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Calls to cede Kaliningrad may risk military confrontation, senior Russian senator warns

Russia has been demonstrating not just in words that it will never cede its territory, Vladimir Dzhabarov underscored

MOSCOW, June 28. /TASS/. Russia will never cede Kaliningrad, a senior Russian senator said on Tuesday, warning that any attempt to take the exclave might lead to a military confrontation.

"Russia has been demonstrating not just in words that it will never cede its territory. Some, if I may say, `politicians’ who have been pondering about potentially scooping up Kaliningrad should realize that this may lead to a military confrontation with Russia. I don’t think NATO is unaware of that," First Deputy Chairman of the Federation Council Committee on Foreign Affairs Vladimir Dzhabarov wrote on his Telegram channel, citing a Russian law protecting the country’s territorial integrity.

He urged Lithuania and Poland to think twice, "because they will be first to find themselves in the meat grinder."

"I am sure former Latvian Interior Minister Maris Gulbis’s remark on this topic is an attempt to test our country’s resoluteness. I want to reiterate, and these fellows should make no mistake about it, that Russia will not retreat," Dzhabarov emphasized.

The senator also said a diplomatic solution to the transit of goods to Kaliningrad may still be found. "It would be useful for the European Union to remember its commitments and the interests of its citizens," Dzhabarov concluded.

Gublis, Latvia’s ex-interior minister, wrote on his Telegram channel on Monday that the EU and NATO were ready to "take back" Kaliningrad.

On June 18, Lithuania stopped clearing sanctioned goods carried by rail from Russian regions to Kaliningrad. Restrictions also affected truck cargo. The Russian Foreign Ministry and the Kremlin have repeatedly said that Lithuania’s actions are unlawful and run counter to international agreements. Both Vilnius and the EU insist Lithuania did not impose any unilateral or additional sanctions, but has been consistently enforcing the EU’s sanctions regime.

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