About 17,014 persons crossed the borders with Kaliningrad at Bezledy and Grzechotki during the course of five days between December 23 and December 27, according to information provided by the Polish Border Guard.
EU Helpers notes that 4,998 cars were registered to cross the border over that same time period.
Since January 7 is Russian Christmas, the number of people and cars crossing the border is much more than it is on other days. According to the authorities, they also anticipate a high volume of crossings in the first few days of January.
Russians are unable to travel directly from the European Union due to sanctions that the EU has placed on Russia, according to Notes from Poland. Rather, they arrive in the Türkiye/Kaliningrad region and take a plane to Russia.
Though Russians make up a sizable portion of the population across the EU, Germany in particular has been identified to have a high Russian population. According to information made public, Russians living in Germany drive their cars to the Khrabrovo Airport in Kaliningrad. They fly to Moscow or St. Petersburg after parking their autos at the airport upon arrival.
They leave Russia as quickly as possible, go back to the same airport, pick up their automobiles, and drive back into EU territory. Not only do Russians living in Germany choose this as one of the least expensive ways to visit Russia at the moment, but so do citizens of other EU nations.
Notes from Poland emphasizes that although this is convenient for the Russians, the ethnic Polish community in Kaliningrad is dissatisfied with the circumstances.
There is an ethnic Polish community in Kaliningrad, and they own automobiles registered in Russia. They claim it is unjust that they cannot cross the border, whereas Russians with cars registered in the EU may.
The ethnic Polish community in Kaliningrad stated that they are unable to travel freely to and from Poland even when they possess Polish citizenship or a Karta Polaka, which attests to their ethnicity, because of the prohibition placed on cars registered in Russia.
Many people with Karta Polakas in the Kaliningrad region stated that they are forced to pay someone with EU registration plates to transport them into and out of the EU, noting that the cost can reach €400.
Out of all those who crossed the border between Poland and the Kaliningrad region between December 23 and December 27, just 824 were Poles. This suggests that individuals are experiencing difficulty traveling to and from the area as a result of the limitations.