Deputy Speaker of the State Duma Vladimir Lukin thinks that Kalinigrad Region should become a kind of a model region where interaction between Russia and the European Union is developed.

"We think that Kaliningrad should become a pilot project that will demonstrate that Russia can merge gradually with the European Union into a single civilised whole," declared Lukin at a joint meeting of the Committee for Parliamentary Cooperation between the EU and the RF held in the State Duma on Monday, April 23, 2001.

Lukin is co-chairman of this committee for Russia. Constancia Krel is co-chairman for the European side.

The Committee widely discussed the issue of prospective cooperation of Kaliningrad Region and problems of this region in connection with the admission of new members into the European Union.

Lukin also noted that today in Russia Kalinigrad "has assumed considerably more significance in foreign and domestic policies." The deputy also admitted that Russia "has concerns" in connection with the expansion of the European Union.

"The opinion has been voiced in Russia that there is a project, an idea of gradual pulling Kaliningrad away from the RF," added Lukin. He also stressed that this opinion had absolutely no real basis. Moreover, the proposals prepared by the European Commission and connected with the future of Kaliningrad "go along the right lines".

Lukin referred to the most acute problems which Russia has to solve together with the European Union today. They include the issue of regulating the movement of the citizens of Kaliningrad to other regions of the RF, the problem connected with the movement of goods from Kaliningrad to other regions of Russia, as well as the range of problems connected with energy, fishing and other issues.

Based on Interfax reports.
See also:

The Kaliningrad website of Yabloko