Border: Lithuania-Poland
Date(s) of establishment: 1945 (current demarcation); 1991 (official existence)Length of border: 104 km
Regions concerned: Lithuania – Dainava and Sudovia; Poland – Warmia-Masuria, Podlachia
European programme(s):
- Operational Programme "Lithuania – Poland":
Website of the programme
The programme on the Inforegio website
At a length of 104 km, the border begins in the East at the tripoint formed by the borders of Belarus, Poland and Lithuania, initially closely following the Marycha river. It takes a north-westerly direction and crosses the Gaładuś lake. The border comes to an end at the crossing of the borders of Russia (exclave of Kaliningrad), Poland and Lithuania.
History:
Lithuania experienced a period of independence between 1918 and 1940 under the name of Republic of Lithuania. However, as a result of Polish territorial claims before 1939, and the Second World War, the current demarcation of the Lithuania-Poland border was only set in 1945. Until 1990 this border separated the People’s Republic of Poland and the Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic, part of the USSR.
It was only in 1991, with the independence of Lithuania from the USSR, that the border between the Republic of Poland and the Republic of Lithuania came into force.
This border has been an internal border of the European Union since 2004 and of the Schengen Area since 2007. It comprises 4 crossing points (3 by road, 1 by rail).
Cross-border cooperation:
Lithuania and Poland participate in the Interreg IV A “Lithuania–Poland” operational programme for the 2007-2013 period. One of the priorities of this programme is sustainable development. This priority is intended to significantly improve quality of life in the border area.
In order to achieve this, the programme also advocates the development of the different transport axes to improve accessibility. Indeed, while the region is crossed by several international corridors, there is a lack of internal connections and this puts the population at a disadvantage.
In general, these measures need to contribute to increasing the competitiveness and the productivity of the cross-border region.
In terms of energy, Lithuania and Poland are engaged in advanced cross-border cooperation. In 2007 the presidents of both states met in order to address plans for the Ignalina nuclear power station and the energy bridge between Poland and Lithuania. The latter is intended to link Elk (Poland) to Alytus (Lithuania) and should be operational by 2015. More recently, in August 2012, the Lithuanian energy minister reiterated his desire to see new joint projects in the energy sector, particularly in the field of shale gas.
At the local level, the Euroregions Sesupe and Niemen are a concrete expression of the cross-border cooperation between Lithuania and Poland.
Photo copyright: Jacek Firmanty
