Latvia–Russia border is the state border between

Republic of Latvia Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Republika, links=no, ltg, Latvejas Republika, links=no, liv, Leţmō Vabāmō, links=no), is a country in the Baltic region of ...

( EU member) and the

Russian Federation Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

( CIS member). The length of the border is . It is an

external border of the European Union The border of the European Union consists of the land and sea borders that member states of the EU share with foreign states adjacent to the union. Border status and cooperation In 2004 the European Union developed the European Neighbourhood Po ...

History

The Pskov region and Latvia have had historical ties since the founding of the

Pskov Republic Pskov ( la, Plescoviae), known at various times as the Principality of Pskov (russian: Псковское княжество, ) or the Pskov Republic (russian: Псковская Республика, ), was a medieval state on the south shore of ...

in the 13th century. From 1925 to 1945 Abrene County was part of the Republic of Latvia. Following the

Soviet occupation During World War II, the Soviet Union occupied and annexed several countries effectively handed over by Nazi Germany in the secret Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact of 1939. These included the eastern regions of Poland (incorporated into two different ...

, on 16 January 1945 the area was transferred from the

Latvian Soviet Socialist Republic The Latvian Soviet Socialist Republic (Latvian SSR), also known as Soviet Latvia or simply Latvia, was a federated republic within the Soviet Union, and formally one of its 16 (later 15) constituent republics. The Latvian Soviet Socialist Rep ...

Pskov Oblast Pskov Oblast (russian: Пско́вская о́бласть, ') is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia (an oblast), located in the west of the country. Its administrative center is the types of inhabited localities in Russia, ...

and renamed

Pytalovsky District Pytalovsky District (russian: Пыта́ловский райо́н; lv, Pitalovas rajons) is an administrativeLaw #833-oz and municipalLaw #420-oz district (raion), one of the administrative divisions of Pskov Oblast, twenty-four in Pskov Oblast, ...

. After regaining independence in 1991, Latvia initially claimed the previous Latvian territory, on the basis of the 1920

Latvian–Soviet Peace Treaty The Latvian–Soviet Peace Treaty, also known as the Treaty of Riga, was signed on 11 August 1920 by representatives of the Republic of Latvia and Soviet Russia. It officially ended the Latvian War of Independence. In Article II of the treat ...

. The delimitation of the border was completed in 1998, but the treaty on the state border was signed and ratified only on 27 March 2007. It recognised the Pytalovsky District as part of Russia.

Overview

According to the 2007 agreement on the Russian-Latvian State Border, the state border between Latvia and Russia starting from the intersection point of the state borders of Latvia, Russia and Belarus, and ends with the joint borders of Latvia, Russia and Estonia. Latvia borders only one oblast of Russia, the

. Russia borders three Latvian municipalities. The access-restricted

Border Security Zone of Russia A Border Security Zone in Russia is the designation of a Border zone, strip of land (usually, though not always, along a Russian external border) where economic activity and access are restricted in line with the Frontier Regime Regulations set by t ...

lies along the border on the Russian side. In order to visit this zone, a permit issued by the local FSB department is required (the only exceptions are international border transit points).

Border crossings

Crossing the border is allowed only at border controls. Most people need a visa on one or both sides of the border. Listed from north:Document 2015/C 126/10
Official Journal of the European Union * road P42 near

Pededze The Pededze ( et, Pedetsi jõgi) is a river in Latvia and Estonia. It has a length of of which 131 km runs through Latvia and 26 km through Estonia . It flows generally south. It is a right tributary of the Aiviekste, the source of Pe ...

* road P35 near

Viļaka Viļaka ( lv, Viļaka, ; ltg, Vileks; german: Marienhausen; russian: Виляка, ''Vilyaka''; Yiddish: ויליאקי, ''Vilyaki'') is a town in Balvi Municipality in the Latgale region of Latvia. The population in 2020 was 1,223. Viļaka is l ...

(Vientuļi) * railway

Rēzekne Rēzekne (, ; German: ''Rositten'') is a state city in the Rēzekne River valley in Latgale region of eastern Latvia. It is called ''The Heart of Latgale'' (Latvian ''Latgales sirds'', Latgalian ''Latgolys sirds''). Built on seven hills, Rēzekn ...

–

Pskov Pskov ( rus, Псков, a=pskov-ru.ogg, p=pskof; see also names in other languages) is a city in northwestern Russia and the administrative center of Pskov Oblast, located about east of the Estonian border, on the Velikaya River. Population ...

(

Saint Petersburg–Warsaw Railway Saint Petersburg–Warsaw Railway (() (transliteration: Sankt-Peterburgo–Varshavskaya zheleznaya doroga)) is a long railway, built in the 19th century by the Russian Empire to connect Russia with Central Europe. At the time the entire railwa ...

) near Kārsava * road E262 / A13 / A116 near

Kārsava Kārsava (; german: Karsau, russian: Корсовка, ''Korsovka'', yi, קאָרסאָװקע, ''Korsovke'') is a town in Ludza Municipality in the Latgale region of Latvia, near the border of Russia. The ancient Baltic tribe Latgalians in ...

and Grebņeva * road P50 near

and Goliševa * railway

–

Velikiye Luki Velikiye Luki ( rus, Вели́кие Лу́ки, p=vʲɪˈlʲikʲɪjə ˈlukʲɪ; lit. ''great meanders''. Г. П. Смолицкая. "Топонимический словарь Центральной России". "Армада-П ...

(Moscow–Riga Railway) near Zilupe * road E22 / A12 / M9 near

Zilupe Zilupe ( Latgalian: ''Sīnuoja'', from ''sīna'' – 'border'; German: ''Rosenau'', russian: Розеново) is a town in Latvia, by the Zilupe River, on the border with Russia. The population in 2020 was 1,343. Zilupe's railway station is the f ...

and Terehova Border crossings can also be done by air travel. The only international airport in Latvia is

Riga International Airport Riga International Airport ( lv, Starptautiskā lidosta "Rīga"; ) is the international airport of Riga, the capital of Latvia, and the largest airport in the Baltic states with direct flights to 76 destinations as of November 2019. It serves as ...

which has scheduled flights among other places to

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

and

Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...

. The airports at

Daugavpils Daugavpils (; russian: Двинск; ltg, Daugpiļs ; german: Dünaburg, ; pl, Dyneburg; see other names) is a state city in south-eastern Latvia, located on the banks of the Daugava River, from which the city gets its name. The parts of the c ...

Liepāja Liepāja (; liv, Līepõ; see #Names and toponymy, other names) is a state city in western Latvia, located on the Baltic Sea. It is the largest-city in the Kurzeme Planning Region, Kurzeme Region and the third-largest city in the country after R ...

, Jūrmala-Tukuma and

Ventspils Ventspils (; german: Windau, ; see other names) is a state city in northwestern Latvia in the historical Courland region of Latvia, and is the sixth largest city in the country. At the beginning of 2020, Ventspils had a population of 33,906. It ...

are also registered as border crossing points. Following the mobilization announced in Russia related to the

2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, which began in 2014. The invasion has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths on both sides. It has caused Europe's largest refugee crisis since World War II. An ...

in September, Latvia declared state emergency for three months in border counties and closed the Pededze crossing. Latvijas pierobežas novados izsludina ārkārtējo situāciju Krievijā sāktās mobilizācijas dēļ (precizēts)
/ref>

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Latvia-Russia border European Union external borders Borders of Russia Latvia–Russia relations Borders of Latvia International borders Internal borders of the Soviet Union

History

Overview

Border crossings

See also

References