Border countries of the Russian Federation. Features of the land and sea borders of the Russian Federation

According to international law state territory is part of the Earth's surface, including internal and territorial waters, the subsoil below them and airspace, to which the power (jurisdiction) of the given applies.

State border is a real line on the ground (territory, water area), defining the limits of the state territory.

The total length of the borders of the Russian Federation is 60 thousand 932 km, of which 22 thousand 125 km are land (including 7616 km along rivers and lakes), 38 thousand 807 km are sea (about 2/3). State boundaries are determined using two procedures - delimitation and demarcation. Delimitation is an agreement between states on the passage of the state border, demarcation- marking the state border on the ground, securing it border markers.

Afterwards in Russia there are the following types of borders:

1. The old borders coincide with the borders of the former USSR (inherited from the USSR), most of which are fixed by international treaties (borders with foreign countries - Norway, Finland, Poland, China, Mongolia, North Korea).

2. New borders with neighboring countries:

  • former administrative ones, formalized as state borders with CIS countries (borders with Belarus, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Georgia, Azerbaijan);
  • borders with the Baltic countries (Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania).

By all international rules The borders of Russia are defined over 10 thousand km. Russia accounts for more than 2/3 of all external borders of the CIS. Of the CIS countries, Moldova, Armenia, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan do not have a common border with the Russian Federation. After the collapse of the USSR, Russia lost 40% of its equipped border.

Russia is a unique country because it has customs and other borders “extended” to the borders of the former USSR. After the collapse of the USSR, Russia and other CIS countries faced an intractable problem. On the one hand, different rates of economic reforms and inconsistency of financial and legislative systems objectively pushed them to close their economic space. On the other hand, when new state borders do not coincide with ethnic and cultural borders, public opinion does not accept the introduction of border restrictions, and most importantly, Russia was not able to quickly develop new borders in engineering and technical terms (1 km of development of the state border requires 1 billion rubles in 1996 prices). The problem of establishing customs points was acute. At the same time, integration processes in the CIS are developing weakly, contrary to global processes. Currently, only a customs union is in effect (Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan).

The northern and eastern borders of Russia are sea (12 nautical miles), the western and southern borders are predominantly land. The large length of Russia's state borders is determined by the size of its territory and the tortuosity of the coastlines of the seas of the Arctic, Pacific and Atlantic oceans washing its shores.

The nature of the land borders in the west and east of the country is different. Borders drawn in pre-revolutionary Russia most often follow natural boundaries. When expanding the state, its borders had to be clearly fixed. In sparsely populated areas, borders had to be easily recognizable. This was ensured by the clarity of the boundaries themselves: river, mountain range, etc. This character is mainly preserved by the eastern part of the southern border.

The modern western and southwestern borders of Russia arose in a different way. These borders were previously intrastate, that is, they separated individual entities on the territory of the country. These boundaries were often changed arbitrarily, that is, to a large extent these are administrative boundaries. When such intrastate boundaries turned into interstate ones, they turned out to be almost unrelated to natural objects. This is how Russia's borders with Finland and Poland were formed. Back in to a greater extent this refers to the borders created by the collapse of the Soviet Union.

Western border of Russia

Western border Almost along its entire length it has no clearly defined natural boundaries. The border begins on the coast of the Barents Sea from the Varangerfjord and runs first along the hilly tundra, then along the Pasvik River valley. In this section, Russia borders with Norway (since 1944) for 200 km (Pechenga - Nikel-Petsamo region). Norway proposes to move Russia's western border in the Barents Sea to the east and, for its part, to take jurisdiction over more than 150 thousand km 2 of water area. There is no agreement with Norway on the delimitation of the continental shelf, which is one of the most promising areas of the world in terms of oil and gas reserves. Negotiations on this issue have been ongoing since 1970, the Norwegian side insists on the principle of equal distance of borders from the island possessions of the two countries. The land border is formalized with appropriate documents and demarcated (the first Russian-Norwegian border was established in 1251).

To the south, Russia borders Finland (1300 km). The border runs along the Manselkä hill (crosses the Lotga, Nota, and Vuoksa rivers), through heavily swamped and lake-covered territory, along the slope of the low Salpouselka ridge, and 160 km southwest of Vyborg it approaches the Gulf of Finland in the Baltic Sea. From 1809 to 1917, Finland was part of the Russian Empire. An agreement on the state border was concluded with Finland, and documents on its demarcation were signed. Additionally, it will be necessary to formalize the junction of the maritime borders of Russia, Finland and Estonia. In 1962, the Soviet part of the Saimaa Canal and Maly Vysotsky Island were leased to Finland for a period of 50 years to ensure the transportation of goods from the interior of Finland with the possibility of reloading or storing them.

In the far west, on the shores of the Baltic Sea and its Gulf of Gdansk, the Kaliningrad region is located, which borders Poland (250 km) and Lithuania (300 km). Most of the border of the Kaliningrad region with Lithuania runs along the Neman (Nemunas) River and its tributary, the Sheshupa River. An agreement with Lithuania on border demarcation was signed in 1997, but there are still some disagreements between the countries regarding the drawing of the border in the lake area. Vishtinets, on the Curonian Spit and in the area of ​​Sovetsk. There are no border problems between Russia and Poland.

From the Gulf of Finland the border follows the river. Narva, Lake Peipus and Pskov and then mainly along low plains, crosses the Vitebsk (Western Dvina), Smolensk-Moscow uplands (Dnieper, Sozh), southern spurs Central Russian Upland(Desna, Seim, Psel, Vorskla), Donetsk Ridge (Seversky Donets, Oskol) and goes to the Taganrog Bay of the Sea of ​​​​Azov. Here Russia's neighbors are Estonia, Latvia, Belarus and Ukraine.

The length of the border with Estonia is more than 400 km. According to the Non-Stat Peace Treaty, Estonia was part of Russia from 1721 to 1917, and was also part of the USSR from 1940 to 1991. Russia held unilaterally border demarcation. Estonia laid claim to the Pechora district of the Pskov region (1500 km 2) - the former four volosts of the Petserimas district of Estonia, included in the Pskov region in 1944, part of the Kingisepp district of the Leningrad region and Ivangorod. These territories were transferred to Estonia in 1920. On May 18, 2005, the foreign ministers signed an agreement on the border between Russia and Estonia in the Gulf of Finland and Narva Gulf.

The length of the border with Latvia is 250 km. Latvia advocated the return to its jurisdiction of the Pytalovsky and Palkinsky districts of the Pskov region (1600 km 2). In Latvia, the Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of August 23, 1944 on the formation of the Pskov region is considered unconstitutional.

The length of the border with Belarus is about 1000 km. There are no border problems between Russia and Belarus.

The length of the border with Ukraine is about 1300 km. Work to establish the state border between Russia and Ukraine is just being carried out, but there are quite serious problems between the countries. In the 1930s The eastern part of Donbass, including the city of Taganrog, was transferred from Ukraine to the RSFSR. The western regions of the Bryansk region (Novozybkov, Starodub, etc.) used to belong to the Chernigov region. By decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the RSFSR dated October 29, 1948, Sevastopol was allocated as an independent administrative and economic center with a special budget and classified as a city of republican subordination. This decree, when the Crimean region was transferred from the RSFSR to the Ukrainian SSR in 1954, was not declared invalid and has not been canceled to this day. If the Crimean region was transferred insufficiently constitutionally, then the decision to transfer Sevastopol did not exist at all. The issue of the passage of the state border along the waters of the Sea of ​​Azov and the Kerch Strait is controversial. Russia believes that the Sea of ​​Azov with the Kerch Strait should be considered an internal sea of ​​Russia and Ukraine, while Ukraine insists on its division. Access to the Azov and Black Seas Russian Empire acquired as a result of many years of military actions against Turkey in the 16th-18th centuries. In 1925, at the base of the 11-kilometer Tuzla Spit in the far west of the Taman Peninsula, a shallow channel was dug for the passage of fishing boats. In January 1941, the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the RSFSR changed the border (then administrative) in this place, now transferring the “island” of Tuzla from the Temryuk region of the Krasnodar Territory to the Crimean Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic. In 1971, this “agreed administrative border between the Krasnodar Territory and Crimea” was once again confirmed. As a result, after the declaration of independence of Russia and Ukraine, the only navigable Kerch-Yenikalinsky fairway completely ended up on the territory of Ukraine, as well as approximately 70% of the Azov Sea. Ukraine charges a fee for the passage of Russian ships through the Kerch Strait.

Southern border of Russia

Southern border predominantly land, starts from the Kerch Strait connecting the Azov and Black Sea, passes through the territorial waters of the Black Sea to the Psou River. The land border with Georgia and Azerbaijan begins here. The border runs along the Psou valley, and then mainly along the Main, or Watershed Range of the Greater Caucasus (Mounts Elbrus, Kazbek), passes to the Side Range in the area between the Roki and Kodori passes, then again goes along the Watershed Range to Mount Bazarduzu. Then the border turns north to the Samur River, along the valley of which it reaches the Caspian Sea. Thus, in the Greater Caucasus region, the Russian border is clearly defined by natural boundaries. This is due to the fact that nature limited the possibilities of settlement of the peoples of the Caucasus by its steep, high mountain slopes. The length of the Russian border in the Caucasus is more than 1000 km.

In the North Caucasus, Russia borders Georgia and Azerbaijan. There is a whole bunch of border problems here. The establishment of the state border is primarily related to the resolution of conflicts between Georgia and the “unrecognized entities” - Abkhazia and South Ossetia. During the Great Patriotic War in connection with the deportation of some peoples of the North Caucasus (Karachais, Balkars, Chechens), their national-territorial entities were liquidated, and the territories were “distributed” among their neighbors, including Georgia. The restoration of previously liquidated entities and changes in borders took place in 1957.

Further, the Russian border passes through the Caspian Sea. Currently, Russian-Iranian agreements on the division of the Caspian Sea are in force. But the new sovereign Caspian states - Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan - demand the division of the Caspian Sea and its shelf, which is exceptionally rich in oil. Azerbaijan, without waiting for the final determination of the status of the Caspian Sea, has already begun to develop its subsoil.

From the coast of the Caspian Sea near the eastern edge of the Volga delta, the longest land border between Russia and Kazakhstan begins. The border runs along the deserts and dry steppes of the Caspian lowland (lake Baskunchak, Elton, the Maly and Bolshoy Uzei rivers, General Syrt, the Ural and Ilek rivers), passes in the area of ​​​​the junction of Mugodzhar and the Urals, then along the Trans-Ural plateau and the southern steppe part of Western Siberia ( Barabinskaya lowland, Kulundinskaya plain) and along the Altai mountains.

The border between Russia and Kazakhstan is the longest (over 7,500 km), but is almost not fixed by natural boundaries. For example, along the territory of the Kulundiiskaya Plain at a distance of about 450 km, the border runs from northwest to southeast almost in a straight line, parallel to the direction of the Irtysh flow. Still, about 1,500 km of the border runs along the Maly Uzen (Caspian) and Ural rivers, its left tributary - the Ilek River, along the Tobol and its left tributary - the Uy River (the longest river border with Kazakhstan), as well as along a number of smaller ones tributaries of the Tobol. Eastern part The border with Kazakhstan, passing through Altai (Mount Belukha), is clearly defined. The border runs along the ridges separating the Katun basin from the Bukhtarma basin - the right tributary of the Irtysh (Koksuysky, Kholzunsky, Listvyaga, in small areas - the Katunsky ridge and Southern Altai).

There is a very conventional old “inter-republican” border between Russia and Kazakhstan. The borders of Northern Kazakhstan were proclaimed back in 1922 - various public organizations raised the issue of changing the border between Russia and Kazakhstan, which had not yet been formalized. It was proposed to transfer to Kazakhstan parts of the Russian regions bordering the republic (Astrakhan, Volgograd, Orenburg, Omsk, Kurgan and Altai Territories), on the other hand, we are talking about transferring the northern regions of Kazakhstan (North Kazakhstan, Kokchetav, Tselinograd, Kustanai) to Russia. , East Kazakhstan, Irtysh part of Pavlodar and Semipalatinsk, northern parts of the Ural and Aktobe regions). According to the 1989 population census, about 470 thousand Kazakhs lived in the south of Russia, and in the northwest, north and northeast Kazakhstan - more than 4.2 million Russians. Currently, Russia and Kazakhstan have signed an agreement on the delimitation of the state border.

Almost the entire border of Russia from Altai to the Pacific Ocean runs along the mountain belt. At the junction of the ridge in Southern Altai, Mongolian Altai and Sailyugem there is the Tabyn-Bogdo-Ula mountain junction (4082 m). The borders of three states meet here: Russia, China and Mongolia.

The border with Mongolia runs along the Sailyugem ridge (Western Tannu-Ola, Eastern Tannu-Ola, Sengilen, Eastern Sayan - Mount Munku-Sardyk, 3492 m), the northern edge of the Ubsunur depression, the mountain ranges of Tuva, the Eastern Sayan (Big Sayan) and the ridges Transbaikalia (Dzhidine Kiy, Ermana and a number of others). The length of the borders is about 3000 km. A border agreement and demarcation agreements have been signed between Russia and Mongolia.

The border with China goes along the river. Argun (Nerchinsky ridge), Amur (Borschovochny ridge, Amur-Zeyskaya plain, the city of Blagoveshchensk, the Zeya river, the Zeya-Bureya lowland, the Bureya river, the city of Khabarovsk, the Lower Amur lowland), Ussuri and its left tributary - the Sungacha river. More than 80% of the Russian-Chinese border runs along rivers. The state border crosses the northern part of the water area of ​​Lake Khanka (Prikhankai Lowland) and runs along the Pogranichny and Black Mountains ridges. Russia borders China for 4,300 km. The western section of the Russian-Chinese border is delimited, but not demarcated. Only in 1997 was the demarcation of the Russian-Chinese border on the eastern section completed, several border islands on the river. The Argun and Amur with a total area of ​​400 km2 were left for “joint economic use”; in 2005, almost all the islands within the rivers’ water areas were demarcated. China's claims to Russian territory (then the territory of the USSR) were declared to their maximum extent in the early 1960s. and covered the entire Far East and Siberia.

In the extreme south, Russia borders North Korea along the river. Foggy (Tumynjiang). The length of the border is only 17 km. Along the river valley, the Russian-Korean border reaches the coast of the Sea of ​​Japan south of Posyet Bay. Russia and the DPRK signed an agreement on border demarcation and maritime delimitation.

Eastern border of Russia

Eastern border Russian maritime. The border runs along the Pacific Ocean and its seas - the Japanese. Okhotsky, Beringov. The border with Japan runs along the La Perouse, Kunashirsky, Izmena and Sovetsky straits, which separate the Russian islands of Sakhalin, Kunashir and Tanfilyev (Lesser Kuril Ridge) from the Japanese island of Hokkaido.

Japan disputes with Russia the islands of the Lesser Kuril ridge (Iturup, Kunashir, Shikotan and the Habomai ridge with a total area of ​​8548.96 km 2), called the “northern territories”. The dispute is about the state territory and waters of the Russian Federation with a total area of ​​300 thousand km 2, including the economic zone of islands and the sea, rich in fish and seafood, and a shelf zone with oil reserves. In 1855, an agreement was concluded with Japan, according to which the islands of the Lesser Kuril Ridge were transferred to Japan. In 1875, all the Kuril Islands passed to Japan. As a result of the Russo-Japanese War, under the Treaty of Portsmouth in 1905, Russia ceded Southern Sakhalin to Japan. In September 1945, after Japan signed the act of unconditional surrender, the Kuril Islands and Sakhalin Island became part of the USSR, but the San Francisco Treaty of 1951, which seized the Kuril Islands from Japan, did not determine their new nationality. According to the Japanese side, the South Kuril Islands have always belonged to Japan and are in no way connected with the 1875 treaty; they are not part of the Kuril chain, but of the Japanese Islands, and therefore are not subject to the San Francisco Treaty.

The border with the United States is located in the Bering Strait, where the Diomede Island group is located, and runs along a narrow (5 km wide) strait between the Russian Ratmanov Island and the American Kruzenshtern Island. Border problems with the US have been resolved. In 1867, the Russian Empire, during the reign of Alexander II, sold Alaska for $7 million. There are certain difficulties in the final establishment of the maritime border between Russia and the United States in the Bering Strait (“Shevardnadze zone”). The Russia-US border is the longest maritime border in the world.

Northern border of Russia

Northern border Russia, like the eastern one, is maritime and passes through the seas of the Arctic Ocean. The Russian sector of the Arctic is limited by conventional lines running in the west from the Rybachy Peninsula and in the east from Ratmanov Island to the North Pole. The meaning of the concept of “polar possessions” is revealed in the Resolution of the Central Executive Committee (CEC) and the Council of People's Commissars (SNK) of the USSR dated April 15, 1926, adopted on the basis of the International Concept on the division of the Arctic into sectors. The Resolution proclaimed “the right of the USSR to all islands and lands in the Arctic sector of the USSR.” There is no talk of any affiliation of the water areas of this sector with Russia. Along the northern coast and islands of the Arctic, Russia owns only its territorial waters.

Russia has common borders with a number of European countries. Russia (Murmansk region) and Norway have 196 km of borders. The length of the Russian border (Murmansk region, Karelia, Leningrad region) and Finland is 1340 km. A border line of 294 km separates Estonia and the Leningrad and Pskov regions of Russia. The Russian-Latvian border is 217 km long and separates the Pskov region from the territory of the European Union. The Kaliningrad region, located somewhat, has 280 km of border with Lithuania and 232 km with Poland.

The total length of Russia's borders, according to the border service, is 60,900 km.

Western and southwestern borders.

Russia has 959 km of common border with Belarus. Russia and Ukraine share 1,974 km of land and 321 km of sea border. With Belarus are the Pskov, Smolensk and Bryansk regions, and with Ukraine - the Bryansk, Belgorod, Voronezh and Rostov regions. In the Caucasus Mountains region, Russia has 255 km of border with Abkhazia, 365 km with Georgia, 70 km with South Ossetia (or 690 km of border with Georgia according to the UN), as well as 390 km of border strip with Azerbaijan. Borders with Abkhazia Krasnodar region and Karachay-Cherkessia, with Georgia - Karachay-Cherkessia, Kabardino-Balkaria, North Ossetia, Ingushetia, Chechnya and Dagestan. With South Ossetia North Ossetia. Dagestan borders Azerbaijan.

Estonia, Latvia, the Republic of China (Taiwan) and Japan are trying to dispute some of Russia’s border territories.

Southern borders.

The longest border of the Russian Federation is with Kazakhstan – 7512 km. The Russian regions bordering Central Asia are the Astrakhan, Volgograd, Saratov, Samara, Orenburg, Chelyabinsk, Kurgan, Tyumen, Omsk, Novosibirsk regions, as well as the Altai Territory and the Altai Republic. Russia has a 3,485 km border with Mongolia. Mongolia is bordered by Altai, Tuva, Buryatia and the Trans-Baikal Territory. Russia has a 4,209 km border with the People's Republic of China. This border separates the Altai Republic, Amur Region, Jewish Autonomous Okrug, Khabarovsk and Primorsky Territories from China. Primorsky Krai also has a 39 km border with North Korea.

Russia shares exclusive economic zone borders with Norway, the USA, Japan, Abkhazia, Ukraine, Sweden, Estonia, Finland, North Korea, Turkey, Poland and Lithuania.

Maritime borders.

Russia borders by sea with 12 countries - the USA, Japan, Norway, Finland, Estonia, Lithuania, Poland, Ukraine, Abkhazia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and North Korea.

Switzerland is a country in Western Europe. It borders on several other European countries and is landlocked; part of the border runs through the Alpine Mountains. The ancient name of Switzerland is Helvetia, or Helvetia.

Borders of Switzerland

The area of ​​Switzerland is about 3 thousand square meters. km. There are several other states nearby. Switzerland borders Germany to the north, France to the west, Austria and Liechtenstein to the east, and Italy to the south.

A significant part of the border with Germany runs along the Rhine River, and near Schaffhausen the river passes into Swiss territory. Then, on the eastern side, part of the border with Germany and Austria runs along the shores of Lake Borden. with France it also passes along the water shore - this is Lake Geneva, it is known for its beauty and picturesque landscapes. From all the borders of Switzerland with different countries the longest is Italian. Its length is approximately 741 km. To feel the difference, it is useful to say that the border with France is only 570 km long, and with Germany it is about 360 km. The total length of the border with Austria and Liechtenstein is about 200 km.

Geography of Switzerland

More than half of Switzerland's territory is covered by the Alps (only 58% of the territory). Another 10% of Switzerland is occupied by the Jura Mountains. No wonder that ski resorts Switzerland is one of the most popular in the world: there are many beautiful peaks and descents. The highest mountain in the Jura system, Mont Tandre, is located in Switzerland. The highest point in Switzerland, however, is in the Alps, the Dufour peak. Lake Lago Maggiore is the most significant lake in the country.

In the central part of Switzerland there is a mountain plateau, it is called the Swiss Plateau. Most of the industry is located in this part of the country. It is especially developed here agriculture and cattle breeding. Almost the entire population of the country lives in the Swiss Plateau.

The territory of Switzerland is largely covered by various lakes, many of which are of glacial origin. In total, as experts have calculated, the country contains about 6% of the world's fresh water reserves! Despite the fact that the country's territory is relatively small. Large rivers such as the Rhine, Rhone and Inn begin in Switzerland.

Switzerland is usually divided into 4 regions. The flattest is the northern one, where the cantons of Aargau, Glarus, Basel, Thurgau, St. Gallen and Zurich are located. The western region is already more mountainous, with Geneva, Bern, Vaud, Friborg and Neuchâtel located there. In central Switzerland there are the cantons of Unterwalden, Lucerne, Uri and Schwyz. The southern region of the country is very small in area.

Why is Switzerland called that?

The Russian name of the country goes back to the word Schwyz - this was the name of the canton (as the administrative unit is called in Switzerland), which became the nucleus for all the other cantons to unite around it in 1291. On German this canton is called Schweiz.

Video on the topic

Once upon a time, a union country called Czechoslovakia had a state border, after crossing which one could get into two completely different worlds - capitalist and socialist. The first was represented on the map by West Germany (FRG) and Austria, the second by East Germany (GDR), Poland, Hungary and the Soviet Union (Ukrainian SSR). But after the well-known political events of the early 90s, the current Czech Republic has only four neighbors left - the now united Germany, Austria, Poland and Slovakia, which separated from it.

USSR, goodbye!

The current independent Czech Republic, or the Czech Republic, began to change and legally formalize immediately after leaving the CSFR (Czech and Slovak Federal Republic) on January 1, 1993. Thus, for two “transitional” years before the collapse, the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic (Czechoslovak Socialist Republic) created after World War II was called. A country in which the military-political bloc of socialist countries called the “Warsaw Pact” was disbanded a little earlier.

For four decades, Czechoslovakia has been building socialism, both with the capitalist Federal Republic of Germany and Austria, and with other representatives of the European socialist camp - Hungary, the German Democratic Republic, Poland and even the USSR. But, since political and closely related territorial redistributions in Europe took place not only on the territory of the former Czechoslovakia, but also in other countries of the continent, the changes turned out to be serious. Firstly, the “pro-Soviet” GDR and the “hostile” FRG, and therefore willingly accepting Czech emigrants, which became a united Germany, disappeared from the world map forever.

Secondly, after a peaceful “divorce” with Slovakia, later called “velvet”, the sovereign Czech Republic lost its common border not only with Hungary, but also with Ukraine, which had by that time left the USSR. By the way, the disintegration of Czechoslovakia into two separate states is the only such case in Europe that was not accompanied by armed conflict, bloodshed, mutual territorial border claims and other revolutionary excesses.

Finally, thirdly, the newly created country in the center of the continent has a new border - with its sister Slovakia. And the total length of the border strip was now 1880 km. In Czechoslovakia it was, naturally, longer. The longest section of the Czech border is located in the north and connects it with Poland; it is 658 km. In second place and slightly inferior to the leader is the Czech-German border in the west and north-west of the country - 646 km. The third longest is the southern state border with Austria, it reaches 362 km. And the last, fourth place is occupied by the eastern and youngest border, with Slovakia - only 214 km.

Edges at the border

Individual regions of the Czech Republic are called “regions” and almost all of them border on one or even two neighboring countries. In particular, the South Bohemian Region, with its capital in the city of Ceske Budejovice, located in the south of the historical region of Bohemia and, partly, in Moravia, has 323 km of common borders with Austria and Germany. There are four more regions neighboring Germany - Pilsen (its capital is Pilsen, the city of Prazdroj beer and Skoda cars), Karlovy Vary (a half Russian-speaking resort town with healing springs of Karlovy Vary), Ustetsky (Usti nad Labem, famous for the Rudnye , Labskie and Lusatian mountains) and Liberec (Liberec). Moreover, the latter is territorially close not only to Germany (the length of the common border is 20 km), but also to Poland (130 km).

With the former Polish People's Republic, with its mining Silesian region, the Czech Republic is connected by a common border in four more regions - in Pardubice (Pardubice), Kralovegrad (Hradec Kralove), Olomouc (Olomouc), where it has the longest length - 104 km, and , finally, in Moravian-Silesian (Ostrava). In the north and northeast, the Moravian-Silesian Region is in close contact with Poland, and in the southeast - with Slovakia. The Carpathian region of Zlín (Zlín) and the South Moravian region (Brno) also have a common border with a “relative”, next to which there is not only the Slovak, but also the Austrian border territory.

United Europe

In 2004, the Czech Republic entered the zone of the so-called European Union and the Schengen Agreement, removing security and opening borders for free movement. Moreover, all border states - Austria, Germany, Poland and Slovakia - also joined the European Union. Them more surprising fact, that the first places in the number of foreigners who came to the Czech Republic not only for such popular tourism (Slovaks are out of competition), but also settled here, are occupied by Ukrainians, Vietnamese and Russians.

The Russian Federation is a huge country, ranking first in the world in terms of area. The states bordering Russia are located from all directions of the world, and the border itself reaches almost 61 thousand km.

Types of borders

The border of a state is the line that limits its actual area. Territory includes areas of land, water, underground minerals and airspace located within a country.

There are 3 types of borders in the Russian Federation: sea, land and lake (river). The sea border is the longest of all, it reaches about 39 thousand km. The land border is 14.5 thousand km long, and the lake (river) border is 7.7 thousand km long.

General information about all states bordering the Russian Federation

Which states does the Federation recognize its neighborhood with? 18 countries.

Name of states bordering Russia: South Ossetia, Republic of Belarus, Republic of Abkhazia, Ukraine, Poland, Finland, Estonia, Norway, Latvia, Lithuania, Kazakhstan, Georgia, Azerbaijan, United States of America, Japan, Mongolia, China First order countries are listed here .

Capitals of states bordering Russia: Tskhinvali, Minsk, Sukhum, Kyiv, Warsaw, Oslo, Helsinki, Tallinn, Vilnius, Riga, Astana, Tbilisi, Baku, Washington, Tokyo, Ulaanbaatar, Beijing, Pyongyang.

South Ossetia and the Republic of Abkhazia are partially recognized because not all countries in the world have recognized these countries as independent. Russia did this in relation to these states, therefore, it approved the neighborhood and borders with them.

Some states bordering Russia argue about the correctness of these borders. For the most part, disagreements arose after the end of the USSR.

Land borders of the Russian Federation

The states bordering Russia by land are located on the Eurasian continent. These also include lake (river) ones. Not all of them are currently protected; some of them can be crossed freely with only a passport of a citizen of the Russian Federation, which is not always necessarily checked.

States bordering Russia on the mainland: Norway, Finland, Belarus, South Ossetia, Ukraine, Republic of Abkhazia, Poland, Lithuania, Estonia, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Georgia, Azeybardzhan, Mongolia, People's Republic of China, North Korea.
Some of them also have a water border.

There are Russian territories that are surrounded on all sides by foreign states. Such areas include the Kaliningrad region, Medvezhye-Sankovo ​​and Dubki.

You can travel to the Republic of Belarus without a passport and any border control along any of the possible roads.

Maritime borders of the Russian Federation

Which countries does Russia border by sea? The sea border is considered to be a line 22 km or 12 nautical miles from the coast. The country's territory includes not only 22 km of water, but also all the islands in this sea area.

States bordering Russia by sea: Japan, the United States of America, Norway, Estonia, Finland, Poland, Lithuania, Abkhazia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Ukraine, North Korea. There are only 12 of them. The length of the borders is more than 38 thousand km. Russia has only a maritime border with the USA and Japan; there is no land boundary line with these countries. There are borders with other states both by water and by land.

Settled disputed sections of the border

At all times, there have been disputes between countries over territories. Some of the disputing countries have already agreed and are no longer raising this issue. These include: Latvia, Estonia, People's Republic of China and Azerbaijan.

The dispute between the Russian Federation and Azerbaijan occurred over a hydroelectric complex and water intake structures that belonged to Azerbaijan, but were in fact located in Russia. In 2010, the dispute was resolved, and the border was moved to the middle of this waterworks. Now the countries use the water resources of this hydroelectric complex in equal shares.

After the collapse of the USSR, Estonia considered it unfair that the right bank of the Narva River, Ivangorod and the Pechora region remained the property of Russia (Pskov region). In 2014, the countries signed an agreement on the absence of territorial claims. The border did not suffer any noticeable changes.

Latvia, like Estonia, began to lay claim to one of the districts of the Pskov region - Pytalovsky. An agreement with this state was signed in 2007. The territory remained the property of the Russian Federation, the border did not change.

The dispute between China and Russia ended with the demarcation of the border along the center of the Amur River, which led to the annexation of part of the disputed territories to the People's Republic of China. The Russian Federation transferred 337 square kilometers to its southern neighbor, including two plots in the Tarabarov region and one plot near Bolshoi Island. The signing of the agreement took place in 2005.

Unsettled disputed sections of the border

Some disputes over territory are not closed to this day. It is not yet known when the agreements will be signed. Russia has such disputes with Japan and Ukraine.
The Crimean Peninsula is a disputed territory between Ukraine and the Russian Federation. Ukraine considers the 2014 referendum illegal and Crimea occupied. The Russian Federation established its border unilaterally, while Ukraine passed a law creating a free economic zone on the peninsula.

The dispute between Russia and Japan is over four Kuril Islands. The countries cannot come to a compromise because both believe that these islands should belong to them. These islands include Iturup, Kunashir, Shikotan and Habomai.

Boundaries of exclusive economic zones of the Russian Federation

An exclusive economic zone is a strip of water adjacent to the border of the territorial sea. It cannot be wider than 370 km. In this zone, the country has the right to develop subsoil resources, as well as to explore and preserve them, to create artificial structures and their use, and to study water and the bottom.

Other countries have the right to move freely through this territory, install pipelines and otherwise use this water, but they must take into account the laws of the riparian state. Russia has such zones in the Black, Chukchi, Azov, Okhotsk, Japanese, Baltic, Bering and Barents seas.

The Russian state occupies about 31.5% of total area the entire Eurasian continent, located in its northeastern part. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, the formal number of neighbors of the Russian Federation changed slightly, but the state border, as before, divides it with other countries on water and on land. To have a more complete understanding of your state, you definitely need to know where the land and sea borders of Russia lie.

General information

A notable feature of the Russian Federation is the fact that it is located in both Europe and Asia, occupying the northern part of the first and the eastern regions of the second. Today, the length of the state border is 60.9 thousand kilometers: 38.8 runs along the sea surface, 22.1 on land (of which 7.6 thousand kilometers are along rivers and lakes).

Based on international law, the state territory of the Russian Federation is considered to be that part of the Earth’s surface that is located within this demarcation line, including subsoil, internal and territorial waters, and airspace.

The limits of the state are determined by two methods:

  • delimitation - an agreement between countries on the establishment of borders;
  • demarcation - securing these boundaries with boundary markers on the ground.

After the collapse of the USSR, Russian territory has two types of borders:

  • old (inherited as an inheritance from the Soviet past);
  • new.

The borders of states that were once part of the USSR coincide with the old demarcation lines. Most of them are sealed with special agreements. New borders today separate the Russian Federation from the Baltic countries and from the Commonwealth of Independent States. After the “union of fraternal republics” ceased to exist, the Russian Federation lost about 40% of its border.

Today, our country borders with other countries by water and land. At the same time, the land demarcation line is more typical for the southern and western regions, but in the east and north there is mainly a water border.

Land borders

So, first, let's look at which countries Russia has a land border with. Today our state has 14 such neighbors. All of them are active members of the UN. In addition, there are two more territories that are not officially recognized by other members of the world community - South Ossetia and Abkhazia. According to other countries, they still belong to Georgia, and therefore these borders have not received official recognition as Russian.

In addition, do not forget about the following features neighborhood:

  • The shortest land border with Russia lies on the borders of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. It is only 17 km. At the same time, the total length of the demarcation line is 39.4 km;
  • Only the Kaliningrad region borders Lithuania and Poland;
  • the insignificant enclave of Sankovo-Medvezhye in the Bryansk region is surrounded on all sides by Belarus;
  • The most important Russian neighbor is the Norwegian state, the border with which runs along the swampy tundra. It is here that all the most important power stations of Russian and Norwegian origin are located;
  • A little further south stretches the Russian-Finnish border, which runs through wooded and rocky terrain. For our country, this area is of particular importance because active foreign trade takes place here. It is to the port of Vyborg that cargo is delivered from Finland.

In general, the list of Russian land borders looks like this:

  1. Georgia.
  2. Ukraine.
  3. Kazakhstan.
  4. China.
  5. DPRK.
  6. Mongolia.
  7. Belarus.
  8. Azerbaijan.
  9. Poland.
  10. Lithuania.
  11. Norway.
  12. Estonia.
  13. Finland.
  14. Latvia.

The only free border for the transportation of goods and travel of citizens remains the border with the Belarusian state. Residents of the two countries can cross it only with an internal passport confirming their citizenship of the Russian Federation or the Republic of Belarus.

Before the collapse of the USSR, our state had a border with Iran. But after the recognition of the sovereignty of the North Caucasian republics, such a border automatically ceased to exist.

Territorial disputes

The so-called disputed territories deserve special attention. So, let’s say, Estonia lays claim to the right bank of the Narva River, which is located on the territory of Ivangorod. In addition, a certain section of the Pskov region, as well as the Saatse Boot, is also of interest to this state. It is the latter that is the place where Ural bricks are transported to Europe. Once upon a time it was actually planned to transfer this territory to Estonia, but due to the amendments it introduced to the treaty, the Russian side never ratified the document.

Latvia also once put forward its claims to part of the Pytalovsky district of the Pskov region. But in 2007, an agreement was signed according to which this section of the territory remained assigned to Russia.

Most recently, the Russian-Chinese border was demarcated. According to the signed agreement, our Chinese neighbors received small area lands in the Chita region and two more - near the islands of Bolshoy Ussuriysky and Tarabarov.

To this day, the dispute regarding the island of Tuva between the Russian Federation and China continues. In turn, Russian diplomats refuse to recognize the independence of Taiwan, and therefore no interstate relations with this territory simply exist. And although political scientists do not predict serious problems with the Chinese side in the coming years, some concerns (still at the level of rumors) regarding the division of Siberia are still present.

Maritime boundaries

According to the Border Service of the FSB of the Russian Federation, the length of Russia’s land borders is significantly less than the borders that pass by water. In total, 12 countries are maritime neighbors of the Russian Federation. The most important of them are rightfully considered Japan and the United States. Both states are separated from Russian territory by straits.

Thus, the following straits separate us from Japan:

  • La Perouse;
  • Treason;
  • Soviet;
  • Kunashirsky.

All of them separate Sakhalin and the Southern Kuril Islands from the Japanese island of Hokkaido. The length of this border is 194 kilometers, while the Russian-American border stretches only 49 kilometers.

Between Russia and the United States is the Bering Strait - the border separating Ratmanov Island from Kruzenshtern Island.

After Crimea became part of Russian territory, we also had neighbors on the Black Sea:

  • Türkiye;
  • Bulgaria;
  • Georgia.

Part of the border with the following countries runs along the sea:

  • Norway (in the Barents Sea),
  • Finland and Estonia (in the Gulf of Finland);
  • Lithuania and Poland (in the Baltic Sea);
  • Ukraine (in the Black and Azov Seas);
  • Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan (in the Caspian Sea);
  • DPRK (in the Sea of ​​Japan).

Disputed territories

We should not forget that some maritime areas of the Russian Federation still cause territorial disputes to this day. We are talking about the unresolved fate of the Kuril Islands, which Japan also claims. This confrontation has been going on since the end of World War II, namely since 1945.

Disputes regarding other borders also continue. Until recently, the confrontation with Ukraine regarding the Bosphorus Strait, or more precisely the Tuzla Spit, could be called relevant. The scythe itself is not of particular value. Its role becomes significant only in the light of the construction of the Kerch Bridge. But since Crimea became part of the Russian Federation, this dispute has died down somewhat.

Conclusion

To summarize all of the above, it should be noted that the clear establishment and observance of state borders is of particular importance in terms of the integrity and security of the state.

But we should not forget that the territory of most countries, including the Russian Federation, is also a zone of passage of the shortest transit freight routes and air routes connecting not only Europe and Asia, but also countries North America with the Eurasian continent. Based on this, the issue of maintaining close economic and political contacts remains important. Such cooperation will avoid the need to search for new routes of communication, in particular construction gas pipelines, railways and other communications bypassing territories with which there are certain types of conflicts.

State borders of Russia: video

The total length of Russia's borders is the largest in the world and reaches 62,269 km. Of these, the length of the sea borders is 37636.6 km and the land borders are 24625.3 km. Of the maritime boundaries on the coast of the Arctic, or the Russian Arctic sector, there are 19,724.1 km, and on the sea coast - 16,997.9 km.

Maritime boundaries extend 12 nautical miles (22.7 km) from the coast, separating internal territorial waters from international ones. The border of Russia's maritime economic zone is located 200 nautical miles (about 370 km) from the coast. Within this zone, navigation of any countries is allowed, but the development and extraction of all types of natural resources located in the waters, on the bottom and in the subsoil, is carried out only by Russia. Other countries can extract natural resources here only in agreement with the Russian government. The northern borders of the country completely pass through the waters of the seas: , East Siberian and (follow the map). Except, all of them all year round are covered with drifting multi-year pack ice, so navigation across the seas is difficult and is only possible with the use of nuclear icebreaking ships.

The eastern borders of Russia pass mainly through the waters of the Pacific Ocean and its seas: the Bering, Okhotsk and Japanese. Our country's closest maritime neighbors here are Japan and. The length of the maritime border with is 194.3 km, and with the USA - 49 km. The narrow La Perouse Strait separates Russian territorial waters from the island of Hokkaido.

In the south and southwest of Russia, maritime borders pass with countries (, and), as well as with sea waters. Across the waters and seas - with Ukraine and. connects our country with, and along it there are waterways to Europe and. Thus, Russia is one of the great maritime powers and it has both a commercial and naval fleet.

The land borders of our Motherland are very long. In the northwest our neighbors are Norway and Finland. The length of the border with is 219.1 km, and with Finland - 1325.8 km. The length of the border along the Baltic Sea coast is 126.1 km. Along the western border of Russia there are states: Estonia, Latvia, Belarus and. The land border passes through the territory of the Kaliningrad region with Lithuania. The section of the maritime border near the south-eastern part of the Baltic Sea (sea coast of the Kaliningrad region) is 140 km. In addition, the length of the river border of the region with Lithuania is 206.6 km, the lake border is 30.1 km, and with Poland is 236.3 km.

The length of Russia's land border with Estonia is 466.8 km, with Latvia - 270.6 km, with Latvia - 1239 km, with Ukraine - 2245.8 km. The length of the Black Sea sea border is 389.5 km, along the Caspian Sea - 580 km, and along the Caspian Sea - 350 km.

Russia's southern border with Georgia and Azerbaijan runs along the mountain ranges of the Main Caucasus (Watershed) Range and the spurs of the Samur Range. The length of the border with Georgia is 897.9 km, with Azerbaijan - 350 km. On the coast of the Caspian Sea, the southern border of Russia with Kazakhstan runs along the Caspian lowland, along the plains and hills of the Urals and Trans-Urals, the southern outskirts of the lowland and along the river valley it approaches the foothills. The total length of the land border with Kazakhstan reaches 7598.6 km.

Russian border guards also guard land borders in the mountains and. The total length of the Tajik border reaches 1909 km.

Further east, Russia's southern border with and passes through the high mountains of Altai, Western and. To the east of Mongolia, Russia again borders China along the Argun and Ussuri, which are shared by both countries. The total length of land borders with China is 4209.3 km, and with China - 3485 km.

In the extreme southeast, Russia borders on the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. The length of the border is 39.4 km.

As you can see, most of the borders of our country run along natural boundaries: seas, rivers and mountains. Some of them make international contacts difficult. These are high mountain ranges covered with perennial pack ice in southern Russia. European, Barents, Baltic, Black, Azov and border rivers and river valleys contribute to Russia's diverse connections with foreign countries.

Due to the large length of longitude in Russia, the time difference is large - it is 10. Accordingly, the entire territory of the country is divided into 10 time zones. In sparsely populated areas and on the seas, time zone boundaries follow meridians. In densely populated areas, they are carried out along the borders of administrative regions, territories and autonomous republics, skirting large cities. This is done to make it easier to calculate time. Within administrative units, a single time is established. in many time zones is accompanied by a number of inconveniences and difficulties. Thus, Central Television programs from Moscow have to be repeated specifically for residents of the eastern regions of the country, since many programs there occur late at night or early in the morning. At the same time, the time difference allows you to maneuver the use of electricity. With the help of powerful power line systems, the maximum supply of electricity moves with the sun, making it possible to make do with fewer power plants.

Every place on Earth has its own local time. In addition, there are summer and winter local times. This is when, by order of the government of a number of states, in March-April the clock hands are moved 1 hour forward, and in September-October - 1 hour back. For the convenience of international and intercity communications, the so-called standard time is introduced. In Russia, train and plane schedules are based on Moscow time.

In the USSR, for a more rational use of the daylight hours, since 1930, clocks have been moved forward 1 hour throughout the world - this is maternity time. Maternity time of the 2nd time zone in which Moscow is located is called Moscow time.

The local time of residents of the Kaliningrad region differs by 1 hour (more precisely, by 54 minutes) from the local Moscow time, since the Kaliningrad region is located in the first time zone.

The role and importance of time in the economy and life of people is enormous. Humans and all plant and animal organisms have a “biological clock”. This is the conventional name for the ability of living organisms to move through time. Watch the animals and you will see that they have a strict daily routine. Plants also have a certain rhythm of life.

The biological clock works under the influence of the basic daily rhythm of the Earth - its rotation around its axis, on which changes in light, air, cosmic radiation, gravity, electricity, and the length of day and night depend. Life processes inside human body are also subject to earthly rhythms. The rhythms of the “biological clock” of living organisms are encoded in the cells of organisms and are inherited through natural selection, through chromosomes.


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