Russia to close Ivangorod border crossing point for reconstruction from Feb 1

The Narva-Ivangorod border crossing point. Photo: Konstantin Sednev

Russia will close the Ivangorod border crossing point for reconstruction from Feb. 1 next year.

Interior Minister Lauri Laanemets told that Estonia has yet to receive an official note from Russia about the start time, the content of the works, restrictions and the completion of the works, therefore the Ministry of the Interior does not have official information.

«According to unofficial information, this concerns the Narva-Ivangorod border crossing point, where it is said that the entire vehicle inspection area will be rebuilt, so border crossing will only be possible on foot during the construction work,» Laanemets said.

He added that in such a case, any border crossing with vehicles would be directed to the Luhamaa and Koidula border crossing points when it comes to Estonia.

«Due to the sanctions and restrictions caused by Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine, the volume of border crossings has dried up compared to previous years, and at the same time, we know that Russia has been planning the renovation of some border crossing points for a long time. Taking this into account, Russia's decision to start renovating the border crossing point now would not be too unexpected,» Laanemets said.

Jaan Toots, mayor of the northeastern border town of Narva, said that Russia has threatened this kind of closure on three occasions already, but has yet to do it.

«We have not received an official notification from them. But it won't be a major blow either, because Russian cars have not been able to cross the border for a long time, and Estonian cars sometimes do. But if the bridge goes under repairs, it can still be crossed on foot. Of course, this is a big blow for cars, trucks and buses,» he said.

According to Toots, there has been some discussion about how bus traffic could work in such a case.

«Whether buses will carry until here (Narva) and buses will continue to carry from there (Ivangorod),» he said. «When an official notice comes, then we must think further.»

Head of the Border Guard Veiko Kommusaar said that the Police and Border Guard Board has received no official notice concerning the repairs of the Ivangorod border crossing point.

«However, according to the information that has reached us, Russia indeed has a plan to start construction works at the Ivangorod border crossing point in February of next year, which is planned to last until the end of 2025. During the construction works, only pedestrians would be able to cross the border at the Narva-Ivangorod border crossing point,» Kommusaar said.

He added that the volumes of border crossings between Estonia and Russia are significantly smaller than they were before the coronavirus pandemic and Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine.

«Given the circumstances, we recommend not going to Russia without an urgent need,» Kommusaar said.