Union attacked Finland, thus starting the Winter War . The Treaty of Moscow, signed in 1940 , handed a large portion of Finnish Karelia to the Soviet Union, and over 400,000 people had to be relocated within Finland. During the Continuation War of 1941-1944, Finland took back territory ceded in 1940, and also invaded and occupied much of East Karelia. Finland

1736-642: The Narva River) into the Russian SFSR. Other smaller Estonian gains of 1920, including the Piirissaar island in Lake Peipus, were unaffected by the Soviet administrative border changes. The city of Narva, situated on both sides of the Narva River, was administratively split into western (Narva) and eastern (Ivangorod) parts, thus replicating the border as it existed in the 16th century. In 1957

1798-577: The Petrograd and Pskov Governorates to the east of the prewar borders. The next day, the Russians reacted likewise, offering Estonia to cede its northeastern part . In December 1919, it was agreed that the boundary line would go along the actual frontline between the belligerents. The Treaty of Tartu was signed on 2 February 1920 and Estonia gained a narrow land strip east of the Narva River including Ivangorod as well as Pechorsky uezd with Pechory town and lands southwest of Lake Peipus , including

1860-684: The Wise briefly conquered Jurjev (Tartu) in the 11th century but Estonians soon reconquer the fort. The present-day borderline between Russia and Estonia may be traced back to the 13th century when the Livonian Crusade halted on the border with Pskovian lands east of Pskovo-Chudskoye or Peipus lake basin, the Narva River and minor rivers to the south from the lake. Further campaigns of either sides have not brought any sustainable gains so Denmark , Sweden and Livonian Confederation on

1922-468: The areas ceded to the Soviet Union was evacuated and resettled in other parts of Finland. The present inhabitants of the former Finnish parts of Russia, including the city of Vyborg/Viipuri and the Karelian Isthmus – are post-war immigrants or their descendants. The former Karelian ASSR was incorporated into a new Karelo-Finnish SSR from 1941 to 1956, but then it became an ASSR again. Karelia

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1984-479: The border agreement were finalized and in 2005 it was signed by both parties. In 2005, the Parliament of Estonia ratified the agreement with the reference to the 1920 Treaty, which Russia interpreted as opening the possibility for territorial dispute and refused to ratify. The negotiations were reopened in 2012, and in 2014 the foreign ministers of Estonia and Russia signed the new border agreement without

2046-408: The border should be restored as stipulated by the Treaty of Tartu (1920). However, the Russians did not accept the references to the treaty, which was not acceptable for Estonians as that could imply that the treaty was legally void . In 1994, the border was unilaterally demarcated by the Russian authorities. By 1995 the existing border running mostly along the former Soviet administrative boundary

2108-534: The borderline only of the persons owning the required permission. After the 1941 Nazi German invasion of the Soviet Union the occupied territory of the Republic of Estonia was in 1941–1944 administratively organized into Generalbezirk Estland of the Reichskommissariat Ostland . The previous Soviet-Estonian international border acted as the eastern border of Generalbezirk Estland with

2170-435: The both sides of the administrative border. Estonian and Russian borderland areas were connected by extensive bus, rail and ferry services. In 1991, Estonia restored its independence and the administrative boundary became the de facto international border between Estonia and Russia. However, it required formal recognition, delimitation and establishment of crossing points. Negotiations began in 1992 and Estonia argued that

2232-687: The boundary between the Häme Finns and the Karelians during the Middle Ages . The River Kymi is also said to have formed a boundary between the eastern and western cultural spheres by the beginning of the Bronze Age at the latest. In the North lived the nomadic Samis , but there were no natural borders except for large wooded areas ( taiga ) and the tundra . In historical texts, Karelia

2294-624: The construction of the Ust-Luga sea port . Crossing the border is allowed only at border controls. Most people need a visa on one or both sides of the border. Listed from the north: A checkpoint that existed in the 1990s near Pechory and checkpoints on the lake harbours are now closed. Karelia Karelia ( Karelian and Finnish : Karjala [ˈkɑrjɑlɑ] ; Russian : Каре́лия , romanized :  Kareliya [kɐˈrʲelʲɪjə] , historically Коре́ла, Korela [ kɐˈrʲelʲə ]; Swedish : Karelen [kɑˈreːlen] )

2356-550: The disputed preamble. The treaty of the sea border across the Narva bay and the Gulf of Finland was also agreed upon. Both agreements were submitted for parliamentary ratification in Estonia and Russia; however, little progress has been made due to strained political relations. In 2017 Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov commented that Russia will consider ratification once bilateral relations constructively improve. In 2015,

2418-501: The eighth century. The considerably higher number of archeological discoveries in these regions from AD 800 to AD 1050 indicates that the Karelian population grew and expanded rapidly during this time. Karelia was bitterly fought over by Sweden and the Novgorod Republic for a period starting in the 13th-century Swedish-Novgorodian Wars . The Treaty of Nöteborg (Finnish: Pähkinäsaaren rauha) in 1323 divided Karelia between

2480-617: The issue of long border queues of passenger cars and lorries, since 2011 the Estonian side has required outbound travellers to reserve an appointment at the border checkpoint electronically or by phone. Russia planned to set up a similar system, but it did not proceed beyond testing. In the early 1990s there was a stable arms smuggling channel from Estonia to Russia through the barely controlled border, causing severe incidents. The volume of Russian-European transit via Estonia, once essential for Russian exporters, has been declining since 2007 partly because of political tensions and partly because of

2542-405: The law was amended, the 5 km restriction was removed, and the FSB was legally authorised to draw the zone's limits on its own without coordination with local authorities. In 2006, FSB Director Nikolai Patrushev and his deputy Sergei Smirnov issued decrees delimiting the zone, which expanded greatly and included many large settlements, important transport routes and resort areas, especially in

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2604-409: The local population split between two countries was a common issue, raising concerns of smuggling and espionage on both sides. Soviet illegal immigrants who were ethnic Estonians were offered refugee status in Estonia to avoid their expulsion back to the USSR. Following the Soviet occupation of Estonia in 1940, the international border was converted to the administrative demarcation line of

2666-440: The main population center of this region. In the Treaty of Stolbovo of 1617, large parts of Russian Karelia were ceded to Sweden. Conflicts between the new Swedish rulers and the indigenous population of these areas led to an exodus: thousands of Karelians, including the ancestors of the Tver Karelians , emigrated to Russia. The Treaty of Nystad (Finnish: Uudenkaupungin rauha) in 1721 between Imperial Russia and Sweden ceded

2728-581: The non-local population if a permit is obtained for tourist, business or private reasons. Internal checkpoints exist on the roads. Russian fishermen on the Lake Peipus and Narva River are required to give notice each time they plan to sail and to return to the harbour before sunset. Transit to the border crossing points requires no such permit. Until the border agreement is ratified, Saatse Boot remains with Russia; it may be freely crossed from and to Estonia en route from Värska to Ulitina with no checks provided that no stops are made in transit. To address

2790-432: The part of Finnish Karelia ceded to Russia were resettled all over Finland. Today about one million people in Finland can trace their roots in the area ceded to the Soviet Union after World War II. In Finland, about 5,000 people speak the Karelian language. Russian Karelia is a regular destination for international tourism due to its unique architectural, cultural and historical sites such as Kizhi and Valaam . The region

2852-471: The present World War ". The plebiscite was carried out only in the town of Narva on 10 December 1917, where the majority voted for Estonian administration. The Russian Bolshevik government accepted the results and by decree of 21 December, the town of Narva was transferred from the Russian Republic to the Autonomous Governorate of Estonia . According to the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk (1918) between Soviet Russia and German Empire , which controlled all of

2914-480: The time, Kohver was investigating cross-border smuggling. Kohver was seized at gunpoint by a team of Russian operatives who crossed the border. Russia's claim that Kohver was arrested on Russian territory were contradicted by evidence. The incident increased Russian-Estonian tensions. Estonia, as well as other Baltic countries , Nordic countries , and European Union , expressed outrage over Russia's detention of Kohver and demanded his release. In August 2015, after

2976-409: The town of Izborsk . Petseri County was inhabited predominantly by Russians as well as Setos and, unlike other regions in Estonia proper, its municipal self-governance was subject to veto power by a special officer appointed from Tallinn . Russia and Estonia agreed to demilitarize the near borderland and the whole lake basin, leaving armed only the required border guard. Border trespassing by

3038-400: The town of Narva with Sweden. Despite the extensive cross-border trade and mixed populations of the borderlands, the law, language, religion of Russian principalities went a different way compared to their western neighbors. Livonia and Sweden used the border as means of containment of the rising tsardom, preventing craftsmen and arms supplies from western Europe from entering Russia. During

3100-558: The treaty has not been ratified by either party. In the 2010s, smuggling (of cigarettes , migrants , and weapons ) was a persistent problem along the border. Estonian and Russian border officials engaged in a measure of cooperation on border security issues, but relations were greatly harmed by the 2014 Russian invasion of Ukraine . In 2014, the Russian government abducted Estonian Internal Security Service office Eston Kohver while on Estonian territory near Luhamaa , and imprisoned him in Moscow 's notorious Lefortovo prison . At

3162-462: The two. Sweden received the southern portion of the Karelian Isthmus and most of South Karelia. The province of Swedish Karelia would include this territory, plus the region east of the Kymi river , with Viborg (Finnish: Viipuri) becoming the capital of the province. Novgorod received the northern portion of the Karelian Isthmus. North Karelia, Ladoga Karelia, and the northern portion of South Karelia fell under Novgorodian control. Käkisalmi served as

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3224-409: The western parts of Pskov and Saint Petersburg governorates. On 24 February 1918, the Estonian National Council ( Maapäev ) declared the independence of Estonia . It listed the Estonian regions to form the Republic and declared that the "Final determination of the boundaries of the Republic in the areas bordering on Latvia and Russia will be carried out by plebiscite after the conclusion of

3286-495: The western portion is part of Kymenlaakso . Karelia is politically divided between Finland and Russia. The Republic of Karelia is a federal subject of Russia formed in 1991 from the Karelian ASSR . The Karelian Isthmus belongs to the Leningrad Oblast . The Finnish side consists of parts of the regions ( maakunta ) of South Karelia , North Karelia and Kymenlaakso . There are some small groups of Finns campaigning for closer ties between Finland and Karelia: for instance, in

3348-429: The western side, and Novgorod, Pskov and later Muscovy on the east established fortresses in the strategic points of the borderland which they were able to support. Examples are Vastseliina and Narva on Estonian side with Ivangorod , Yamburg and Izborsk on the Russian side. Peace treaties mostly confirmed the basic borderline along the Narva River and the lake, such as the Treaty of Teusina (1595), which left

3410-463: The zone by forces of the NKVD . After the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, the borders of the new Russian Federation were dramatically different, but the zone was not corrected accordingly and hence effectively ceased to exist. In 1993, the Law on the State Border was adopted and reestablished a border strip with restricted access, which should not exceed 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) (although in fact it became much wider in some places). In 2004,

3472-540: Was a subject of Estonian–Russian dispute that was resolved with the signing of the Border Agreement, but neither Russia nor Estonia have completed its ratification yet. It is an external border of the European Union . In September 2022, the Baltic countries (Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania) closed their borders to most Russians in response to the Russia's invasion of Ukraine , launched in February 2022. On 13 September 2023, Estonia banned vehicles with Russian license plates from entering their territory, in accordance with

3534-400: Was agreed upon. An exception was the border on the lake running closer to the 1920 border and minor territorial exchanges of 128.6 hectares (318 acres) on the land and 11.4 square kilometres (4.4 sq mi) on the lake. Inter alia, the notorious Saatse Boot was supposed to be exchanged for Marinova and Suursoo plots of land in the areas near Meremäe and Värska . In 1999 the terms of

3596-421: Was also allowed. On 13 September 2023, Estonia banned vehicles with Russian license plates from entering their territory, in accordance with a decision by the European Union . On 23 May 2024, Russia removed buoys marking the border on the Narva River. Russia has established a border security zone regime along its western borders. The 5-kilometre (3.1 mi) area adjacent to the border may be visited by

3658-478: Was forced out of these regions in 1944. After the war, Soviet expansion caused considerable bitterness in Finland, which lost its fourth biggest city, Viipuri , its industrial heartland along the river Vuoksi , the eastern portion of the Saimaa canal that connected central Finland to the Gulf of Finland , and access to the fishing waters of Lake Ladoga (Finnish: Laatokka). One eighth of its citizens became refugees with no chance of return. The whole population from

3720-506: Was highest along the western shore of Lake Ladoga and the Karelian Isthmus , with multiple cemeteries and other archeological discoveries dating from AD 600 to AD 800. In South Karelia , the number of archeological discoveries from this time period is lower, though permanent inhabitation was nonetheless present. Lappee , South Karelia has been continuously inhabited for approximately 2,000 years. In North Karelia , only one archeological discovery from this time period has been found, dating to

3782-482: Was incorporated as a Governorate of Estonia . However, during the two centuries of Russian rule, the eastern borders of the Estonian and Livonian governorates remained mostly intact. Like Sweden, Russia did not manage to harmonize its possessions east and west of the borderline formed in the late Middle Ages, although the migration process continued for two centuries under the Russian Empire: Russian Old Believers resettled to eastern Estonia and poor Estonian peasants to

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3844-432: Was the only Soviet republic that was "demoted" from an SSR to an ASSR within the Russian SFSR . In 1991, with the collapse of the Soviet Union, the ASSR became the Republic of Karelia . The portion of Viipuri Province that remained within Finland following the Second World War was renamed Kymi Province , and kept this name from 1945 to 1997. The eastern part of this province is now the region of South Karelia , while

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